Revealing the multidimensional value of cultivated land resources, improving calculation methods, and exploring their spatial distribution characteristics and influencing factors are crucial for the enhancement of natural resource accounting system and the protection of cultivated land resources. This study take Guangxi, China as an example and construct a comprehensive multidimensional value evaluation system for cultivated land resources at the county scale. The income capitalization method, substitution market method, and value equivalent correction method were applied to calculate the economic, social, and ecological values of cultivated land resources in 111 counties. Furthermore, spatial autocorrelation analysis was employed to study their distribution characteristics and influencing factors. The results show that: (1) The total value of cultivated land resources in Guangxi reach 19,729.2 billion yuan, and the average cultivated land value is 5.3511 million yuan/hm2, of which the ratio of economic, social and ecological values is about 6:1:2; (2) The value of cultivated land has a certain distribution pattern in the global space, and the average economic and social value show the spatial distribution patterns of "low in the west and high in the east" and "low in the northwest and high in the southeast" respectively."(3) There is a significant spatial clustering effect of all values of cultivated land resources in local space, with "high-high" and "low-low" clustering. (4) Economic development level is significantly negatively correlated with the ecological value of cultivated land, while has a significant positive correlation with social value; (5) Natural conditions, economic development and agricultural development approaches are the key factors affecting the value of cultivated land resources.

To investigate the effect of montmorillonite on nonylphenol enrichment in a zebrafish model. The AB strain zebrafish were used as the animal subjects and three concentration gradients were set for both nonylphenol and montmorillonite, according to their actual concentrations in aquaculture water in Huzhou city. A group treated with nonylphenol alone was also set, adding up to 12 experimental groups. Concentrations of nonylphenol enriched in the liver, muscle, and gill of zebrafish were detected by solid phase microextraction–high performance liquid chromatography at Day 7, 15, and 30, respectively. Besides, the relative enzymatic activity of Superoxide dismutase (SOD) and the Glutathione S-transferase (GST) were also been detected, and the data were statistically analyzed. The results showed that the concentrations of nonylphenol in zebrafish peaked at Day 7 and gradually decreased afterwards for all the experimental groups. And the montmorillonite reduces short-term accumulation of nonylphenol in gills, and the high concentration of nonylphenol facilitates its enrichment in liver and muscle while the low concentration of nonylphenol doesn’t. Meanwhile, the low concentration of nonylphenol in liver exerts an influence on the inductive effect of SOD and GST while the high concentration of nonylphenol shows the inhibiting effect of SOD and GST.

The study aimed to investigate how distributed leadership influences adolescents' social and emotional competence, considering the roles of student-centered instructional practices and teacher self-efficacy. Utilizing survey data from 7,246 Suzhou adolescents enrolled in the SESS program, the study employed multilevel structural equation modeling for analysis. The findings indicated a positive correlation between distributed leadership and adolescents' social and emotional competence, as evaluated by teachers. Moreover, distributed leadership was observed to exert an indirect impact on adolescents' self-assessment and teacher-rated social and emotional competence. This influence operated through several mediators: student-centered instructional practices, teacher self-efficacy, and the sequential mediating pathway of student-centered instructional practices → teacher self-efficacy. This study underscores the significance of supportive elements in fostering students' social and emotional competence. It offers valuable insights into the everyday practices of teachers, principals, and administrators. Additionally, it sheds light on how distributed leadership contributes to enhancing adolescents' overall social and emotional development.

This paper investigates the critical factors for balancing environmental sustainability and economic development through the lens of New Structural Economics. Specifically, we utilize the congruence index to access the alignment between local factor endowment structure and firm production input structure. Using a comprehensive manufacturing firm-level pollutant emissions dataset from the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YEB) region in China, we find that firms demonstrating higher congruence exhibit improved economic performance and alignment with comparative advantages. This not only contributes to increased economic efficiency for these firms but also leads to a reduction in pollutant emissions, including wastewater discharge and Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) emissions. Our study provides valuable insights into achieving mutually beneficial environmental and economic outcomes.

Climate warming profoundly affect vegetative growth, flowering phenology and sexual reproduction of plants, therefore the ornamental value of wild flowers. Despite this, the extent and mechanism of the impact remain unclear. Here, we conducted warming experiment for two growing seasons (1.89 ℃ in 2017 and 2.37 ℃ in 2018 increases) with infrared heaters to examine the effects of warming on ornamental value of wild flower I. oxyanthera, endemic to China, in Mount Emei. We fitted generalized linear mixed models (GLMMs) and generalized linear model (GLM) to examine how warming affected plant morphology and floral traits. We evaluated comprehensive ornamental value based on plant morphology and flowering characteristics using Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and disentangled the impact of the two traits on ornamental value using principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares structural equation model (PLS-SEM) under the ambient and warming treatments. Warming decreased significantly plant height and crown width, while increased branch number and single leaf area. Warming also decreased vexillum length, corolla tube length, nectar spur length and pedicel length. In addition, warming shortened flowering duration per plant and reduced flower number, while there was no significant effect on flower longevity, flower color at full-bloom stage between the control and warming treatment. Therefore, comprehensive ornamental value under warming was lower than that under the control. Pedicel length, flower color, flower longevity and flowering duration per plant were the main factors of affecting comprehensive ornamental value. PLS-SEM showed that warming had an indirect negative effect on ornamental value via direct negative effects on flowering traits. Collectively, these results indicate that although promoting vegetative growth, short-term warming decreased significantly ornamental value of I. oxyanthera due to warming-caused smaller flowers and shorter flowering duration.

Modular high-rise buildings frequently adopt cast-in-place concrete to ensure building integrity. To reduce the material consumption and realize mold-free casting, a 30 mm thick light concrete mold shell wall panel ( MiC wall panel) is set as part of the shear wall. But the concrete casting process is prone to cracking and rising pattern. Its force performance and damage mechanism is not clear. To this end, this paper designs three groups of MiC wall panels with different material component types. The static load test is carried out in a graded partitioned loading mode. The effects of different material components on the mechanical properties of MiC wall panels are systematically investigated and parametrically analyzed by numerical simulation. The results show that the front cracks of the wall slab are mainly distributed under the truss tendons, and the back cracks are mainly distributed in the span position of the adjacent truss tendons. They are both along the span direction of the wall slab. Increasing the strength level of concrete and using steel fiber concrete can improve the mechanical properties of MiC wall panels to different degrees. Among them, increasing the concrete strength has a significant effect on improving the load-bearing capacity of wall panels, while incorporating steel fibers can significantly improve the deformation and crack resistance of wall panels. By building more finite element models, it was verified that the steel fiber admixture has limited effect on the mechanical properties of wall panels as the concrete grade increases. This study aims to summarize the types of wall panels with the best working properties. It provides a practical basis for optimizing the production and fabrication process of MiC wall panels.

Barnyardgrass (Echinochloa spp.) is a prevalent type of weed in rice fields worldwide. Despite the growing knowledge concerning allelopathic interference with barnyardgrass, little is understood regarding the competitive mechanisms between allelopathic rice and herbicide-resistant barnyardgrass at the plant physiological level. In this context, a hydroponic system was employed to investigate the root morphological traits and different phytohormones levels of two rice cultivars, i.e., the allelopathic rice cultivar “PI312777” (PI) and the non-allelopathic rice cultivar “Lemont” (LE), when co-planted with quinclorac-resistant and -susceptible barnyardgrass, respectively. The results showed that the shoot and root biomass were greater in the allelopathic rice cultivar. Moreover, the treatments at the two time points induced an increase in shoot and root biomass of PI when subjected to barnyardgrass stress. In terms of root morphology, PI exhibited significantly higher fine-root length in diameters <0.5 mm, a greater number of root tips, and longer root tips compared to LE. In addition, the levels of different plant hormones, including auxin (IAA), abscisic acid (ABA), jasmonic acid (JA), and salicylic acid (SA), known for their diverse adaptation strategies to biotic stress, were analysed. The response to quinclorac-resistant barnyardgrass stress was consistent in terms of the content of well-known stress-related hormones, namely SA and JA. The accumulation of SA and JA was observed in both rice cultivars under the stress of quinclorac-resistant barnyardgrass, with higher contents of these hormones in PI than that in LE. The most significant change was observed in IAA and ABA contents in rice, which decreased significantly from 7 days to 14 days under co-culture stress. Additionally, PI contained higher levels of IAA and ABA than LE in the presence of barnyardgrass stress. This research may aid in the development of strategies for reducing the environmental impact of herbicides through the prudent selection of non-chemical herbicide control tactics.

In order to apply RAP fine aggregate to High Modulus Asphalt Concrete(HMAC), this study first extracts aged asphalt from RAP fine aggregate through extraction and distillation, and adds it to high modulus modified asphalt in proportions of 20%, 40%, 60%, and 80%. The performance changes of the recycled asphalt were investigated using conventional performance tests and dynamic shear rheological tests (DSR). Microscopic techniques such as four‐component analysis and infrared spectroscopy were employed to explain macroscopic performance changes in terms of component and functional group changes in the asphalt. Using HMAC‐20 gradation as an example, uniaxial compression dynamic modulus tests, rutting tests, freeze‐thaw splitting tests, and low‐temperature bending tests were conducted to evaluate the performance changes of recycled asphalt mixture with different RAP fine aggregate contents through four indices: dynamic modulus, dynamic stability, tensile strength ratio (TSR), and maximum bending strain. The results indicate that for every 20% increase in aged asphalt, the penetration at 25°C, ductility at 25°C, and dynamic viscosity at 60°C decrease by approximately 6.2%, 15.4%, and 3.9%, respectively, while the softening point increases by approximately 13.3%. It is concluded that the addition of aged asphalt significantly affects the ductility at 25°C and the softening point. As the aged content increases, the complex shear modulus (G*) and phase angle (δ) of the recycled asphalt decrease, while the rutting factor increases. The four‐component analysis and infrared spectroscopy of the asphalt demonstrate that the incorporation of aged asphalt is merely a physical blending phenomenon, involving changes in the content of the four components without the formation of new functional groups (new peaks). When RAP fine aggregate is applied to high modulus recycled asphalt mixture, compared to high modulus modified asphalt mixture, the recycled mixtures exhibit higher dynamic modulus and dynamic stability, but significantly reduced water stability and low‐temperature performance.

We show succinctly a natural origin of the beautiful Gamma function in light of the WJ distribution, linking to quite distinct fields.

Composite polymolecular separation membranes were prepared by combining multi-branched ZIF-L with high porosity electrospinning nanofibers PI. Meanwhile, PDA and PEI were introduced into the membrane in order to improve its adhesion. The new membrane is so called “PI@PDA@PEI/ZIF-L-4” composite membrane; compared with PI@PDA@PEI/ZIF-8 composite membrane, the new membrane’s filtration rates for heavy metal ions such as Cd2+, Cr3+ and Pb2+ were increased by 7.0%, 6.6% and 9.3%, respectively. Furthermore, the new membrane has a permeability up to 1,140.0 L·m−2·h−1·bar−1, and were presenting a very stable performances after four repeated uses. The separation mechanism of PI@PDA@PEI/ZIF-L composite membranes was further analyzed in order to provide a base support for producing separation membranes with high barrier rate and high flux.

Vanadium is a well-known essential trace element, which usually exists in oxidation states in form of vanadate cation intracellularly. The pharmacological study of vanadium begins at the discovery of its unexpected inhibitory effect on ATPase. Thereafter, the protective effects on cells and the abilities in glucose metabolism regulation were observed from vanadium compound, leading to the application of vanadium compounds in clinical trials for curing diabetes. Alzheimer’s dis-ease (AD) is the most common dementia disease in elderly people. However, there is still no efficient agents for treating AD safely to date. This is mainly because of the complexity of the pathology, which are characterized by the senile plaques composed by amyloid-beta (Aβ) protein in the parenchyma of brain and the neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) derived from hyperphosphorylated tau protein in neurocyte, along with mitochondrial damage, and eventually the central nervous system (CNS) atrophy. AD was also illustrated as type-3 diabetes, because of the observations of insulin deficiency and the high level of glucose in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), as well as the im-paired insulin signaling in brain. In this review, we summarized the advance of applicating vanadium compound on AD treatment in experimental research and pointed out the limitation of the current study on using vanadium compounds in AD treatment. We hope it will help the future study in this field.

To investigate the associated mechanisms concerning collagen and the expression of apoptosis-related proteins in porcine skin injuries induced by laser exposure, pig skin was treated with a 1064 nm laser. The healing process of the laser-treated areas, alterations in collagen structure, and changes in apoptosis were continuously observed and analyzed from 6 hours to 28 days post-irradiation. On the 28th day following exposure, wound contraction and recovery were notably sluggish in the medium-high dose groups, displaying more premature and delicate type III collagen within the newly regenerated tissues. The collagen density in these groups was roughly 37-58% of that in the normal group. Between days 14 and 28 after irradiation, there was a substantial rise in apoptotic cell count in the forming epidermis and granulation tissue of the medium-high dose group, in contrast to the normal group. Notably, the expression of proapoptotic proteins bax, caspase-3, and caspase-9 surged significantly 14 days after irradiation in the medium-high dose groups and persisted at elevated levels on the 28th day. During the later stage of wound healing, the augmented apoptotic cell population and insufficient collagen generation in the newborn skin tissue of the medium-high dose groups were closely associated with delayed wound recovery.

This study introduces an innovative integration of hyperbolic metamaterials (HMMs) and photonic crystals (PtCs), each possessing unique dispersion properties that effectively manipulate the propagation of light. We present a PtC waveguide consisting of arrays of HMM nanorods, denoted as HMM PtCs. This waveguide configuration enables the realization of a high figure of merit (FOM) nano-sensor. By modifying the refractive indices of the surrounding materials, the PtC waveguide exhibits alterations in absorption and transmission, allowing for the detection of temperature, pressure, and material variations. Numerical methods were employed to demonstrate the remarkable efficiency of this proposed system, achieving a sensitivity of 324.16 nm/RIU (refractive index unit) and an impressive FOM of 469.58 RIU−1. These results signify a substantial improvement over surface plasmonic sensors, which typically exhibit limited FOMs. As a consequence, the HMM PtC waveguide sensor emerges as an exceptionally appealing option for photonic sensing applications. The proposed HMM PtC waveguide holds vast potential across diverse fields, including biology, medicine, and clinics, representing an exciting advancement for both industry and scientific research.

This purpose was to compare the ability of body shape index (ABSI) and body roundness index (BRI) with waist circumference (WC), body mass index (BMI), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) and body adiposity index (BAI) to predict metabolic risk. The cross-sectional study was conducted in 17,360 Chinese subjects (were aged 18-95 years old) who escaped cardiovascular disease (CVD) or diabetes. Biochemical and anthropometric variables were measured by trained staff. Receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) and optimal cutoff values of obesity indices were recruited to compare the predictive ability for metabolic risk factors. The mean age of subjects was 53.7(13.1) years, 41.6 % were males. Within young group (<60 years), the areas under the curve (AUC) demonstrated that WC, BMI, WHR, WHtR and BRI were able to similarly predict high metabolic risk in males (0.74 vs. 0.74 vs. 0.73 vs. 0.73 vs. 0.73) and in females (0.73 vs. 0.73 vs. 0.71 vs. 0.73 vs. 0.73), while the approximate predictive ability were only acquired in males (0.73 vs. 0.73 vs. 0.70 vs. 0.73 vs. 0.73) within elder group (≥60 years). The optimal cut-off values of BRI for high metabolic risk were calculated in males (<60 y: 3.49 vs. ≥60 y: 3.46) and females (<60 y: 3.47 vs. ≥60 y: 3.60). Meanwhile, BRI displayed a strong prediction to elevated BP and elevated TG in males (AUC = 0.64; AUC = 0.70) and to elevated BP, elevated TG and elevated SUA in females (AUC = 0.67; AUC = 0.69; AUC =0.70). BRI was able to similarly predict high metabolic risk compared to WC, BMI, WHR, WHtR and BAI, while ABSI was not. Moreover, BRI revealed specific predictive ability for elevated BP, elevated TG and elevated SUA.

The majority of existing numerical simulations of the effect of bridge piers on water movement are based on a limited number of bridge piers at a laboratory scale. Furthermore, some 2D numerical simulations for actual bridge projects have deficiencies, including the use of overly large mesh sizes and an inadequate treatment of bridge piers. In this study, we compare three methods of structural mesh encryption, suspension mesh, and nonstructural mesh based on Delft3D, and apply the optimization scheme to a real bridge project. It is demonstrated that optimal results can be achieved by utilising a grid size comparable to the pier diameter (Dp) in the region away from the piers. In the vicinity of the piers, the grid cell size should be no larger than 1/9 Dp. The suspended grid technique (DD Boundary) can yield results consistent with those obtained using a full-area high-resolution grid, provided that the total number of grids can be reduced and the computational time is considerably reduced. In this study, the unstructured mesh (Deflt3D Flexible Mesh) scheme was unable to capture the oscillations of the wake flow behind the bridge piers. However, the application of the optimized scheme in bridge engineering has demonstrated its practical value. The findings of this study on mesh resolution and suspension mesh scheme can be applied to the Delft3D software and are also useful for other numerical simulation work.

We suppose that a Cooper pair (CP) will experience a damping force exerted by the condensed matter. A Langevin equation of a CP in two dimensional condensed matter is established. Following a method similar to Nelson's stochastic mechanics, generalized Schr\"{o}dinger equation of a CP in condensed matter is derived. If the CPs move with a constant velocity, then the corresponding direct current (DC) electrical conductivity can be calculated. Therefore, a Drude like formula of resistivity of CPs is derived. We suppose that the damping coefficient of CPs in two dimensional cuprate superconductors is a linear function of temperature. Then the resistivity and scattering rate of CPs turn out to be also linear-in-temperature. The origin of linear-in-temperature resistivity and Planckian dissipation in cuprate superconductors may be the linear temperature dependence of the damping coefficient of CPs.

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.

From ancient times to the present, mankind has struggled with infectious diseases that pose a serious threat to people's lives, COVID-19 pandemic has given a huge impact to the human society, which has triggered a lot of thinking. In the future, humans may encounter various unexpected disasters or awful events, therefore, should learn from COVID-19 pandemic incident that need to pay special attention to the emergency supply of manpower and materials, whether a major disaster or not. That is emergency medical management is very important in the event of a sudden outbreak. What’s more, the preparation and scheduling of emergency medical supplies well safeguards people’s lives, health, and safety. However, owing to the sudden onset of an epidemic and given the population trends, the scale of infections and the demand for supplies in the epidemic area are uncertain. The main influencing factors and mechanisms of emergency material demand under the development trend of emergencies can be studied, and materials can be allocated efficiently and effectively, so as to minimize damage. In this study, it improves upon the dynamics model of infectious diseases firstly, by establishing a demand forecasting model for a certain area, taking the Hubei province as an example. Furthermore, this dynamics model is used to predict demand for emergency supplies, such as masks, respirators, and food in the area where the disaster will occur. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness and reliability of this prediction model, which supports for the development of emergency material management systems, ulterior, this study provides a framework for the distribution of emergency supplies and a guideline for relief efforts.

Background: Peroxiredoxins (Prxs) comprise antioxidant factors that are widely found in prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Abnormal expression of Prxs is closely related to tumorigenesis. Methods: This study examined the prognostic value and expression of Prxs in lung cancer by Human Protein Atlas (HPA), Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis (GEPIA), UALCAN, Kaplan-Meier Plotter, cBioPortal and Functional Enrichment Analysis Tool (FunRich) databases. Results: We found that Prx1/2/3/4/5 were overexpressed in both lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC) and lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) relative to normal lung cells. However, the expression level of Prx6 was lower in LUAD and higher in LUSC than normal lung cells. The level of Prx3 and Prx6 were associated with pathological stage. Prognostic analysis showed that elevated Prx1 and Prx2 expression were correlated with low Overall Survival (OS), whereas high Prx5 and Prx6 expression level predicted high OS. Conclusions: Our results effectively revealed the level of Prxs in lung cancer and its influence on the prognosis of lung carcinoma, contributing to the study of the role of Prxs in tumorigenesis.

People have always hoped to be able to fill an entire plane with ``single unit cells'' without periodicity. This wish was realized after the mathematician discovered a 13-sided ``single unit cell'' named `einstein'. These non-periodic tessellations generally exhibit anisotropic properties, making them superior in terms of mechanical performance compared to periodic structures. From the perspective of information entropy, the reason behind the improved mechanical properties of these structures is the higher entropy associated with non-periodic configurations. To quantify the disorder of non-periodic structures, we propose an entropy expression for the `einstein' metamaterial. To demonstrate the mechanical properties of these high-entropy structures, we fabricate specimens using 3D printing and conducte mechanical experiments. For comparative analysis, we also use ABAQUS to perform finite element analysis of the problem. The research results reveal that the mechanical properties of high-entropy structures created by the non-periodic stacking of cells are significantly improved compared to those of low-entropy structures created by periodic stacking. The conclusions drawn from the study of individual issues are generalizable and may be of assistance in future material and structural design.

Water pollution, intensified by the release of hard-to-degrade pollutants, poses severe threats to ecosystems, human health, and economic development. The existing advanced oxidation processes often involve high operational costs and may result in secondary pollution, highlighting the necessity for innovative and more sustainable solutions. To address these challenges, our study introduces a cost-effective and eco-friendly corona discharge barrier plasma discharger for wastewater treatment. Through the central composite design/response surface methodology, a high decolorization rate of 98% of methylene blue (MB) within 10 minutes was achieved by optimizing parameters such as pH and voltage. Furthermore, the mechanisms of the generation of reactive oxygen species via this device was discussed in detail and the degradation pathways of MB were described. Moreover, this device is also very energy-efficient, with a low energy density and electrical energy per order of 0.15 watt/mL and 5.79 kWh/m³/order, respectively. In conclusion, the plasma discharger developed in this study provides a cost-effective and environmentally sustainable solution for dye wastewater treatment. This research contributes significantly to the advancement of sustainable dye wastewater management practices, offering an innovative method that meets both environmental and economic objectives.

This article presents a comprehensive framework for valuing financial instruments subject to credit risk. In particular, we focus on the impact of default dependence on asset pricing, as correlated default risk is one of the most pervasive threats in financial markets. We analyze how swap rates are affected by bilateral counterparty credit risk, and how CDS spreads depend on the trilateral credit risk of the buyer, seller, and reference entity in a contract. Moreover, we study the effect of collateralization on valuation, since the majority of OTC derivatives are collateralized. The model shows that a fully collateralized swap is risk-free, whereas a fully collateralized CDS is not equivalent to a risk-free one.

Small peptides (SPs), ranging from 5 to 100 amino acids, play integral roles in plants due to their diverse functions. Despite their low abundance and small molecular weight, SPs intricately regulate critical aspects of plant life, including cell division, growth, differentiation, flowering, fruiting, maturation, and stress responses. As vital mediators of intercellular signaling, SPs have garnered significant attention in plant biology research. This comprehensive review delves into SPs' structure, classification, and identification, providing a detailed understanding of their significance. Additionally, we summarize recent findings on the biological functions and signaling pathways of prominent SPs that regulate plant growth and development. The review also offers a forward-looking perspective on future research directions in peptide signaling pathways.

Train fault detection primarily relies on the comparative analysis of collected images with standard reference images, making the accurate identification of the collected image types crucial for effective fault detection. Most current systems achieve indirect classification of carriage images by using Automatic Equipment Identification (AEI) devices to recognize carriage identification number information while capturing the carriage images. However, damaged RF tags or blurred characters can hinder these devices, obstructing further train fault analyses. The unique features of carriage linear array images, such as high resolution, extreme aspect ratios, and local non-linear distortions, pose significant challenges to recognition algorithms. This paper proposes a method specifically designed to recognize these types of images. First, we implement an object detection algorithm to locate the positions of key components in carriage linear array images. By leveraging the spatial layout mapping between these key components and the carriage type classification, we simplify the complex image recognition problem into a sparse point set alignment task. To ensure effective registration despite local distortions in the linear array images, we propose a weighted radial basis function. To address the issues of unknown matching relationships and quantity mismatches during point set alignment, the proposed objective function is designed to maximize the similarity between Gaussian mixtures of point sets, thereby determining the RBF weights. Extensive experiments have demonstrated that our algorithm achieves 100% recognition accuracy under local nonlinear scale distortions of less than 15%. The algorithm remains effective even in the presence of some false positives or missed detections in key component object detection results. It can accurately identify the target category from 79 image categories within 24 milliseconds on an i7 CPU without GPU support. It is of great significance to reduce system cost and promote automatic exterior fault detection for train rolling stock.

The robust control of high precision electromechanical systems, such as micropositioners, is challenging in terms of the inherent high nonlinearity, the sensitivity to external interference, and the complexity of accurate identification of the model parameters. To cope with these problems, this work investigates a disturbance observer-based deep reinforcement learning control strategy to realize high robustness and precise tracking performance. Reinforcement learning has shown great potential as optimal control scheme, however, its application in micropositioning systems is still rare. Therefore, embedded with the integral differential compensator (ID), deep deterministic policy gradient (DDPG) is utilized in this work with the ability to not only decrease the state error but also improves the transient response speed. In addition, an adaptive sliding mode disturbance observer (ASMDO) is proposed to further eliminate the collective effect caused by the lumped disturbances. The sterling performance is revealed with intensive tracking simulation experiments and demonstrates the improvement in the accuracy and response time of the controller.

We suppose that vacuum is filled with a kind of continuously distributed matter which may be called the $\Omega(1)$ substratum, or the electromagnetic aether. Suppose that the time scale of a macroscopic observer is very large compares to the the Maxwelllian relaxation time of the $\Omega(1)$ substratum. Thus, the macroscopic observer concludes that the $\Omega(1)$ substratum behaves like a Newtonian-fluid. Inspired by H. A. Lorentz, we speculate that electric charges may be extremely small hard spherical sources or spherical sinks with finite radii. Based on the spherical source and spherical sink model of electric charges, we derive Coulomb's law of interactions between static electric charges in vacuum. Further, we derive a reduced form of the Lorentz's force law for static electric charges in vacuum.

Aim: Sca-1+CD31− cells were shown to be endothelial stem/progenitor cells, found in many mammalian tissues, including heart, were able to differentiate into cardiomyocytes in vitro and in vivo. Our previous work indicated that heart derived Sca-1+CD31− cells increased Nr1d1 mRNA level and decreased cells plasticity with aging. However, little is known about how NR1D1 affects Sca-1+CD31− cells plasticity. Methods: Lentiviral vector was used to stably overexpress Nr1d1 in young Sca-1+CD31− cells and to knockdown Nr1d1 in aged Sca-1+CD31− cells. Cell differentiation, proliferation, apoptosis, and cell cycle were evaluated. Results and Conclusions: The overexpression of Nr1d1 in young Sca-1+CD31− cells inhibited cell proliferation and promoted apoptosis. Knockdown of Nr1d1 in aged Sca-1+CD31− cells promoted cell proliferation and inhib-ited apoptosis. Using mouse cardiac myocytes cell line, confirmed the effect of Nr1d1 and indi-cated that Nr1d1 induce Serpina3 expression via Nr1d1 interaction with Nr4a3. Nr1d1 may there-fore be identified as a potent anti-aging receptor and be a therapeutic target for aging relative diseases.

In this work, a simple and environmentally friendly process combining low pressure (vacuum) and mechanical compression is proposed to convert recycled polypropylene (PP) foams (28 kg/m3) into low density foams (90-131 kg/m3) having negative tensile and compressive Poisson's ratios (NPR). The effect of processing conditions (vacuum time, temperature, and mechanical pressure) was studied. Based on the optimized conditions, the tensile Poisson’s ratio of the resulting auxetic foams reached −1.50, while the minimum compressive Poisson's ratios was −0.32 for the same sample. The foam structure was characterized via morphological analysis (SEM) to determine any changes related to the treatment applied. Finally, tensile and compressive properties (Young's modulus, strain energy, energy dissipation and damping capacity) are also presented and discussed. It was observed that the mechanical properties of the resulting auxetic foams were improved compared to the original PP foam (PP-O) for all tensile properties in terms of modulus (19.9 to 59.8 kPa), strength (0.298 to 1.43 kPa) elongation at break (28 to 77%), energy dissipation (14.4 to 56.3 mJ/cm3) and damping capacity (12 to 19%). Nevertheless, improvements were also observed under compression in terms of energy dissipation (1.6 to 3.6 mJ/cm3) and damping capacity (13 to 19%). These auxetic foams can find applications in sport and military protective equipment, as well as any energy mitigation system.

Extreme-mass-ratio inspirals (EMRIs) are significant observational targets for spaceborne gravitational wave detectors, namely, LISA, Taiji, and Tianqin, which involve the inspiral of stellar-mass compact objects into massive black holes with a mass range of approximately 104∼107M⊙. EMRIs are estimated to produce long lived gravitational wave signals with more than 105 cycles before plunge, making them an ideal laboratory for exploring the strong-gravity properties of the spacetimes around the MBHs, stellar dynamics in galactic nuclei, and properties of the MBHs itself. However, the complexity of the waveform model, which involves the superposition of multiple harmonics, as well as the high-dimensional and large-volume parameter space, make the fully coherent search challenging. In our previous work, we proposed a 10-dimensional search using Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) with local maximization over the three initial angles. In this study, we extend the search to an 8-dimensional PSO with local maximization over both the three initial angles and the angles of spin direction of the MBH where the latter contribute a time independent amplitude to the waveforms. Additionally we propose a 7-dimensional PSO search by using a fiducial value for the initial orbital frequency and shifting the corresponding 8-dimensional Time Delay Interferometry responses until a certain lag returns the corresponding 8-dimensional log-likelihood ratio maximum. The reduced dimensionality likelihoods enable us to successfully search for EMRI signals with duration of 0.5 years and signal-to-noise ratio of 50 within a wider search range than our previous study. We discuss further developments, such as using a hierarchical search to narrow down the search ranges of certain parameters, and applying Graphics Processing Units to speed up the code. These advances aim to improve the efficiency and accuracy of the EMRI search algorithm.

A enantioselective tandem transformation concerning asymmetric allylic decarboxylative addition and cyclization of N-nosylimines with vinylethylene carbonates (VECs) in the presence of [Rh(C2H4)2Cl]2, chiral sulfoxide-N-olefin tridentate ligand has been developed. The reaction of VECs with various substituted N-nosylimines proceeded smoothly under mild conditions, giving highly functionalized oxazolidine frameworks in good to high yields with good to excellent enantioselectivity.

J. C. Maxwell, B. Riemann and H. Poincar$\acute{e}$ have proposed the idea that all microscopic particles are sink flows in a fluidic aether. Following this research program, a previous theory of gravitation based on a mechanical model of vacuum and a sink flow model of particles is generalized by methods of special relativistic continuum mechanics. In inertial reference frames, we construct a tensorial potential which satisfies the wave equation. Inspired by the equation of motion of a test particle, a definition of a metric tensor of a Riemannian spacetime is introduced. Applying Fock's theorem, generalized Einstein's equations in inertial systems are derived based on some assumptions. These equations reduce to Einstein's equations in case of weak field in harmonic reference frames. There exist some differences between this theory and Einstein's theory of general relativity.

Construction using earth materials demonstrates ecological sustainability using locally sourced natural materials and environmentally friendly demolition methods. In this study, the environmental impact of adding cement to soil materials for rammed-earth farmhouse construction in rural China was investigated and comparatively simulated using the One Click LCA database, focusing on the conflict between sustainability objectives and the practical aspects of cement addition. By analyzing how the addition of cement aligns with local construction practices and by addressing the debate surrounding the inclusion of cement in rammed earth construction, our objective is to provide insights into achieving a balance between the environmental impact and the pragmatic considerations of using cement in earthen building practices. Three local structure scenarios are evaluated via simulations: a cement-stabilized rammed earth wall, a fired brick wall, and a localized reinforced concrete frame structure. The quantitative environmental impacts are assessed, and the qualitative differences in adaptation, economic sustainability, and other factors are examined in the context of present-day development in rural China. The results show that the use of cement-stabilized rammed earth wall-supported structures is associated with higher embodied carbon emissions compared to structures supported by reinforced concrete frames and enclosed by brick walls; however, these emissions are lower than those for brick wall-supported structures, while effectively meeting the structural requirements. In addition, the use of cement-stabilized earth for perimeter walls simplifies material management and disposal throughout the building's life cycle, and the cost-effectiveness of cement has been found to be substantially greater than that of reinforced concrete frames and brick structures, improving economic viability and social acceptability, especially among low-income communities in rural areas.

This study aimed to investigate whether non-fasting plasma triglycerides were associated with diabetes mortality. It included 7,312 US adult participants. Diabetes mortality data were obtained via linkage to the National Death Index (NDI) records. Hazard ratios of non-fasting plasma triglycerides for diabetes mortality were assessed using Cox proportional hazards models, adjusting for age, gender, ethnicity, obesity, poverty-income ratio, education levels, physical activity, alcohol consumption, cigarette smoking status, survey period, hypercholesterolemia, hypertension, diabetes, and family history of diabetes. Among these participants, 1,180 had diabetes. A total of 420 diabetes-caused deaths were recorded during a mean follow-up of 16.8 years. A 1-natural-log-unit increase in non-fasting plasma triglycerides was associated with a 41% higher diabetes mortality risk (hazard ratio, 1.41; 95% confidence interval, 1.19-1.67). Participants with non-fasting plasma triglycerides in the highest quintile, versus those in the lowest quintile, had a 144% higher diabetes mortality risk (hazard ratio, 2.44; 95% confidence interval, 1.49-4.02). The positive association of non-fasting plasma triglycerides with diabetes mortality was independent of diabetes status at the baseline. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that non-fasting plasma triglycerides were positively associated with diabetes mortality, independent of diabetes status at the baseline. Non-fasting triglycerides may be a therapeutic target for diabetes-related complications.

Transition metal complexes have historically played a pivotal role in creating vibrant pigments utilized across artistic mediums such as ceramics, paintings, and glass mosaics. Despite their extensive historical use, our understanding of the mechanisms governing transition metal complex behavior has predominantly emerged in recent times, leaving numerous aspects of this process ripe for exploration. These complexes exhibit striking color variations under diverse conditions when employed in pigment formulations. This review utilizes a bottom-up scientific approach, spanning from microscopic to macroscopic scales, to unravel the molecular origins of the colors generated by transition metal complexes in pigments and ceramic glazes. Advanced spectroscopy techniques and computational chemistry play pivotal roles in this endeavor, highlighting the significance of understanding and utilizing analytical data effectively, with careful consideration of each technique's specific application. Furthermore, the review investigates the influence of processing conditions on color variations, providing valuable insights for artists and manufacturers aiming to enhance the precision and quality of their creations while mitigating environmental impact.

Inspired by Dirac's large number hypothesis (LNH), Zeldovich proposed a relation between the cosmological constant (CC), the mass of a proton, the Planck constant and Newton's gravitational constant. Zeldovich's formula suggests that the substance which is responsible for CC may interact with elementary particles. Since Newton's gravitational constant and the Planck constant appear in Zeldovich's formula, these interactions may be related to gravitational phenomena and quantum phenomena. Following this clue, we propose a liquid droplet model of electron. Applying the Laplace's equation, Zeldovich's formula of CC is derived. Weinberg proposes a relation between the mass of a pion, the Planck constant, the Hubble constant, Newton's gravitational constant and the velocity of light in vacuum when discussing cosmological models with a varying constant of gravitation. Weinberg pointed out that this relation may not merely be regarded as a meaningless random combinations of these fundamental constants in physics. The Weinberg's relation is derived based on the critical mass density formula in the Friedmann model of the universe and Zeldovich's formula.

In recent years, with the development of the Internet of Things and distributed computing, the "server-edge device" architecture has been widely deployed. This study focuses on leveraging autoencoder technology to address the binary classification problem in network intrusion detection, aiming to develop a lightweight model suitable for edge devices. Traditional intrusion detection models face two main challenges when directly ported to edge devices: inadequate computational resources to support large-scale models and the need to improve the accuracy of simpler models. To tackle these issues, this research utilizes Extreme Learning Machine for its efficient training speed and compact model size to implement autoencoders. Two improvements over the latest related work are proposed: First, to improve data purity and ultimately enhance detection performance, this study partitions the data into multiple regions based on the prediction results of these autoencoders. Second, leveraging autoencoder characteristics to investigate further the data within each region. We used the public dataset NSL-KDD to test the behavior of the proposed mechanism. The experimental results show that when dealing with multi-class attacks, the model's performance was significantly improved, the accuracy and the F1-score are improved by 3.5% and 2.9%, respectively maintaining its lightweight nature.

Tack is one of the most important factors affecting the operability of prepregs, but it is still very difficult to obtain the change of prepreg tack with time at different temperatures. In this paper, a newly designed T-peel device is used to test the tack decay rate of prepregs at different temperatures. The obtained decay rate deviates less than 8.9% from the manufacturer's data. The maximum deviation of the ratio of tack decay speeds calculated by the Arrhenius equation from the experiments is not higher than -9.7%. It is proved that the present method can obtain the decay rate of tack of prepregs at different temperatures. This method is also applicable to the other two types of prepregs. The article proposes the handling life unit, an operational life measurement unit for prepregs, and establishes that the relationship between tack and remaining shelf life reduces prepreg management costs.

The AREB/ABF (ABA response element binding) proteins in plants are vital for plant stress responses, but the understanding of AREB/ABFs in orchid species, an important traditional medicinal and ornamental plants, is limited. Here, twelve AREB/ABF genes were identified within three orchids’ complete genome and classified into three groups (groups I, II, and III) via a phylogenetic analysis, which was further supported by the analysis of their conserved motifs and gene structures. The cis-elements analysis showed that hormone response elements followed by light and stress responses were widely rich in AREB/ABFs. A prediction analysis of orchid ABRE/ABF-mediated regulatory network was further constructed through cis-regulatory elements (CREs) analysis of their promoter regions and revealed that several transcriptional factor (TF) gene family were abundant as the potential regulators for orchid AREB/ABFs. Expression profile analysis based on public transcriptomic data showed that most AREB/ABF genes have distinct tissue-specific expression patterns in orchid plants. Additionally, DcaABI5 as the homolog of ABA INSENSITIVE 5 (ABI5) from Arabidopsis was selected for further analysis. The results showed that Arabidopsis transgenic overexpressing DcaABI5 could rescue the ABA insensitive phenotype in the mutant abi5. Collectively, these findings will provide valuable information on AREB/ABF genes in orchids.

SETD7 is a member of the SET domain-containing lysine methyltransferase family and is a crucial component in the development and spread of a number of human cancers. However, the specific function of the SETD7 gene in ovarian cancer (OC) is still unclear. The purpose of this research was to elucidate the expression and role of SETD7 in OC. In comparison to normal controls, OC tissues (83%, 73/88) and cell lines exhibited higher protein levels of SETD7 (p < 0.001). High SETD7 protein levels were substantially correlated with M category (p = 0.019) and FIGO stage (p = 0.021). Furthermore, the high mRNA levels of SETD7 were correlated to poor progression-free survival (PFS) in all patients and serous patients with OC (p < 0.05). Importantly, the biological function experiments showed that SETD7 behaved as an oncogene in OC by dramatically facilitating the proliferation and migration of A2780 and SKOV3 cells. Additionally, SETD7 might promote cell migration via accelerating the EMT process in A2780 and SKOV3 cells. Our findings reveal that SETD7 may be a valuable molecular marker for identifying and anticipating the development of OC.

Ion beam-assisted deposition (IBAD) has been proposed as a promising texturing technology that uses film epitaxy method to obtain biaxial texture on a non-textured metal or compound substrate. Magnesium oxide (MgO) is the most well explored texturing material. In order to obtain the optimal biaxial texture, the actual thickness of the IBAD-MgO film must be controlled within 12 nm. Due to the bombardment of ion beams, IBAD-MgO has large lattice deformation, poor texture and many defects in the films. In this work, an additional homogeneous epitaxy MgO (epi-MgO) layer has been deposited on the IBAD-MgO layer by electron-beam evaporation. The biaxial texture can be optimized by the deposition of additional epi-MgO layer. The effects of growth temperature, film thickness, deposition rate and oxygen flux on the texture and morphology of the epi-MgO film were systematically studied. After the research of epi-MgO process, the best full width at half maximum (FWHM) values were 2.2 for the out-of-plane texture and 4.8° for the in-plane texture, respectively. Subsequently, the LaMnO3 cap layer and YBa2Cu3O7-x (YBCO) functional layer was deposited on the epi-MgO layer to test the quality of MgO layer. Finally, the critical current density of YBCO films is 6MA/cm2 (77K, 500nm, self-field), indicating that this research provides a high-quality MgO substrate for the YBCO layer.

A fast calculation method for the full parallax high-resolution hologram is proposed based on the elemental light field image (EI) rendering. A 3D object located near the holographic plane is firstly rendered as multiple EIs with a pinhole array. Each EI is interpolated and multiplied by a divergent sphere wave and interfered with a reference wave to form a hogel. Parallel acceleration is used to calculate the high-resolution hologram because calculation of each hogel is independent. A high-resolution hologram with the resolution of 20,0000×20,0000 pixels is calculated only within 8 minutes. Full parallax high-resolution 3D displays are realized by optical reconstructions.

Accurate prediction of the self-propulsion performance is one of the most important factors for energy-efficient design of a ship. In general, the hydrodynamic performance of a full-scale ship could be achieved by model-scale simulation or towing tank test with extrapolations. With the development of CFD methods and computing power, directly predict ship performance with full-scale CFD is an important approach. In this article, a numerical study on the full-scale self-propulsion performance with propeller operating behind ship at model- and full-scale is presented. The study includes numerical simulations using RANS method with double-model and VOF model respectively and scale effect analysis based on overall performance, local flow fields and detailed vortex identification. Verification study on grid convergence is also performed for full-scale simulation with global and local mesh refinements. And a series of sea trail tests were performed to collect reliable data for the validation of CFD predictions. The analysis of scale effect on hull-propeller interaction shows that the difference on hull boundary layer and flow separation is the main source of scale effect on ship wake. And the results of the fluctuations of propeller thrust and torque along with circulation distribution and local flow field show that propeller’s loading is significantly higher for model-scale ship. It is suggested that the difference on vortex evolution and interaction is more pronounced and have larger effects on ship’s powering performance at model-scale than full-scale according to the simulation results. From the study on self-propulsion prediction, it could be concluded that the simplification on free surface treatment does not only affect the wave-making resistance for bare hull but also the propeller performance and propeller induced ship resistance which can produced up to 5% uncertainty to the power prediction. Roughness is another important factor in full-scale simulation because it has up to approximately 7% effect on the delivery power. As a result of validation study, the numerical simulations of full-scale ship self-propulsion shows good agreement with the sea trail data especially for cases that have considered both roughness and free surface effects. This result will largely enhance our confidence to apply full-scale simulation in the prediction of ship’s self-propulsion performance in the future ship designs.

Bacterial indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), an effector molecule in microbial physiology, plays an important role in plant growth-promotion. Here, we comprehensively analyzed about 7282 prokaryotic genomes representing diverse bacterial phyla, combined with root-associated metagenomic data to unravel the distribution of tryptophan-dependent IAA synthesis pathways and to quantify the IAA synthesis-related genes in the plant root environments. We found that 82.2% of the analyzed bacterial genomes were potentially capable of synthesizing IAA from tryptophan (Trp) or intermediates. Interestingly, several phylogenetically diverse bacteria showed a preferential tendency to utilize different pathways and tryptamine and indole-3-pyruvate pathways are most prevalent in bacteria. About 45.3% of the studied genomes displayed multiple coexisting pathways, constituting complex IAA synthesis systems. Furthermore, root-associated metagenomic analyses revealed that rhizobacteria mainly synthesize IAA via IAM and tryptamine (TMP) pathways and might possess stronger IAA synthesis abilities than bacteria colonizing other environments. The obtained results refurbished our understanding of bacterial IAA synthesis pathways and provided a faster and less labor-intensive alternative to physiological screening based on genome collections. The better understanding of IAA synthesis among bacterial communities could maximize the utilization of bacterial IAA to augment the crop growth and physiological function.

Background:Malignant pleural effusion (MPE),a frequent complication of advanced malignancies. This pilot study characterized and compared the immune landscapes of breast carcinoma (BC) and lung adenocarcinoma (LADC) primary tumors(PTs) and their corresponding MPEs and tested the incorporation of multiplexed image technology for the study of malignant fluids. Methods: We studied the immune contexture of 6 BC and 5 LADC PT samples and their MPEs using 3 multiplex immunofluorescence panels. We explored associations between sample characteristics and pleural effusion–free survival. Results: Although we found 3 out of 11 PTs PD-L1 positive more than 1% by malignant cells, no MPE samples reached positive expression by malignant cells. In addition, CD3+ T cells and CD3+CD8+ cytotoxic T cells predominated (median percentages for MPEs vs. PTs: 45.5% vs. 40.7% and 4.7% vs. 6.6%, respectively). In the BC samples, CD68+ macrophages predominated (median percentages for MPEs vs. PTs:61% vs. 57.1%). Generally, CD3+CD8+FOXP3+ T cells in PTs and the distances from the malignant cells to CD3+CD8+Ki67+ and CD3+PD-1+ T cells were correlated in the first event of MPE after diagnosis. Conclusions: The immune cell phenotypes in the MPEs and PTs were similar within each cancer type but were different for LADC vs. BC.MPE analysis could be used as a substitute for PT analysis, but an expanded study on this topic is essential.

The extrinsic and intrinsic factors are essential in glioma initiation. Many extrinsic factors (UV, radiation, food, etc.) and intrinsic factors (proteins, hormones, ageing, DNA and RNA damages, etc.) was reported to being responsible for glioma initiation and progression. However, the cell responsible for glioma origin is still unknown. Many research papers have reported that glioma stem cells, senescent cells, injured cells, and death neurons are the cells of glioma origin. However, gene mutation and oncogene protein overexpression doesn’t occur only in cancer but during life evolution. The source of genetic mutations has become a fundamental issue in understanding its role in the initiation of glioma. The glioma is the precise coordination of several distant factors that work together in the initiation and development of glioma. However, the role and effects of the genes (GDNF and SOX1) on cancer cells are well known, but their gene mutation origin is controversial. Several models and theories have been proposed to explain the origins of GDNF and SOX1 genetic mutations and epigenetic modification related to cancer. Our aim in this review is to clear that incertitude about glioma origin (gene mutation and epigenetic modifications) and those factors involved in glioma initiation and recurrence.

In order to quickly develop a multi ship collaborative collision avoidance plan in multi ship encounter scenarios, a multi ship collision avoidance decision model is proposed in accordance with the requirements of the International Maritime Collision Avoidance Regulations, taking into account the collision avoidance operations in multi ship encounter scenarios. Firstly, the collision risk between ships is determined by the closest encounter distance (DCPA) and closest encounter time (TCPA). Secondly, a decision objective function is established based on rules, degree of ship deviation, and ship risk. Finally, the prediction mechanism is used to calculate the minimum value of the objective function and complete the collision avoidance decision. The simulation results show that in the scenario of multiple ship encounters, the collision avoidance model can achieve safe collision avoidance with a smaller steering frequency and a shorter col-lision avoidance time. The proposed multi ship collision avoidance model can provide reference for collision avoidance decision-making in multi ship encounter scenarios, which helps to im-prove the collision avoidance efficiency in multi ship collision avoidance

Snap fit is a common mechanical mechanism. It uses the physical asymmetry that is easy to assemble but difficult to disassemble to provide a simple and fast link between objects. The ingenious combination of geometric shape, bending elasticity and friction of the snap fit is the mechanism behind the easy to assemble but difficult to disassemble disassemble. Yoshida and Wada (2020) has done a groundbreaking work in the analysis of the elastic snap fit. During our study of their paper, while we really enjoyed their research, unfortunately we detected several questioning formulations. After careful checking, we found that those formulations are not typographical, therefore it is necessary to make corrections. This paper reformulates the linear elasticity of a cylindrical snap fit, obtains an exact solution and proposes an accurate relation between the opening angle and bending tangent angle. Under the first order approximation, our formulations can reduced to the results of Yoshida and Wada and hence confirms the scientific correctness of Yoshida and Wada's work. Furthermore, this paper also derives a correct vertical displacement expression, and propose a new way of disassembly by bending for the first time and formulate a scaling law by data fitting. All formulations are validated by finite element simulation and experiment. The research here is helpful to the design of elastic snap fit or adjustable mechanical mechanism and metamaterial cell.

A series of novel N-n-butyl-1,8-naphthalimide derivatives were synthesized via a three-step reaction involving nucleophilic substitution and acylation. All of the compounds were characterized by IR, ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, MS, and elemental analysis, and the crystal structure of N-n-butyl-4-[N’,N’-bis(2`,4`-dichlorobenzoyl)ethylamino]-1,8-naphthalimide was determined. The π-π stacking interactions and hydrogen bonds between the two molecular core planes (naphthalimide ring) and the van der Waals forces between the flexible n-butyl groups resulted in a 3D long-chain structure. The UV-vis and fluorescence properties of the title compounds were investigated. The results indicated that the monosubstituted 1,8-naphthalimide derivatives bearing an electron-donating group on the benzene ring or a structure with a larger conjugative effect exhibited enhanced fluorescence properties.

The basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factor family is the second-largest transcription factor in plants. Members of this family are involved in the process of growth and development, secondary metabolic biosynthesis, signal transduction, and plant resistance. Loropetalum chinense var. rubrum is a critical woody plant with higher ornamental and economic values, which used as ornamental architecture and traditional Chinese herbal medicine plant. However, the bHLH transcription factor in the L. chinense var. rubrum (Loropetalum chinense var. Rubrum) have yet to be systematically demonstrated, and their role in anthocyanin biosynthesis remains secret. Here, we identified 165 potential LcbHLHs genes by two methods, and they were unequally distributed on chromosomes 1 to 12 of the L. chinense genome. Based on a phylogenetic comparison with proteins from Arabidopsis, these bHLH proteins were categorized into 21 subfamilies. Most LcbHLHs in a given subfamily had similar gene structures and conserved motifs. The gene ontology annotation and cis-elements predicted that the LcbHLHs had many molecular functions and were involved in plant growth processes, including flavonoid and anthocyanin biosynthetic processes, etc. Transcriptomic analysis revealed different expression patterns among different tissues and cultivars in L. chinense. Many LcbHLHs were expressed in leaves, and only a few genes were highly expressed in flowers. Six LcbHLH genes differentially expressed between species and periods in color variation, which may play a key role in anthocyanin synthesis. These further functional predictions of LcbHLHs were established by quantitative real-time PCR analysis and protein-protein interaction network. This study identified the six potential bHLH genes related to anthocyanin in L. chinense and created a solid framework for future research on the function and evolution of bHLHs.

Model selection and model averaging have been the popular approaches in handling modelling uncertainties. Fan and Li(2006) laid out a unified frame work for variable selection via penalized likelihood. The tuning parameter selection is vital in the optimization problem for the penalized estimators in achieving consistent selection and optimal estimation. Since the OLSpost-LASSO estimator by Belloni and Chernozhukov (2013), few studies have focused on the finite sample performances of the class of OLS post-penalty estimators with the tuning parameter choice determined by different tuning parameter selection approaches. We aim to supplement the existing model selection literature by studying such a class of OLS post-selection estimators. Inspired by the Shrinkage Averaging Estimator (SAE) by Schomaker(2012) and the Mallows Model Averaging (MMA) criterion by Hansen (2007), we further propose a Shrinkage Mallows Model Averaging (SMMA) estimator for averaging high dimensional sparse models. Based on the Monte Carlo design by Wang et al. (2009) which features an expanding sparse parameter space as the sample size increases, our Monte Carlo design further considers the effect of the effective sample size and the degree of model sparsity on the finite sample performances of model selection and model averaging estimators. From our data examples, we find that the OLS post-SCAD(BIC) estimator in finite sample outperforms most of the current penalized least squares estimators as long as the number of parameters does not exceed the sample size. In addition, the SMMA performs better given sparser models. This supports the use of the SMMA estimator when averaging high dimensional sparse models.

Sphalerite has been recognized as the most important carrier of critical metal of Indium (In) due to that In mainly exists in the sphalerite lattice by isomorphic substitution. There are two significant replacing schemes for In entry into sphalerite, these are, Ag++In3+→2Zn2+ and Cu++In3+→2Zn2+. In order to understand the reaction process and constraints of the two substitution schemes, this paper uses first-principles methods to calculate In and Ag, Cu replacing Zn in sphalerite. According to the substitution schemes of Ag++In3+→2Zn2+ and Cu++In3+→2Zn2+, two doped sphalerite systems of Zn30InAgS32 and Zn30InCuS32 were constructed using 2×2×2 supercell model of sphalerite. Firstly, the pressure is controlled to 30MPa, and the temperature is set from 20-40MPa to simulate the response of the two doped sphalerite systems to temperature; Then, the control temperature was unchanged to 600K, and the pressure was set from 20-40MPa to investigate the pressure control of the two doped sphalerite systems. The lattice parameters, substitution energy, electronic structure, and population analysis of the designed models before and after replacement have been critically compared. The main conclusions can be drawn that it is more stable for In to enter sphalerite via the coupled substitution scheme Cu++In3+→2Zn2+, and the conditions that the two substitution schemes most likely to occur are 650K and 40MPa. This study not only reveals the physical and chemical properties of In-rich sphalerite formed by the two reaction processes of Ag++In3+→2Zn2+ and Cu++In3+→2Zn2+, but also has a certain enlightenment effect on the search for indium in sphalerite, and promotes the application of first principles in mineralization analysis.

This paper presents a study to accurately evaluate defects in reinforced concrete decks using ultrasonic pulse-echo signals. Two validation specimens were designed and tested where reinforced concrete deck slab specimens included planned voids and defects. A commercial Ultrasonic Pulse-Echo (UPE) device obtains 2-D images of the void/defect locations of the reinforced concrete deck. The UPE is based on the ultrasonic shear-wave test method using dry-point-contact transmitting and receiving transducers and employing a synthetic aperture focusing technique. The authors analyzed the recorded UPE A-scan data to enhance the accuracy of estimating the defects' locations using the synthetic aperture focusing technique imaging method. The analysis benefitted from an advanced denoising approach and defect echo peak extraction based on empirical modal decomposition, Hurst exponent characterization, and Hilbert envelope estimation. While output from conventional UPC devices can only provide qualitative results, the new method provides quantitative information on the anomalies inside the reinforced concrete deck. The developed approach accurately assists with assessing the location and depth of the voids/defects in the reinforced concrete deck slabs.

The common dandelion uses a bundle of drag-enhancing bristles (the pappus) that enables seed dispersal over formidable distances; however, the scaling laws of aerodynamic drag underpinning pappus-mediated flight remains unresolved. In this paper, we study the aerodynamic shape of dandelion, derive the scaling law of resistance, determine the Vogel exponent. In particular, we find that the total drag coefficient is proportional to the -2/3 power of the dandelion pappus Reynolds number, and obtain the terminal velocity of the dandelion seed under gravitation field.

This article is a study on the (k,s)-Riemann-Liouville fractional integral, a generalization of the Riemann-Liouville fractional integral. Firstly, we introduce several properties of the extended integral of continuous functions. Furthermore, we make the estimation of the Box dimension of the graph of continuous functions after the extended integral. It presents that the upper Box dimension of the (k,s)-Riemann-Liouville fractional integral for any continuous functions is no more than the upper Box dimension of the functions on the unit interval I=[0,1], which indicates that the upper Box dimension of the integrand f(x) will not be increased by the σ-order (k,s)-Riemann-Liouville fractional integral ksD−σf(x) where σ&gt;0 on I. Additionally, we prove that the fractal dimension of ksD−σf(x) of one-dimensional continuous functions f(x) is still one.

In this paper, the preparation methods of porous silicon nitride materials with controllable dielectric constant and pore structure were systematically studied. By using microwave sintering technology, porous silicon nitride materials with high closed pore ratio were prepared by adjusting the content of sintering additives and sintering process parameters, and controlling the grain boundary phase and pore structure and size. The effects of sintering conditions on the total porosity, closed porosity, pore structure and dielectric properties of materials were systematically studied.

SARS-CoV-2, the newly identified human coronavirus causing severe pneumonia epidemic, was probably originated from Chinese horseshoe bats. However, direct transmission of the virus from bats to humans is unlikely due to lack of direct contact, implying the existence of unknown intermediate hosts. Angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is the receptor of SARS-CoV-2, but only ACE2s of certain species can be utilized by SARS-CoV-2. Here, we evaluated and ranked the receptor-utilizing capability of ACE2s from various species by phylogenetic clustering and sequence alignment with the currently known ACE2s utilized by SARS-CoV-2, predicting potential intermediate hosts of SARS-CoV-2.

As an irreplaceable ecological barrier, the ecological conservation developing area (ECDA) is vital for the integrated construction of urban and rural areas, and optimization and adjustment of industrial structure. Developing green agriculture is the foundation and guarantee for improving the rural ecological environment and meeting the increasing needs of farmers′ income. Issued by the Chinese government, No. 1 Central Document stated the necessity of promoting agricultural green development (AGD) and the related technologies in dealing with ecological pressure and resource shortages, especially for large cities like Beijing. However, few empirical studies have conducted on spatiotemporal variations of AGD in ECDA of large cities. Based on the green agricultural traits of Beijing and the accessible data, we evaluate AGD and analyze its spatial and temporal heterogeneity of Beijing ECDA by constructiing a framework with 13 indicators. The weight coefficients of AGD indicators were calculated by the projection pursuit method, with the district panel data from 2006 to 2016. The results demonstrated that energy consumption is a vital factor of green agriculture production, and agricultural output value per unit of the arable land area is the key to the green agricultural revenue. From 2006 to 2016, the AGD index of ECDA had an increasing trend till 2012, followed by a decreasing tendency. The AGD index of the northern region is higher than the southern of ECDA. The obstacle degree model was used to verify AGD limiting factors. They were poor infrastructure, slow agritourism, low labor productivity, and low resource utilization efficiency that varied by districts in ECDA. Given these findings, our study is conducive to the AGD evaluation at the district (county) level for ECDA of large cities and also provides important policy implications.

In this study, a novel oral formulation of berberine hydrochloride (BBH) hydrogel was successfully synthesized through physical cross-linking using chitosan (CS) and carboxymethyl-β-cyclodextrin (CMCD). The characterization results confirmed the successful synthesis of CS/CMCD hydrogel and the subsequent loading of BBH into this composite (CS/CMCD/BBH) was effectively accomplished. BBH was used as a model drug and the resulting hydrogel demonstrated a sustained drug release profile. In addition to its improved solubility and sustained release characteristics, the hydrogel exhibited excellent antibacterial activity against common pathogens such as Escherichia coli (E. coli), Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), and Candida albicans (C. albicans). Additionally, in vitro studies indicated that the hydrogel was not cytotoxic to NIH3T3 and HaCaT cells, suggesting its safety for biomedical applications. This lack of cytotoxic effects, combined with the mechanical strength, solubility improvements, and antibacterial properties of the hydrogel, positions the CS/CMCD/BBH hydrogel as a promising candidate for effective oral delivery of BBH. By addressing the solubility and delivery challenges of BBH, this hydrogel offers a viable solution for the oral administration of berberine hydrochloride, with potential applications in various biomedical fields.

Researches on the runoff and sediment reduction effects of soil and water conservation measures are being on the rise, which is of great significance for carrying out strategic on soil and water conservation in the Yellow River Basin. Through the analysis of various soil and water conserva-tion measures, runoff, sediment, and rainfall datas in the Sanchuan River Basin from 1960 to 2019, we use the lagrange multiplier method to determining the threshold year of soil and water con-servation measures on runoff and sediment processes. The preliminary conclusion is as follows: The trend of flood season rainfall and annual rainfall in the Sanchuan River Basin is consistent. The 10-year average rainfall in each periods indicates that before 2000, it gradually decreased and then significantly increased. The 10-year average runoff showed a gradual decrease before 2010, followed by a sudden increase, while the 10-year average sediment has shown a decreasing trend years by years, especially after the centralized treatment period. Terrace and dam measures show a trend of first decreasing, then increasing, and then approaching stability during different treat-ment periods, while the trend of forest and grass measures is slightly decreasing and then in-creasing rapidly. The runoff and sediment reduction effects of various soil and water conservation measures during different treatment periods indicate that the runoff reduction effect reached its peak in 2005, while the sediment reduction benefit reached its best in 2015. Based on the compre-hensive benefits of runoff and sediment regulation, 2015 are considered as the threshold year for various soil and water conservation measures, with each measure areas being 4.86 × 104, 17.91 × 104, 1.20 × 104, and 0.83 × 104hm2, respectively. The research results will have certain reference significance for the high-quality development of soil and water conservation in the Yellow River Basin.

In recent years, the rapid development of computer-aided planning and design technology has provided a new perspective for the study of complex problems such as the generation of architectural complex forms. This study focuses on how to apply parameterization technology to analyze and articulate traditional spatial form composition rules, aiming to minimize reliance on subjective human judgment in the protection and renewal design of the historical style of traditional villages. It aims to establish digital generative design tools to address the challenges of accurately inheriting and innovatively utilizing historical and cultural information in traditional settlements. It introduces how to rely on parameterization technology to analyze the spatial form composition rules, parameter extraction rules, and spatial reconstruction rules of traditional villages, facilitating the complete process from spatial features to parameterization rules, and then to the application of computational methods to deduce spatial features. It also includes case studies demonstrating the application of parameterization technology tools for village protection and explores the role of generative design tools in preserving the spatial style of these settlements.

In this paper, a short survey of the existed results concerning the Jacobian Conjecture is first given. Then the 3-fold linear type polynomial map will be analyzed in detail. The expansion of the Jacobian condition is deduced to obtain its equivalent algebraic equations, and the Jacobian condition will be analyzed to derive two coordinate transformations that can maintain the invariance of the Jacobian condition. Finally, it is proved by mathematical induction method that one general chain expression presented in this paper is just the inverse polynomial map of 3-fold linear type polynomial map, i.e. LJC(n,[3]) holds such that the Jacobian Conjecture holds.

This paper attempts to assess the economic significance and implications of collateralization in different financial markets, which is essentially a matter of theoretical justification and empirical verification. We present a comprehensive theoretical framework that allows for collateralization adhering to bankruptcy laws. As such, the model can back out differences in asset prices due to collateralized counterparty risk. This framework is very useful for pricing outstanding defaultable financial contracts. By using a unique data set, we are able to achieve a clean decomposition of prices into their credit risk factors. We find empirical evidence that counterparty risk is not overly important in credit-related spreads. Only the joint effects of collateralization and credit risk can sufficiently explain unsecured credit costs. This finding suggests that failure to properly account for collateralization may result in significant mispricing of financial contracts. We also analyze the difference between cleared and OTC markets.

The diffusion coefficient--a measure of dissipation, and the entropy--a measure of fluctuation are found to be intimately correlated in many physical systems. Unlike the fluctuation dissipation theorem in linear response theory, the correlation is often strongly non-linear. To understand this complex dependence, we consider the classical Brownian diffusion in this work. Under certain rational assumption, i.e. in the bi-component fluid mixture, the mass of the Brownian particle $M$ is far greater than that of the bath molecule $m$, we can adopt the weakly couple limit. Only considering the first-order approximation of the mass ratio $m/M$, we obtain a linear motion equation in the reference frame of the observer as a Brownian particle. Based on this equivalent equation, we get the Hamiltonian at equilibrium. Finally, using canonical ensemble method, we define a new entropy that is similar to the Kolmogorov-Sinai entropy. Further, we present an analytic expression of the relationship between the diffusion coefficient $D$ and the entropy $S$ in the thermal equilibrium, that is to say, $D =\frac{\hbar}{eM} \exp{[S/(k_Bd)]}$, where $d$ is the dimension of the space, $k_B$ the Boltzmann constant, $\hbar $ the reduced Planck constant and $e$ the Euler number. This kind of scaling relation has been well-known and well-tested since the similar one for single component is firstly derived by Rosenfeld with the expansion of volume ratio.

The study of a flexible body immersed in a flowing medium is one of best way to find its aerodynamic shape. This Letter revisited the problem first studied by Alben, Shelley and Zhang (Nature 420, 479-481, 2002). The aerodynamic shape of the fibre is found by simpler approach and universal drag scaling laws of the flexible fibre in flowing medium are proposed by using dimensional analysis. The Alben scaling laws is being generalized and confirmed to be universal. Our study show that the Alben number is a measurement of maximum curvature of the fibre forced by dynamic pressure. A complete Maple code is provided for finding aerodynamic shape of the fibre in the flowing medium.

In order to help the transportation industry achieve the goal of carbon peak and carbon neutrality, this study is based on the selection of eight variables, such as population size, per ca pita GDP, personal vehicle ownership, passenger and freight turnover, and green space coverage, as the factors influencing the carbon emissions of the transportation industry in Jiangsu Province, and the prediction and analysis of the transportation carbon emission trends from 2000 to 2021, and the prediction and analysis of the carbon emissions of the transportation industry and the time of the peak of the carbon emissions in Jiangsu Province. The trend of transportation carbon emissions from 2000 to 2021 was predicted and analyzed, and the carbon emissions and peak time of carbon emissions in the transportation industry in Jiangsu Province were predicted and analyzed. Comparing the predicted results with other models to verify the accuracy of the results, it was found that the WOA-SVM model had the smallest error among several models. On this basis, targeted measures are proposed to accelerate the process of carbon peak and ensure the smooth achievement of carbon neutrality goals in Jiangsu Province. The results indicate that under the current policy measures, the peak carbon emissions in Jiangsu Province will occur in 2038, with a peak of 48.72 million tons. Jiangsu Province should actively adopt energy-saving and emission-reduction measures, build a green and low-carbon transportation development model, and achieve the carbon peak target ahead of schedule.

This study uses a recently developed theory and technique to examine post-acquisition evidence as to the motives for mergers and acquisitions(M&As), and decomposed the M/B ratio into three components: firm-specific error, time-series sector error, and long-run value-to-book. We make a multidimensional grouping according to the frequency of M&As , payment method, proportion of shares acquired, M/B ratio before the merger and total assets of the acquirers before the merge. The results confirm that M&As involve multiple motives, such as market timing, industry and economic shocks, agency and hubris. Using a sample of 2,035 M&As in China, we find that 59% are related to market timing, 68% are related to agency and hubris, 21% are related to industry and economic shocks, 51% are related to multiple motives. Our empirical research finds that the main motives for M&As of listed companies in China are value-decreasing, which have negative impact on the acquirers‘ sustainable development.

A rapid and efficient method using an alkyl functionalized magnetic nanoparticles-based extraction technique combined with Ultra-High Performance Liquid Chromatography was developed for the detection of trace amounts of polycystic aromatic hydrocarbons in tea leaves. As a popular coating for chromatographic column packing materials, C18-alkyl has been demonstrated to be effective in separating polycystic aromatic hydrocarbons. And the magnetism of the nanomaterials accelerates the extraction process while their high surface ratio enables desirable dispersity in the sample matrix. Meanwhile, the adsorbents can be washed and reused 30 times without compromise on recovery, which greatly reduced the budget. The effects of various parameters were investigated and optimized, and the recoveries for five analytes were in the range of 84.8–103.7%. The reproducibility rate of intra-day and inter-day were below 7.1% and 11.3% respectively. The limits of detection and limits of quantification ranged from 1.69–9.97 ng g-1 and 5.12–30.21 ng g-1, indicating satisfactory sensitivity. Thus, the proposed methodology is rapid, highly efficient, and economical, and it expands the application of magnetic cleanup approaches in complex food matrices.

Swarm intelligence (SI) methods are nature-inspired metaheuristics for global optimization that exploit a coordinated stochastic search strategy by a group of agents. Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) is an established SI method that has been applied successfully to the optimization of rugged high-dimensional likelihood functions, a problem that presents the main bottleneck across a variety of gravitational wave (GW) data analysis challenges. We present results from a first application of PSO to one of the most difficult of these challenges, namely, the search for Extreme Mass Ratio Inspiral (EMRI) in data from future spaceborne GW detectors such as LISA, Taiji, or Tianqin. We use the standard Generalized Likelihood Ratio Test formalism, with minimal use of restrictive approximations, to search 6 months of simulated LISA data and quantify the search depth, in signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and breadth, in the ranges of the EMRI parameters, that PSO can handle. Our results demonstrate that a PSO-based EMRI search is successful over a search region that is in the ballpark of the one that current hierarchical schemes can identify. Directions for future improvements, including computational bottlenecks to be overcome, are identified.

In today's human society, diesel generators (DGs) are highly applied into the human energy and electricity supply system due to its technical, operational and economic advantages. This paper proposes an intelligent nonlinear $H_2/H_{\infty}$ robust controller based on the chaos particle swarm gravity search optimization algorithm (CPSOGSA), which controls the speed and excitation of a DG. In this method, firstly, establish the nonlinear mathematical model of the DG and then design the nonlinear $H_2/H_{\infty}$ robust controller based on this. The direct feedback linearization and the $H_2/H_{\infty}$ robust control theory are combined and applied. Based on the design of the integrated controller for DG speed and excitation, the system's performance requirements are transformed into a standard robust $H_2/H_{\infty}$ control problem. The parameters of the proposed solution controller are optimized by using the proposed CPSOGSA. The introduction of CPSOGSA completes the design of an intelligent nonlinear $H_2/H_{\infty}$ robust controller for DG. The simulation is implemented in MATLAB/Simulink, and the results are compared with the PID control method. The obtained results prove that the proposed method can effectively improve the dynamic accuracy of the system and the ability to suppress disturbances and improve the stability of the system.

The leaves of Ligustrum robustum have been applied as Ku-Ding-Cha, a functional tea to clear heat and remove toxins; and served as a folk medicine to deal with diabetes, obesity, and hypertension. Trans-p-hydroxycinnamic acid and its esters, which were isolated from the leaves of L. robustum, might be a new resource to prevent diabetes and its complications because of their strong -glucosidase and fatty acid synthase (FAS) inhibitory activities and antioxidant effect. However, the quantitative analytical method for trans-p-hydroxycinnamic acid and its esters in the leaves of L. robustum hasn’t been reported so far. In addition, it was difficult and troublesome to analyze no less than 34 trans-p-hydroxycinnamic acid esters by usual HPLC. Therefore, a new HPLC-UV method using hydrolyzation with sodium hydroxide for quantitation of trans-p-hydroxycinnamic acid and its esters in the leaves of L. robustum was developed in the present study. The optimal hydrolyzation conditions were as follows: 1 mL sodium hydroxide aqueous solution (1 M) was added into 1 mL the extract of L. robustum and incubated at 80 °C for 2 h , and then 1 mL hydrochloride (1 M) solution was added. HPLC analysis was performed in reverse phase mode using a C-18 column, eluting with methanol-0.1% acetic acid aqueous solution (40:60, v/v) in isocratic mode at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min, and detecting at 310 nm. The analytical method was simple and rapid, which simplified greatly the analytical process. The method was validated in terms of linearity, limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantification (LOQ), precision, and accuracy. High linearity was demonstrated with correlation coefficient of 1.000 for trans-p-hydroxycinnamic acid. The LOD and LOQ values were 1.55 and 4.69 μg/mL, respectively. The relative standard deviations (RSD) of intra-day and inter-day variabilities for trans-p-hydroxycinnamic acid were less than 2%. The percentage recovery of trans-p-hydroxycinnamic acid was 101.2% ± 0.8%. Finally, the proposed method was applied successfully to the determination and comparison of the contents of trans-p-hydroxycinnamic acid and its esters in various extracts of the leaves of L. robustum. The 60%-70% ethanol extracts of L. robustum showed the highest contents of free trans-p-hydroxycinnamic acid (3.96-3.99 mg/g), and the 50%-80% ethanol extracts of L. robustum displayed the highest contents of trans-p-hydroxycinnamic acid esters (202.6-210.6 mg/g). The method can be applied also to the quality control of the products of L. robustum.

Objective: The aim of this study was to optimize the fermentation process of Radix Ranunculi ternate via microbial fermentation and analyze the changes in the contents of the main components, the antioxidant and hypoglycemic capacities of the extract before and after fermentation. Methods: The solid-state fermentation process was optimized using single-factor tests and the response surface method, with the yield of the alcohol extract of R. ternate as an evaluation index. Results: The best fermentation process was optimized using solid-state endophytic fungus fermentation technology as follows: strain addition ratio of Chaetomium globosum/Fusarium equiseti =1:1, fermentation for 5 d, sieve size of 40 mesh, liquid/material ratio of 0.8:1 mL·g−1, fermentation temperature of 31 °C, and inoculation amount of 7.5%. Under the optimized conditions, the contents of the water-soluble extract and total polysaccharides decreased by 12.71% and 12.95%, respectively, in the fermentation, The contents of ethanol-soluble-extract, flavonoids, saponins, polyphenols, organic acids, and total amino acids of fermented R. ternate increased by 19.77%, 57.14%, 79.67%, 14.29%, 17.63% and 3.82%, respectively, and the scavenging rate for DPPH, ABTS+, ·OH free radicals and inhibitory rate for α-amylase also increased by 19.02%, 14.17%, 7.53% and 34.54%, respectively, compared with unfermented R. ternate. Conclusions: Solid-state fermentation opens new avenues for the development and application of R. ternate as natural antioxidant and hypoglycemic food.

Concerns regarding the safety of ethoxyquin (EQ) have gradually increased, highlighting the necessity of identifying safer and more effective antioxidants for use in animal feed. This study investigates the effects of a compound antioxidant (CA) as an alternative to ethoxyquin on feed oxidative stability, growth performance, antioxidant capacity, and intestinal health in broilers. A total of 351 one-day-old Arbor Acres Plus male broilers were randomly assigned to three treatments with nine replicates of 13 birds each. The experimental treatments included: CON group (basal diet), EQ group (basal diet + 200 g/ton EQ at 60% purity), and CA group (basal diet + 200 g/ton compound antioxidant, which comprises 18% butylated hydroxytoluene, 3% citric acid, and 1% tertiary butylhydroquinone). The experiment lasted for 21 days. Compared to the control group, supplementation with CA significantly reduced the acid value, peroxide value, and malondialdehyde content in the feeds after storage. Moreover, CA supplementation significantly decreased feed intake and the feed conversion ratio (FCR) without affecting weight gain of boilers, while also improving liver antioxidant capacity (increased T-AOC and SOD levels), intestinal antioxidant capacity (increased CAT, HO-1, and GPX7 protein expression), and enhancing the duodenal villus height-to-crypt depth ratio and jejunal villus height. Additionally, CA treatment reduced intestinal barrier permeability (decreased diamine oxidase activity and D-lactate levels), potentially by promoting the expression of Occludin, ZO-1, and Mucin2 protein. Furthermore, the addition of CA elevated the protein levels of NF-κB p50 along with its inhibitory factors, IκB and NF-κB p105, in the intestines of broilers, thereby enhancing immune regulatory capacity. This supplementation also led to an increased abundance of beneficial gut microorganisms, including Lactobacillus, Alistipes, Candidatus Arthromitus, and Turicibacter. In comparison to the EQ group, CA supplementation enhanced feed oxidative stability, decreased the FCR, and improved the intestinal morphology, barrier functions, and inflammatory status in broilers. These findings suggest that this compound antioxidant may serve as a healthier and more effective alternative to ethoxyquin.

Lord Kelvin believed that the electromagnetic aether must also generate gravity. Presently, we have no methods to determine the density of the electromagnetic aether, or we say the $\Omega(1)$ substratum. Thus, we also suppose that vacuum is filled with another kind of continuously distributed substance, which may be called the $\Omega(2)$ substratum. Based on a theorem of V. Fock on the mass tensor of a fluid, the contravariant energy-momentum tensors of the $\Omega(1)$ and $\Omega(2)$ substrata are established. Quasi-static solutions of the gravitational field equations in vacuum are obtained. Based on an assumption, relationships between the contravariant energy-momentum tensors of the $\Omega(1)$ and $\Omega(2)$ substrata and the contravariant metric tensor are obtained. Thus, the cosmological constant is calculated theoretically. The $\Omega(1)$ and $\Omega(2)$ substrata may be a possible candidate of the dark energy. According to the theory of vacuum mechanics, only those energy-momentum tensors of discrete or continuously distributed sinks in the $\Omega(0)$ substratum are permitted to act as the source terms in the generalized Einstein's equations. Thus, the zero-point energy of electromagnetic fields is not qualified for a source term in the generalized Einstein's equations. Some people believed that all kinds of energies should act as source terms in the Einstein's equations. It may be this unwarranted belief that leads to the cosmological constant problem. The mass density of the $\Omega(1)$ and $\Omega(2)$ substrata is equivalent to that of around $3$ protons contained in a box with a volume of $1$ cubic metre.

When solving the Einstein's equations for an isolated system of masses, V. Fock introduces harmonic reference frame and obtains an unambiguous solution. Further, he concludes that there exists a harmonic reference frame which is determined uniquely apart from a Lorentz transformation if suitable supplementary conditions are imposed. It is known that wave equations keep the same form under Lorentz transformations. Thus, we speculate that Fock's special harmonic reference frames may have provided us a clue to derive the Einstein's equations in some special class of non-inertial reference frames. Following this clue, generalized Einstein's equations in some special non-inertial reference frames are derived based on the theory of vacuum mechanics. If the field is weak and the reference frame is quasi-inertial, these generalized Einstein's equations reduce to Einstein's equations. Thus, this theory may also explain all the experiments which support the theory of general relativity. There exist some differences between this theory and the theory of general relativity.

The lengthy maturation period is the key cause of the reduced hot pepper market value. An experiment was performed to assess the effects of R/B/W light qualities on reducing the maturation period. The maturation period was shortened by 16 days under 4R:1B:5W compared to the control. The appearance of the first flower is a limiting factor affecting the maturation period. It exhibited a dark purple color and an abnormal petal under 4R:1B:5W compared to the control, which was associated with increased contents of flavonoids, total organic acids, and phenolics and decreased total amino acid and carbohydrate contents. Plant hormone, flavonoid, ABC transporters, key metabolites (such as amino acid, carbohydrate, organic acid) was associated with first flower development. Ethylene response factors (ERFs) mediated by light, especially ERF021, were identified as potential hub regulators during the development of the first flower due to their involvement in all the associated metabolic pathways.

Due to rising global warming and climate change, biodiversity protection has become a critical ecological concern. The rich biodiversity zones are under threat and are deteriorating, necessitating national, regional, and provincial efforts to safeguard these natural areas. The effective conservation of National Parks and Nature-protected Areas helps to improve biodiversity conservation, forest, and urban air quality. The continuous encroachment and abuse of these protected areas have degraded the ecosystem over time. While exploring the geophysical ecology and biodiversity conservation of these areas in West Africa, Kainji National Park was selected for this study because of its notable location, naturalness, rich habitat diversity, topographic uniqueness, and landmass. The conservation of national parks and nature-protected areas is a cornerstone of biodiversity conservation globally. This study is aimed at the target of United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 13, 2030- Climate Action, targeted at taking urgent action towards combating climate change and its impacts. The study captures both flora and fauna that are dominant in the study area. The 15 identified tree species were selected from over 30 species with 563,500,000 (an average of 3,700,000 in each sample frame) trees for every tree species/type with a total of 63% tree green canopy cover. The study areas divided into three zones were randomly sampled within a stratum of 25x25km frames divided into 150 sample frames for proper analyses using the i-Tree Eco v6.0.23. The following microclimatic data were captured and analyzed; photosynthetically active radiation, rain/precipitation, temperature, transpiration, evaporation, water intercepted by trees, avoided a runoff by trees, potential evaporation by trees, isoprene and monoterpene by trees. This study also further discusses the tree benefits of a green, low carbon, and sustainable environment within the context of biodiversity conservation considering carbon storage, carbon sequestration, hydrology effects, pollution removal, oxygen production, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). There is a quick need for remotely-sensed information about the protected areas at regular intervals and government policies must be strict against illegal poaching, logging activities and other hazardous human impacts.

In this paper, we demonstrate a method of measuring the flexural elastic modulus of ceramics at an intermediate (~millimeter) scale, at high temperatures. We used a picosecond laser to precisely cut micro-beams from the location of interest in a bulk ceramic. They had a cross-section of approximately 100 μm × 300 μm, and a length of ~1 cm. They were then tested in a thermal-mechanical analyzer at room temperature, 500°C, 800°C, and 1100°C using the four-point flexural testing method. We compared the elastic moduli of high-purity Al2O3 and AlN measured by our method with the reported values in the literature and found that the difference was less than 5% for both materials. This paper provides a new and accurate method of characterizing the high-temperature elastic modulus of miniature samples extracted from representative/selected areas of bulk materials.

Chinese texts often feature a substantial volume of normative content, and their analysis has increasingly become a focal point in recent semantic analysis endeavors. Enhancing the effectiveness of text classification and clustering is pivotal in unveiling the intricate semantics within extensive textual data. Empirical research within the realm of computational social science has underscored the need for improved explanatory power when it comes to general text clustering methods applied to normative texts. This study introduces an innovative hierarchical clustering method that incorporates part-of-speech (POS) features and pioneers a novel semantic network model. It achieves this by amalgamating a POS-based feature weight calculation method with hierarchical clustering techniques. To assess its efficacy, the method is rigorously evaluated across three diverse text datasets, encompassing normative reports, news articles, and social media content. The experimental results unequivocally demonstrate the superior performance of the POS-HC method, surpassing the traditional TF and TF-IDF feature extraction methods in terms of clustering accuracy, and surpassing some existing clustering methods. Furthermore, its classification effectiveness exhibits notable advantages, particularly in the semantic classification of normative texts.

In the paper, we develop some numerical schemes including finite difference scheme and finite volume scheme for the fractional Laplacian operator, and apply the resulted numerical schemes to solve some fractional diffusion equations. First, the fractional Laplacian operator can be characterized as the weak singular integral by a integral operator with zero boundary condition. Second, because of the solution of fractional diffusion equation is usually singular near the boundary, we apply finite difference scheme to discrete fractional Laplacian operator and fractional diffusion equation by fractional interpolation function. Moreover, it is find that the differential matrix of the above scheme is symmetric matrix, and strictly row-wise diagonally dominant in special fractional interpolation function. Third, we show finite volume scheme to discrete fractional diffusion equation by fractional interpolation function, and analyze the properties of differential matrix. Finally, the numerical experiments are given, and verify the correctness of theoretical results and the efficiency of the schemes.

The importance of detecting and diagnosing the imminence of aneurysm rupture before it occurs cannot be overstated. However, this process is often time-consuming and challenging, with variability in conclusions not uncommon among experts. Furthermore, current state-of-the-art models in medical image segmentation suffer from limited availability of large annotated datasets for training, exacerbated by an immense data imbalance. In most segmentation tasks, 3D segmentation is preferred due to its capacity to leverage more contextual information. However, these models require more data, which is constrained by the aforementioned issues. In the realm of current diagnosis models, those lacking geographic context are notably ineffective. To address these issues, the aim is to develop a model pipeline to accurately detect cerebral intracranial aneurysms and diagnose rupture imminence through 3D magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) and tabular input, augmented with the implementation of neuro-symbolic ai. The utilization of data fusion to tackle the lack of context in tabular models is proposed, leveraging extracted geographical features from a segmentation model. To enhance segmentation results and tackle the data imbalance in aneurysm segmentation, a two-stage model pipeline that extracts contextual geographic features before aneurysm segmentation is suggested. Segmentation results are additionally improved through ensemble techniques and novel preprocessing techniques. Finally, a neuro-symbolic aspect is introduced to enhance model diagnosis, interpretability and performance. The multi-step Integrated Neuro-Symbolic Analysis Pipeline for Cerebral Aneurysm Rupture Diagnosis is introduced.

The present paper deals with a class of even entire functions of order $\rho =1$ and genus $\vartheta =0$ of the polynomials form, \[ \sum\limits_{m=0}^\infty {\frac{\left( {-1} \right)^m\Phi ^{\left( {2m} \right)}\left( 0 \right)}{\Gamma \left( {2m+1} \right)}x^{2m}} =\Phi \left( 0 \right)\prod\limits_{k=1}^\infty {\left( {1-\frac{x}{\ell _k }} \right)} , \] where $\Phi\left( 0 \right)\ne 0$, real numbers $x$, nonnegative integers $m$, and $\ell _k \ne 0$ are all of the nonzero roots with $\sum\limits_{k=1}^\infty {1/\left| {\ell _k } \right|} <\infty $ and natural numbers $k$. We provide an efficient criterion for the polynomials with only real zeros. We also prove that the conjecture of Jensen is our special case.

In this paper we address some variants for the products of Hadamard and Patterson. We prove that all zeros of the Riemann $\Xi$--function are real. We also prove that the Riemann hypothesis is true. The equivalence theorems associated with the Riemann zeta--function are obtained in detail.

In this article we propose the integral, series and product representations for the Ramanujan zeta-function. We suggest a variant for the Conrey-Ghosh product for the entire Ramanujan zeta-function. We present some variants for the product for the Ramanujan $\Xi$-function. We prove that all of its zeros are real. Along the way we obtain the truth of the Riemann-Hardy conjecture.

This paper addresses a variant of the product for the Dirichlet $L$--functions. We propose a completely detailed proof for the truth of the generalized Riemann conjecture for the Dirichlet $L$--functions, which states that the real part of the nontrivial zeros is $1/2$. The Wang and Hardy--Littlewood theorems are also discussed with removing the need for it. The results are applicable to show the truth of the Goldbach's conjecture.

It is due to Littlewood that the truth of the Riemann theorem implies that of the Lindel\"{o}f conjecture. This paper aims to use the idea of Littlewood to prove the Lindel\"{o}f conjecture for the Riemann zeta function. The Lindel\"{o}f $\mu $ function at the critical line is zero, with use of the Riemann theorem for the entire Riemann zeta function, proved based on the work of Heath-Brown. Our result is given to show that the Lindel\"{o}f conjecture, connected with the proof of the moment conjecture, is true.

The synergetic features of a three-component photoinitiating systems (A/B/C) based on the measured data and proposed mechanism of Liu et al (Polymers, 2020, 12(6), 1394) are analyzed. The co-initiators/additives B and C have dual functions of : (i) regeneration of photoinitiator A and (ii) generation of extra radicals. The synergic effects lead to higher conversion of free radical polymerization (FRP) and cationic polymerization (CP). The key factors and rate constants influencing the conversion efficacy are explored by analytic formulas. Enhancing strategies for various photopolymerization systems are summarized including one component (or monomer) and one-wavelength, two-component and one, two and three-wavelength, and three-component, one-wavelength system. The synergetic effects for higher monomer conversion can be achieved by co-initiators for extra radicals and multiple wavelengths for reduced oxygen-inhibition. Co-initiator B, however, might also reduces the CP radical produced by initiator C. The conversion rate of FRP is proportional to the square root of the light intensity (I), absorption (b) and the initiator initial concentratios (A0, B0, C0), whereas CP is proportional to the linear power of a parameter defined as P=bIA0C0, a stronger dependence than FRP. The CP conversion is governed by a steady-state value proportional to P, and a rate fucntion defining the depletion rate of [A][C], or the increasing rate of the conversion profile. The measured results of Liu et al (Polymers, 2020, 12(6), 1394) are well analyzed and matching the predicted features of our modeling. The specific systems analyzed are: benzophenone derivatives (A) ethyl 4-(dimethylamino)benzoate (B), and (4-tert-butylphenyl)iodonium hexafluorophosphate (C) under a UV (365 nm) LED irradiation; and monomers of trimethylolpropane triacrylate (TMPTA, for FRP) and (3,4- epoxycyclohexane)methyl 3,4-epoxycyclohexylcarboxylate (EPOX, for CP).

Background: Ice formation on power transmission lines presents significant risks, including structural damage and power outages. Traditional methods for detecting ice on these lines have limitations, particularly in challenging environmental conditions. This study aims to enhance ice detection accuracy by introducing a novel image segmentation and edge detection methodology using improved multi-scale Retinex and advanced morphological operations. Method: The proposed method integrates multi-stage image processing techniques, including image enhancement, grayscale conversion, thresholding, segmentation, object isolation, and edge detection. High-resolution binocular cameras were used to capture images of ice formations on transmission lines. The effectiveness of the method was assessed through a series of metrics, including accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, and precision, and compared with existing methodologies. Results: The proposed method demonstrated superior performance in both ice detection and thickness measurement. The method effectively identified and isolated ice formations under various conditions with an average accuracy of 98.35%, sensitivity of 91.63%, specificity of 99.42%, and precision of 96.03%. Additionally, the analysis of ice thickness measurements further highlighted the method’s accuracy, with a notably low root mean squared error (RMSE) of 1.20 mm and mean absolute error (MAE) of 1.10 mm, along with a strong R-squared value of 0.95. These statistical metrics show that the proposed method not only outperforms previous methods in consistency and alignment with manual measurements but also stands out as the most reliable option for tasks requiring precise measurements, offering significant advancements in accuracy and reliability over existing methodologies. Conclusions: The enhanced image segmentation and edge detection approach provides a more accurate and reliable method for monitoring ice formations on power transmission lines.

In large-capacity energy storage systems, instructions are decomposed typically using an equalized power distribution strategy, where clusters/modules operate at the same power and durations. When dispatching shifts from stable single conditions to intricate coupled conditions, this distribution strategy inevitably results in increased inconsistency and hastened system aging. This paper presents a novel differentiated power distribution strategy comprising three control variables: the rotation status, the operating boundaries for both Depth of Discharge (DOD) and C-rates (C) within a control period. The proposed strategy integrates an aging cost prediction model developed to express the mapping relationship between these control variables and aging costs. Additionally, it incorporates the multi-colony particle swarm optimization (Mc-PSO) algorithm into the optimization model to minimize aging costs. The aging cost prediction model consists of three functions: predicting health features (HFs) based on the cumulative charge/discharge throughput quantity and operating boundaries, characterizing HFs as comprehensive scores, and calculating aging costs using both comprehensive scores and residual equipment value. Further, we elaborated on the engineering application process for the proposed control strategy. In the simulation scenarios, this strategy prolonged the service life by 14.62%, reduced the overall aging cost by 6.61%, and improved module consistency by 21.98%, compared with the traditional equalized distribution strategy. In summary, the proposed strategy proves effective in elongating service life, reducing overall aging costs, and increasing the benefit of energy storage systems in particular application scenarios.

In this note we prove that the Riemann hypothesis is false. The proof is by contradiction based on a criterion of Hu.

Background: Micronutrients has roles in strengthening and maintaining immune function, but its supplementation and/or deficiency effects on respiratory tract infections are inconclusive. This review aims to systematically assess the associations between micronutrient supplementation or deficiency, with novel coronavirus incidence and disease severity. Methods: Systematic literature searches conducted in 5 electronic databases identified 751 unique studies, of which 33 studies (5 supplementation studies, 1 supplementation and deficiency study, and 27 deficiency studies) were eventually included in this review. Proportions of incidence and severity outcomes in each group, and adjusted summary statistics with their relevant 95% confidence intervaIs (CI) were extracted. Data from 19 studies were pooled in meta-analysis using the generic inverse variance method. Findings: A total of 360,346 patients across 16 countries, with a mean age between 32 and 87.7 years, were involved across 33 studies. All studies were on COVID-19 infections. In individuals without micronutrient deficiency, there was a significant reduction on odds of COVID-19 incidence (pooled OR: 0.37, 95% CI: 0.18, 0.78), and ICU admissions or severe/critical disease onset (pooled OR: 0.26, 95% CI: 0.08, 0.89). Insignificant protective effects were observed on other outcome measures – mortality, ICU admission, progression to respiratory-related complications, severe/critical disease onset or requiring respiratory support and hospitalization rate. Conclusion: The absence of micronutrient deficiency significantly reduced COVID-19 incidence and clinical deterioration in hospitalized patients. Usage of micronutrients as prophylaxis and complementary supplement in therapeutic management of COVID-19 patients may be a promising and cost-effective approach warranting in-depth investigation.

In order to solve the problem of feature extraction of underwater acoustic signals in complex ocean environment, a new method for feature extraction from ship radiated noise is presented based on empirical mode decomposition theory and permutation entropy. It analyzes the separability for permutation entropies of the intrinsic mode functions of three types of ship radiated noise signals, and discusses the permutation entropy of the intrinsic mode function with the highest energy. In this study, ship radiated noise signals measured from three types of ships are decomposed into a set of intrinsic mode functions with empirical mode decomposition method. Then, the permutation entropies of all intrinsic mode functions are calculated with appropriate parameters. The permutation entropies are obviously different in the intrinsic mode functions with the highest energy, thus, the permutation entropy of the intrinsic mode function with the highest energy is regarded as a new characteristic parameter to extract the feature of ship radiated noise. After that, the characteristic parameters, namely, the energy difference between high and low frequency, permutation entropy, and multi-scale permutation entropy, are compared with the permutation entropy of the intrinsic mode function with the highest energy. It is discovered that the four characteristic parameters are at the same level for similar ships, however, there are differences in the parameters for different types of ships. The results demonstrate that the permutation entropy of the intrinsic mode function with the highest energy is better in separability as the characteristic parameter than the other three parameters by comparing their fluctuation ranges and the average values of the four characteristic parameters. Hence, the feature of ship radiated noise can be extracted efficiently with the method.

Colorectal liver metastases (CRLM) patients combined with hepatic lymph node metastases was a negative prognostic factor associated with outcomes. Up to now, there was still lack of a reliable method to identify the status of hepatic lymph nodes. The aim of this study was to investigate the predictive ability of mono-exponential, bi-exponential, and stretched-exponential diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) models to distinguish between benign and malignant hepatic lymph nodes in CRLM patients who underwent neoadjuvant chemotherapy prior to surgery. In total, 97 CRLM patients with pathologically proved hepatic lymph node status were included. Various quantitative parameters, including the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) from mono-exponential model, D, D*, and f derived from intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM) model, as well as DDC and α from stretched-exponential model (SEM), were measured. Multivariate analysis revealed that the pre- treatment DDC value and the short diameter of the largest lymph node after treatment were independent predictors of metastatic hepatic lymph nodes. A nomogram combining these two factors demonstrated excellent performance in distinguishing between benign and malignant lymph nodes in CRLM patients, with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.873. Therefore, the nomogram can serve as a preoperative assessment tool for determining the status of hepatic lymph nodes and aiding in the decision-making process for surgical treatment in CRLM patients.

Due to the long-term deformation settlement of foundations, issues such as damage and functional failure of buildings and structures have long been of concern in the engineering field. The creep of soil is one of the primary causes leading to long-term deformation of foundations. In this paper, the consolidation deformation, creep characteristics, and creep model of reconstituted saturated silty clay were studied by isotropic compression test and triaxial shear creep test. The results show that for the isotropic compression test, although the applied load adopts different stages of loading, as long as the final applied confining pressure is the same, the number of stages applied by the confining pressure has little effect on the final isotropic consolidation deformation of the sample and the triaxial undrained shear strength after creep. However, for the triaxial shear creep test, it is found that under the same final deviatoric stress, the final deviatoric strain of the sample is closely related to the number of loading stages of deviatoric stress. It shows that the more loading stages of the sample loaded with the same deviatoric stress, the smaller the final deviatoric strain, and the triaxial undrained shear strength of the sample after creep will increase. In addition, it is reasonable to determine the pore pressure dissipation of the sample to 95%((u0-u0)/u0=95%) as the main consolidation end time (tEOP) of the sample. The isotropic consolidation creep curves and the triaxial shear creep curves show certain nonlinearity. Then the logarithmic model and the hyperbolic model were used to fit the creep curves of the samples. It is found that the hyperbolic model has a better fitting effect than the logarithmic model, but for the triaxial shear creep test, the creep parameters of the sample change greatly. Therefore, studying the creep characteristics of soil under different pre-loading steps is of significant engineering importance for evaluating the long-term deformation of underground structures.

Cycling reliability is crucial for Si-based materials due to severe volume change during cycles that results in the fast capacity fading. Though the binder only occupies a very low amount of the total mass of anodes, it is proved to perform a key parameter to improve the cycle performance of Si-based anodes. Because they are eco-friendly and cost saving, water-based binders styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) and carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) are regarded as the better binder to substitute Poly (vinylidene difluoride) (PVDF) as the binder for Si-based anode. In this study, the anodes are fabricated by simply mixing the active materials (naso Si, graphite and conductive additive) together and using the mixture of SBR and CMC as a binder. The results showed that the retention capacities of the anodes are more than 440 mAh/g after 400 cycles. It indicates that it is an easy and simple way to make high performance anodes.

Based on the data of A-share listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen of China from 2011 to 2018 and the digital inclusive finance index of Peking University (2011-2018), this paper empirically tests the impact of digital finance development on corporate social responsibility in various provinces of China and its impact mechanism. The results show that: (1) the development of digital finance helps to promote the fulfillment of corporate social responsibility; (2) the influence mechanism of the development of digital finance to promote the fulfillment of corporate social responsibility lies in that it reduces the cost of debt financing and leads to the improvement of corporate social responsibility.(3) Further research shows that the positive relationship between digital finance and corporate social responsibility is more significant in private enterprises. At the same time, the impact is more significant in areas with poor market environment. The above research shows that the development of digital finance has a significant positive effect, which will improve the level of corporate social responsibility.

Arid- and semi-arid Central Asia is particularly sensitive to climate change. The changes in extreme precipitation in Central Asia stemming from climate warming are the subject of intense debate within the scientific community. This study employed a Morlet wavelet analysis to examine the annual occurrence number of extreme precipitation in Central Asia from May to September during the period of 1951–2005. Their modulating planetary-scale climate modes were identified by using a linear regression analysis. Two major scales of the temporal variability were derived: 2–3.9 yr and 4–6 yr. The dominant variability was 2–3.9-yr scale and was associated with the negative phase of the Polar/Eurasia (POL) pattern. The 4–6-yr scale provided a secondary contribution and was closely linked to the negative phase of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). These planetary climate modes acted as precursors of extreme precipitation over Central Asia. The negative phase of POL directly contributed to a negative height anomaly over Central Asia, which was intimately related to extreme precipitation. In contrast, the negative NAO phase possibly manifested as a Rossby wave source, which was subsequently exported to Central Asia through a negative–positive–negative Rossby wave train.

A full connected world is expected to gain in the 6th generation mobile network (6G). As a typi-cal fully connected scenario, the internet of vehicle (IoV) enables intelligent vehicle operations via artificial intelligence (AI) and edge computing technologies. In the future of vehicular net-works, wide variety of services need powerful computing resources and higher quality of ser-vice (QoS). Existing resources are insufficient to match these requirements. Aim to this problem, An intelligent service offloading framework is provided. Based on the framework, an Algorithm of Improved Gradient Descent (AIGD) is created to accelerate the speed of iteration. So, the con-vergence of convolutional neural network (CNN) based on AIGD is able to be accelerated too. Then, an Algorithm of convolutional long short-term memory (CN_LSTM) Based Traffic Predic-tion (ACLBTP) is designed to gain the predicted number of vehicles belonged to the edge node. At last, an Algorithm of Service Offloading Based on CN_LSTM (ASOBCL) is conducted to of-fload these services to the vehicles belonged to the edge node. In ASOBCL, sorting technique is adopted to speed up the offloading work. Simulation results demonstrate the fact that the pre-diction strategy designed in this paper has high accuracy. The low offloading time and main-taining stable load balance is gained via running ASOBCL. Low offloading time means short response time. And, the QoS is guaranteed. So, these strategies designed in this paper are effec-tive and valuable.

The geological and hydrological conditions of tunnels near reservoirs are complex, and the impact of water level changes on the stability and leakage assessment of the lining structure is not considered in the current leakage evaluation. In order to construct an evaluation model for leakage level of tunnels near reservoirs, the influence of water level changes on tunnel stability and changes in environmental conditions on the leakage of tunnels were researched. Based on the AHP and extensibility theory, a hierarchical system for leakage assessment, incorporating values from nine indexes representing three aspects: geological conditions, hydrological conditions, and tunnel engineering. Numerical simulation was used to analyze the influence of water level changes. It was found that the water level change index greatly influences the displacement and stress distribution inside the tunnel structure. The leakage evaluation model was applied to the Tiebeishan Tunnel, resulting in a rating of 3, indicating medium-level leakage. Attention should be paid to water leakage in tunnels with changes in reservoir water levels. The leakage evaluation model for tunnels near reservoirs can effectively assess leakage levels under various conditions, providing a reference for safety assessments of tunnel leakage near reservoirs.

The model proposed in this study was based on the assumption that the biomass attached to the anode served as biocatalysts for MFC exoelectrogenesis, and this catalytic effect was quantified by the exchange current density of anode. By modifying the Freter model and combining it with the Butler-Volmer equation, this model could adequately describe the processes of electricity generation, substrate utilization, and the suspended and attached biomass concentrations, at both batch and continuous operating modes. MFC performance is affected by the operating variables such as initial substrate concentration, external resistor, influent substrate concentration, and dilution rate, and these variables were revealed to have complex interactions by data simulation. The external power generation and energy efficiency were considered as indices for MFC performance. The simulated results explained that an intermediate initial substrate concentration (about 100 mg/L under this reactor configuration) needed to be chosen to achieve maximum overall energy efficiency from substrate in the batch mode. An external resistor with the value about that of the internal resistance boosted the power generation, and a resistor with several times of that of the internal resistance achieved better overall energy efficiency. At continuous mode, dilution rate significantly impacted the steady-state substrate concentration level (thus substrate removal efficiency and rate), and attached biomass could be fully developed when the influent substrate concentration was equal to or higher than 100 mg/L at any dilution rate of the tested range. Overall, this relatively simple model provided a convenient way for evaluating and optimizing the performance of MFC reactors by regulating operating parameters.

We report a prebiotically relevant solution to the N1-ribosylation of pyrimidine nucleobases, a well-known challenge in the RNA World hypothesis. It is found that the presence of metal cations and clay mineral enables the previously unachievable direct ribosylation of uracil, providing by far the highest yield. Spectroscopy and chromatography analyses confirmed the formation of ribosylated uracil. The method can also be extended to the ribosylation of 2-pyrimidinone. These findings are also compatible with the metal-doped-clay model developed by our lab for the unified route of the selection of ribose and subsequent syntheses of nucleotide and RNA.