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Tassel weight (TW) is a crucial agronomic trait that significantly affects pollen supply and grain yield development in maize breeding. To improve maize yield and develop new varieties, a comprehensive understanding of the genetic mechanisms underlying tassel weight is essential. In this study, tropical maize inbred lines, namely CML312, CML373, CML444, and YML46, were selected as female parents and crossed with the elite maize inbred line Ye107, which served as the common male parent, to develop a multi-parent population comprising four F8 recombinant inbred line (RIL) subpopulations. Using 6616 high-quality single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers, we conducted genome-wide association analysis (GWAS) and genomic selection (GS) on 642 F8 RILs in four subpopulations across three different environments. Through GWAS, we identified 16 SNPs that were significantly associated with TW, encompassing two stable loci expressed across multiple environments. Furthermore, within the candidate regions of these SNPs, we discovered four novel candidate genes related to TW, namely Zm00001d044362, Zm00001d011048, Zm00001d011049, and Zm00001d031173 distributed on chromosomes 1, 3, and 8, which have not been previously reported. These genes are involved in processes such as signal transduction, growth and development, protein splicing, and pollen development, all of which play crucial roles in inflorescence meristem development, directly affecting TW. The co-localized SNP, S8_137379725, on chromosome 8 was situated within a 16.569 kb long terminal repeat retrotransposon (LTR-RT), located 22.819 kb upstream and 26.428 kb downstream of the candidate genes (Zm00001d011048 and Zm00001d011049). When comparing three distinct GS models, the BayesB model demonstrated the highest accuracy in predicting TW. This study establishes the theoretical foundation for future research into the genetic mechanisms underlying maize TW and the efficient breeding of high-yielding varieties with desired tassel weight through GS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Narrow-band blue luminescence materials are desirable in full color display with wide color gamut. Divalent rare earth europium doped luminescence materials show excellent optical properties as promising backlit materials in display. However, narrow-band blue luminescence materials are still lacking. Herein, novel blue emitting Eu2+: CsCaCl 3 NCs are precipitated in the glasses, and effects of EuCl 3 doping concentration and heat-treatment conditions on the growth behavior and optical properties of Eu2+: CsCaCl 3 NCs precipitated in glasses are investigated. Doping concentration of EuCl 3 in glass and the heat-treatment condition can effectively regulate the Eu2+/Eu3+ molar ratio in glasses, size of Eu2+: CsCaCl 3 NCs, and effective doping concentration of Eu2+ ions in CsCaCl 3 NCs formed in the glasses. Besides, effect of phase separation on glass transmittance is explored to improve the glass optical properties. Upon incorporation of Eu2+ ions into CsCaCl 3 NCs in glasses, blue photoluminescence at 435 nm with full width at half maximum of 22 nm and color purity of ∼97.2 % is realized, and concomitantly, photoluminescence lifetimes are extended and quantum efficiency are significantly improved. These results demonstrate that Eu2+: CsCaCl 3 NCs doped glasses are promising blue emitting materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Preschool-age irritability is a transdiagnostic marker of internalizing and externalizing problems. However, researchers have generally been reluctant to examine irritability within a clinically salient framework at younger ages due to some instability during the "terrible twos" period. Developmentally sensitive and dense measurements to capture intra- and inter-individual variability, as well as exploration of developmental processes that predict change, are needed. This study aimed to examine (1) the trajectories of irritability at the transition to toddlerhood (12–24 months of age) using repeated measures, (2) whether effortful control was associated with individual differences in level and growth rate of irritability, and (3) whether individual differences in the irritability trajectories were associated with later psychopathology. Families were recruited when the child was 12–18 months old (N = 333, 45.65% female). Mothers reported on their toddler's irritability at baseline and every two months until a follow-up laboratory assessment approximately one year later. Effortful control was measured at baseline. Clinical internalizing/externalizing symptoms were measured at the follow-up assessment. Hierarchical linear models revealed an increase in irritability over time, yet there was relatively little within-person variability. Effortful control was only associated with the level of irritability and not growth rate. Level of irritability was associated with internalizing, externalizing, and combined symptoms, but growth rate was not. Findings suggest intraindividual stability in irritability at the transition to toddlerhood and the possibility that screening for elevated irritability at toddler age is meaningful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Narrow-band blue luminescence materials are desirable in full color display with wide color gamut. Divalent rare earth europium doped luminescence materials show excellent optical properties as promising backlit materials in display. However, narrow-band blue luminescence materials are still lacking. Herein, novel blue emitting Eu2+: CsCaCl 3 NCs are precipitated in the glasses, and effects of EuCl 3 doping concentration and heat-treatment conditions on the growth behavior and optical properties of Eu2+: CsCaCl 3 NCs precipitated in glasses are investigated. Doping concentration of EuCl 3 in glass and the heat-treatment condition can effectively regulate the Eu2+/Eu3+ molar ratio in glasses, size of Eu2+: CsCaCl 3 NCs, and effective doping concentration of Eu2+ ions in CsCaCl 3 NCs formed in the glasses. Besides, effect of phase separation on glass transmittance is explored to improve the glass optical properties. Upon incorporation of Eu2+ ions into CsCaCl 3 NCs in glasses, blue photoluminescence at 435 nm with full width at half maximum of 22 nm and color purity of ∼97.2 % is realized, and concomitantly, photoluminescence lifetimes are extended and quantum efficiency are significantly improved. These results demonstrate that Eu2+: CsCaCl 3 NCs doped glasses are promising blue emitting materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fe–N–C catalysts with excellent performance regarding the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) have aroused enormous interest in direct-formate fuel cells (DFFCs). However, their limited mass transfer ability, insufficient ORR active sites, and complex fabrication processes remain significant obstacles to the widespread application of Fe–N–C catalysts. Herein, we propose a simple hydrothermal-annealing method with agarose powders to synthesize a uniform spherical Fe–N–C catalyst (∼3 μm) with well-developed mesopores (Fe/rG@C/H-Agar-900). The resultant Fe/rG@C/H-Agar-900 catalyst possesses rich oxygen-containing functional groups and enhanced interconnected pores, which can significantly boost the content of catalytic sites and facilitate mass transport, resulting in a high content of active sites. In the meantime, the mesopore content of Fe/rG@C/H-Agar-900, which can facilitate the formation of the three-phase gas/electrolyte/catalyst interfaces, was optimized by varying the annealing temperature. As a result, the Fe/rG@C/H-Agar-900 demonstrates a half-wave potential of 0.91 V vs. RHE, nearly four-electron pathway selectivity, excellent durability, and excellent formate tolerance for ORR. Furthermore, when used as the air cathode in membrane-less DFFCs, the Fe/rG@C/H-Agar-900-based device exhibits a remarkable peak power density of 24.5 mW cm−2, significantly outperforming the 20 wt% commercial Pt/C. This research facilitates the synthesis of an advanced Fe–N–C catalyst and promotes the practical development of membrane-less DFFCs. [Display omitted] • Spherical mesoporous carbon precursors were prepared by a hydrothermal-annealing method. • Fe–N–C catalyst prepared from agarose powder were used as the air-cathode catalyst for membrane-less DFFCs. • Annealing treatment expands the mesoporous structures of hydrocarbons. • Fe/rG@C/H-Agar-900 exhibits a highly positive E 1/2 (0.91 V vs. RHE) for ORR in alkaline solution. • A P max of 24.5 mW cm−2 is achieved by Fe/rG@C/H-Agar-900, which is 31% higher than that of Pt/C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In micro- and nanoscale channels, where the characteristic scale approaches or falls below the mean free path between gas molecules, flow characteristics exhibit pronounced discontinuity. In such scenarios, continuum-based models are inadequate, and adopting kinetic models based on statistical mechanics becomes imperative for accurately describing the gas transport phenomenon. This paper presents a novel steady-state discrete Boltzmann model (DBM) that is specifically tailored for non-equilibrium flows at the micro–nanoscale. Unlike the conventional DBM, the new model focuses on the evolution equation of the non-equilibrium component of the molecular velocity distribution function in the Lagrangian coordinate system, which follows the fluid micro-element. Through numerous numerical simulations, we demonstrate the effectiveness of our model in capturing gas flow characteristics across a wide spectrum of rarefaction parameters, ranging from slip flow to free molecular flow. Utilizing this new model, we initially examine the Onsager reciprocal relationship between heat flux generated by pressure gradients and mass flux resulting from temperature gradients in micro/nanochannels. Subsequently, we calculate higher-order non-equilibrium quantities up to the 10th order and make a comparison of their characteristics. Finally, we present and discuss the features of the non-equilibrium component of the molecular velocity distribution function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The potential applications of nanowires in thermal management and thermoelectric energy conversion have sparked extensive research on thermal transport in various nanowires. Nickel nanowires, with their unique properties and promising applications, have been extensively studied. However, the influence of size, particularly the impact of kink structures, on the thermal transport behavior in nickel nanowires remains unclear. In this paper, we employed electron-beam lithography and liftoff techniques to fabricate suspended nickel nanowires with varying sizes and kinks to experimentally investigate the size and kink effect on the thermal conductivity. The experimental results revealed that the thermal transport behavior of nickel nanowires is significantly influenced by both size and kink effects. Notably, as the nanowire size decreases, the thermal conductivity also decreases. Furthermore, we discovered that the thermal conductivity can be adjusted by altering the number and angle of kinks. Increasing the number of kinks from 18 to 36 resulted in a significant decrease in thermal conductivity. In contrast, as the kink angle decreased from 157° to 90°, the thermal conductivity also decreased. However, intriguingly, when the kink angle was further decreased from 90° to 43°, the thermal conductivity increases. This non-monotonic change in thermal conductivity with the kink angle provides an interesting insight into the intricate behavior of heat carriers in kinked nickel nanowires. Additionally, we found that varying the alloy elements can profoundly alter the thermal conductivity of nanowires with kinks. These results offer valuable insights into the behaviors of heat carriers, including electrons and phonons, during heat transfer in nickel nanowires. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ion-exchange has been widely employed to modify the composition and structure of glasses. In this work, Cs–K ion-exchange was carried out to facilitate the precipitation of cesium lead halide perovskite nanocrystals in the surface layer of glasses. Both Cs 4 PbBr 6 and CsPbBr 3 perovskite nanocrystals and KBr nanocrystals can be precipitated through ion-exchange in nitrate salt. Content of Cs 4 PbBr 6 and CsPbBr 3 perovskite nanocrystals is strongly dependent on the composition of nitrate salt, ion-exchange conditions, and post-thermal annealing. High concentration of Cs in nitrate salt, long ion-exchange duration, and post-thermal annealing are effective to promote the formation of CsPbBr 3 perovskite nanocrystals. Results reported is valuable for the developing of cesium lead halide perovskite nanocrystals embedded glass for light converters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fighting against COVID-19: Innovations and applications Abbreviations AI artificial intelligence CNN convolutional neural network CT computerized tomography CXR chest x-ray radiograph DL deep learning DNN deep neural network DSS decision support system ML machine learning COVID-19 has triggered over 6.90 million deaths worldwide until the cutoff date of April 23, 2023. Furthermore, chest CT can be used to evaluate the response to treatment in COVID-19 patients.[33] Repeat chest CT scans can show whether the lung damage is improving or stabilizing, which can help healthcare professionals to adjust the treatment plan as needed.[34] In this virtual special issue, many CT-based AI models are reported. COLI-Net: deep learning-assisted fully automated COVID-19 lung and infection pneumonia lesion detection and segmentation from chest computed tomography images. [Extracted from the article]

In this paper, we propose a two-dimensional multifractal sign retention detrending fluctuation analysis algorithm (2D MF-S-DFA), which takes the sign of the residual matrix into account when calculating the detrending fluctuation function in traditional 2D MF-DFA. We evaluate these two methods based on images constructed from p -model multiplicative cascades. The results indicate that the numerical solution of the images extracted by 2D MF-S-DFA is closer to the theoretical solution of the multiplicative cascade images. In addition, we also compare the performance of the two methods after transforming the important parameters of the multiplicative cascade images. The results show that the relative errors and overall distance between the generalized Hurst exponent H (q) and the scale exponent τ (q) extracted by 2D MF-S-DFA and the image feature values are smaller than those of 2D MF-DFA. We can conclude that the sign retention algorithm outperforms the traditional 2D MF-DFA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we propose an improved algorithm based on the original two-dimensional (2D) multifractal detrended fluctuation analysis (2D MF-DFA) that involves increasing the number of cumulative summations in the computational steps of 2D MF-DFA. The proposed method aims to modify the distribution of the generalized Hurst exponent to ensure that skin lesion image features are extracted based on enhanced multifractal features. We calculate the generalized Hurst exponent using 0, 1, or 2 cumulative summation processes. A support vector machine (SVM) is adopted to examine the classification performance under these three conditions. Computation shows that the process involving two cumulative summations achieves an accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of 9 5. 6 9 ± 0. 1 1 7 4 % , 9 4. 2 5 ± 0. 0 9 4 2 % , and 9 7. 6 3 ± 0. 1 4 6 6 % , respectively, which indicates that its performance is much better than with 0 and 1 cumulative summations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To develop a quantitative Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (qRECIST) for evaluating response to neoadjuvant therapy (nT) in ESCCs relying on multiparametric (mp) MRI.Methods: Patients with cT2-T4a/N0-N3/M0 ESCC undergoing pre-nT and post-nT esophageal mpMRI before radical resection were prospectively included. Images were reviewed by two experienced radiologists. qRECIST was redefined using four methods including conventional criterion (cRECIST) and three model-dependent RECIST relying on quantitative MRI measurements at pre-nT, post-nT, and delta pre-post nT, respectively. Pathological tumor regression grades (TRGs) were used as a reference standard. The rates of agreement between four qRECIST methods and TRGs were determined with a Cronbach's alpha test, area under the curve (AUC), and a diagnostic odds ratio meta-analysis.Results: Ninety-one patients were enrolled. All four methods revealed high inter-reader agreements between the two radiologists, with a Kappa coefficient of 0.96, 0.87, 0.88, and 0.97 for cRECIST, pre-nT RECIST, post-nT RECIST, and delta RECIST, respectively. Among them, delta RECIST achieved the highest overall agreement rate (67.0% [61/91]) with TRGs, followed by post-nT RECIST (63.8% [58/91]), cRECIST (61.5% [56/91]), and pre-nT RECIST (36.3% [33/91]). Especially, delta RECIST achieved the highest accuracy (97.8% [89/91]) in distinguishing responders from non-responders, with 97.3% (34/35) for responders and 98.2% (55/56) for non-responders. Post-nT RECIST achieved the highest accuracy (93.4% [85/91]) in distinguishing complete responders from non-pCRs, with 77.8% (11/18) for pCRs and 94.5% (69/73) for non-pCRs.Conclusion: The qRECIST with mpMRI can assess treatment-induced changes and may be used for early prediction of response to nT in ESCC patients.Key Points: • Quantitative mpMRI can reliably assess tumor response, and delta RECIST model had the best performance in evaluating response to nT in ESCCs, with an AUC of 0.98, 0.95, 0.80, and 0.82 for predicting TRG0, TRG1, TRG2, and TRG3, respectively. • In distinguishing responders from non-responders, the rate of agreement between delta RECIST and pathology was 97.3% (34/35) for responders and 98.2% (55/56) for non-responders, resulting in an overall agreement rate of 97.8% (89/91). • In distinguishing pCRs from non-pCR, the rate of agreement between MRI and pathology was 77.8% (11/18) for pCRs and 94.5% (69/73) for non- pCRs, resulting in an overall agreement rate of 91.2% (83/91). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we propose a one-dimensional (1D) multifractal sign retention detrending fluctuation analysis algorithm (MF-S-DFA). The proposed method is based on conventional multifractal detrending fluctuation analysis (MF-DFA). As negative values may exist in the calculation in the original MF-DFA model, sign retention is considered to improve performance. We evaluate the two methods based on time series constructed by p-model multiplication cascades. The results indicate that the generalized Hurst exponent H (q) , the scale exponent τ (q) and the singular spectrum f (α) estimated by MF-S-DFA behave almost consistently with the theoretical values. Moreover, we also employ distance functions such as D H and D τ . The results prove that MF-S-DFA achieves more accurate estimation. In addition, we present various numerical experiments by transforming parameters such as n m a x , q and p. The results imply that MF-S-DFA obtains more excellent performance than that of conventional MF-DFA in all cases. Finally, we also verify the high feasibility of MF-S-DFA in ECG signal classification. Through classification of normal and abnormal ECG signals, we further corroborate that MF-S-DFA is more effective than conventional MF-DFA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Segment current using array electrodes was applied to obtain current distribution. • Response of current distribution to variable operating conditions was studied. • External stimuli-induced high current usually led to a worse current distribution. • Increasing electrolyte ion concentration improved current and current distribution. Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are an emerging technology in renewable energy and waste treatment and the scale-up is crucial for practical applications. Undoubtedly, the analysis and comprehension of MFC operation necessitate essential information regarding the response of the current distribution to variable operating conditions, which stands as one of its significant dynamic characteristics. In this study, the dynamic responses of current distribution to external stimuli (external load, temperature, pH, and electrolyte concentration) were investigated by employing a segmented anode current collector in a liter-scale MFC. The results demonstrated that, with respect to the anodic segment close to the cathode, a major response of the segment current to changes in load, temperature and pH was observed while minor response to changes in ion concentration. It was also found that external stimuli-induced high current usually led to a worse current distribution while increasing electrolyte ion concentration could simultaneously improve the maximal power generation and current distribution. In addition, the response time of segment current to input stimulus followed the pattern of temperature ˃ pH ˃ ion concentration ˃ external load. The results and implication of this study would be helpful in enhancing the operational stability of scale-up MFCs in future practical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Slip flow is a common phenomenon in micro-/nano-electromechanical systems. It is well known that the mass and heat transfers in slip flow show many unique behaviors, such as the velocity slip and temperature jump near the wall. However, the kinetic understanding of slip flow is still an open problem. This paper first clarifies that the Thermodynamic Non-Equilibrium (TNE) flows can be roughly classified into two categories: near-wall TNE flows and TNE flows away from the wall. The origins of TNE in the two cases are significantly different. For the former, the TNE mainly results from the fluid–wall interaction; for the latter, the TNE is primarily due to the considerable (local) thermodynamic relaxation time. Therefore, the kinetic modeling methods for the two kinds of TNE flows are significantly different. Based on the Discrete Boltzmann Modeling (DBM) method, the non-equilibrium characteristics of mass and heat transfers in slip flow are demonstrated and investigated. The method is solidly verified by comparing with analytic solutions and experimental data. In pressure-driven flow, the DBM results are consistent with experimental data for the Knudsen number up to 0.5. It is verified that, in the slip flow regime, the linear constitutive relations with standard viscous or heat conduction coefficients are no longer applicable near the wall. For the Knudsen layer problem, it is interesting to find that a heat flux (viscous stress) component in the velocity (temperature) Knudsen layer approximates a hyperbolic sinusoidal distribution. The findings enrich the insights into the non-equilibrium characteristics of mass and heat transfers at micro-/nano-scales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The incidence of sexually transmitted diseases has alarmingly increased among Chinese youth in the past decade, and newly diagnosed cases of AIDS have almost doubled between 2010 and 2015. However, little is known about classes of sexual behavior among Chinese youth and associations with their other health behavior or experience of sex education. This study aimed to first identify classes of sexual behavior using latent class analysis and then to examine their associations with sex education, smoking, alcohol drinking, and pornography use. Data were from 13,865 unmarried youth aged 18–24 from the 2009 National Youth Reproductive Health Survey. Six indicators were used: timing of the first sexual intercourse, the number of past-year sexual partners, sex outside of a relationship, incidence of pregnancy, and contraceptive use at the latest and the first sexual intercourse. Four classes were identified: no sex (Class 1, 69%), safer sex (Class 2, 13%), early risk (Class 3, 13%), and multiple risk (Class 4, 5%). Smoking, drinking, and regular pornography use were associated with increased odds of being in the multiple risk class relative to the safer sex class. Sex education, smoking, and pornography use were associated with decreased odds of being in the no sex class relative to the safer sex class. The findings revealed qualitatively different classes of sexual behavior among Chinese youth and important roles of sex education, substance use, and pornography use. Reproductive health service providers can offer individually tailored services to serve youth with different profiles and needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL)/polyamide 6 (PA6) composites were fabricated by dispersing PA6 powder into PCL. The SEM results show good dispersion of PA6 in the PCL matrix. Crystallization behavior, crystal structure and spherulitic morphology of pure PCL and the PCL/PA6 composites, as well as their thermal stability and dynamic mechanical properties, were characterized using various techniques including differential scanning calorimeter, X-ray diffraction (XRD), polarized light microscope (PLM), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) and dynamic mechanical analyzer (DMA). The PCL/PA6 composite showed increased storage modulus and glass transition temperature (Tg). PA6 powder functions as a heterogeneous nucleate to promote PCL crystallization but does not alter orthorhombic crystal form, crystallization mechanism and thermal stability of PCL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gas is associated with coal mining; it commonly exists in the coal seam. It is one of the major dangers during the production because its reaction between the coal masses may induce the gas-coal outburst as well as it being an expositive matter. The gas accident has caused a huge amount of property damage and casualties. Therefore, the primary precaution for coal mining is gas control. At present, drilling and extraction are the main approaches for gas accident prevention. After drilling, the ground pressure will be released; the gas which is in a free state or absorbed in the coal seam will be easy to extract as the migration channel is enhanced. Hence, one of the most concerned problems is the stress redistribution of the coal and rock mass around the borehole. In practical engineering, there are many joints distributed in the coal and rock strata, so it is necessary to investigate the effect of the drilling in the jointed coal and rock mass. In this paper, the boundary element model of the borehole in the jointed coal and rock mass is established to study the influence of joints on the stress and displacement field. The following results can be obtained. The number of joints has a significant effect on the maximum displacement of the coal and rock mass. The maximum displacement increases with the number of the joint. The position of the maximum displacement shifts from the boundary of the borehole to the far field. Meanwhile, it can be found that the displacement may reach a peak value when the joint angle is 30° and if the joint number is less than 4, and the maximum displacement may occur under the joint angle of 45° and if the joints number continuous increases. The von Mises stress has a trend of increasing with the number of joints when the joint angle is less than 30°, while it has a decreasing trend when the joint angle is larger than 30°. The max stress may occur at the joint angle of 15°. The maximum shear stress occurs mostly in the No. 4 joint and the No.7 joint. When the joint angle is 30°, the maximum shear stress occurs in the No. 3 joint and the No. 4 joint. The overlap of the position of the maximum von Mises stress or the maximum displacement with different joint angles or different numbers of joint leads to a reexploration of such positions. The position of the maximum von Mises stress and the maximum displacement o is relatively steady, which locates symmetrically around the borehole. The line between the points that behaves as the maximum von stress is approximately perpendicular to the joint direction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The last two decades have witnessed an ever‐increasing research effort devoted to the development and application of magnetoelectric (ME) sensing composites. Herein, the ME effect in a metallic/polymeric composite fabricated by adhering silver electrodes to two surfaces of one poly(vinylidine fluoride) (PVDF) disk is explored. To obtain obvious ME response, the resonance frequency of the experimental setup is measured. Furthermore, it is proved that the ME coupling in the composite (silver/PVDF/silver) originates from the product effect of the piezoelectric effect and ampere force produced by eddy currents under DC bias magnetic fields. By observing measurement results, the ME voltage is approximately considered to be proportional to both AC and DC magnetic fields. Consequently, the average ME voltage coefficient is obtained as 384.73 mV cm−1 Oe at a DC magnetic field value of 1000 Oe. Considering the magnetic fields and eddy current, a theoretical model of ME coupling is developed by combining the ampere force expression and piezoelectric equations, which matches well with measurement results. Without the need of magnetic phase and an external power supply, the proposed disk with excellent linear responses and a considerable ME voltage coefficient has the potential for application in real‐time monitoring sensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One-pot hydrothermal carbonization approach was employed to synthesize the blue-emission carbon dots derived from chitosan (Cs) and o-phenylenediamine (OPD). The Cs-based carbon dots (Cs–CDs) possessed a certain high quantum yield of 58% and exhibited excellent solubility, stability and fluorescence response in aqueous solutions. The Cs–CDs were designed as a sensor for Cr(VI) and H2O2 determination. The sensing strategy of Cr(VI) was based on the inner filter effect (IFE) and static quenching effect (SQE), showing a good linear correlation ranging from 1 to 130 μ M with a detection limit (LOD) of 0.91 μ M. In addition, the determination for H2O2 was attributed to the elimination of IFE (EIFE) due to the reduction reaction and the detection for H2O2 was in the linear range from 1.0 to 200.0 μ M with LOD of 0.51 μ M. Finally, the proposed designed sensor could be simply applied for detection of Cr(VI) and H2O2 in real samples. The chitosan-based carbon dots (Cs-CDs) were prepared via one-pot hydrothermal method with chitosan and o-phenylenediamine. The Cs-CDs had excellent water-solubility, high quantum yield (QY = 58%) and good optical-stability. Based on the turn-on-off-on fluorescence response signal of Cs-CDs, a fluorescent method was constructed for Cr(VI) and H2O2 determination, which had good sensitivity and accuracy for real water samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is not clear how Fms-like tyrosine kinase 3-internal tandem duplications (FLT3-ITD) regulates checkpoint kinase 1 (CHK1) in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). In this study, we investigated the regulatory effect of FLT3-ITD on CHK1. Our results showed that CHK1 was highly expressed in FLT3-ITD positive AML. The overall survival rate and disease-free survival rate of AML patients with high CHK1 level were lower than those of patients with low CHK1 level. Mechanistically, FLT3-ITD recruited p300 to the CHK1 promoter and subsequently acetylated H3K27, thereby enhancing the transcription of CHK1. Interfering with the expression of CHK1 significantly inhibited the cell proliferation and induced cell apoptosis in FLT3-ITD positive MV4-11 cells. In addition, CHK1 knockdown promoted the sensitivity of MV4-11 cells to the epigenetic inhibitors JQ1 and C646. This study discovers a new therapeutic target for FLT3-ITD + AML and provided evidence for the combination of epigenetic inhibitors for AML treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The excavation of coal mine often encounters the fault problem. In this paper, the analytical study of the pressure of the fault that the work face may cross is carried out. The evolution of the stress and moment of the fault is investigated. Afterwards, a numerical study is performed. The stress and displacement of the rock mass near the work face and the fault are calculated under each situation (the initial fracture and periodical fracture of the immediate roof, the forward direction fault, and the reverse direction fault), and the changes in the contact pressure and stress near the fault during the excavation are analyzed. The effect of searching tunnel on the mining pressure is also studied. The calculation results indicate that although the searching-tunnel can decrease the stress at the roof of the fault (reverse direction fault), it may increase the stress at other positions. It can therefore be concluded that, for the forward direction fault, the effect of the searching tunnel to decrease the contact pressure and dissipate the energy is limited; on the contrary, it will aggravate the fragmentation degree and make the support more difficult, while, for the reverse direction fault, the excavation of searching tunnel can not only provide a better understanding of the characters of the fault but also have a positive effect on the ground control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The inductively coupled plasma chemical vapor deposition (ICP-CVD) deposited silicon nitride (SiNx) thin film was evaluated for its application as the electrical insulating film for a capacitor device. In order to achieve highest possible dielectric strength of SiNx, the process parameters of ICP-CVD were carefully tuned to control hydrogen in SiNx films by means of tuning N2/SiH4 ratio and radio frequency (RF) power. Besides electrical measurements, the hydrogen content in the films was measured by dynamic secondary ion mass spectrometry (D-SIMS). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and micro Raman spectroscopy were used to characterize the SiNx films by measuring Si–H and N–H bonds' intensities. It was found that the more Si–H bonds lead to the higher dielectric strength. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent decades, the term "ecosystem" has garnered substantial attention in scholarly and managerial discourse, featuring prominently in academic and applied contexts. While individual scholars have made significant contributions to the study of various types of ecosystem, there appears to be a research gap marked by a lack of comprehensive synthesis and refinement of findings across diverse ecosystems. This paper systematically addresses this gap through a hybrid methodology, employing bibliometric and content analyses to systematically review the literature from 1993 to 2023. The primary research aim is to critically examine theoretical studies on different ecosystem types, specifically focusing on business, innovation, and platform ecosystems. The methodology of this study involves a content review of the identified literature, combining quantitative bibliometric analyses to differentiate patterns and content analysis for in-depth exploration. The core findings center on refining and summarizing the definitions of business, innovation, and platform ecosystems, shedding light on both commonalities and distinctions. Notably, the research unveils shared characteristics such as openness and diversity across these ecosystems while highlighting significant differences in terms of participants and objectives. Furthermore, the paper delves into the interconnections within these three ecosystem types, offering insights into their dynamics and paving the way for discussions on future research directions. This comprehensive examination not only advances our understanding of business, innovation, and platform ecosystems but also lays the groundwork for future scholarly inquiries in this dynamic and evolving field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key message: This study revealed the identification of a novel gene, Zm00001d042906, that regulates maize ear length by modulating lignin synthesis and reported a molecular marker for selecting maize lines with elongated ears. Maize ear length has garnered considerable attention due to its high correlation with yield. In this study, six maize inbred lines of significant importance in maize breeding were used as parents. The temperate maize inbred line Ye107, characterized by a short ear, was crossed with five tropical or subtropical inbred lines featuring longer ears, creating a multi-parent population displaying significant variations in ear length. Through genome-wide association studies and mutation analysis, the A/G variation at SNP_183573532 on chromosome 3 was identified as an effective site for discriminating long-ear maize. Furthermore, the associated gene Zm00001d042906 was found to correlate with maize ear length. Zm00001d042906 was functionally annotated as a laccase (Lac4), which showed activity and influenced lignin synthesis in the midsection cells of the cob, thereby regulating maize ear length. This study further reports a novel molecular marker and a new gene that can assist maize breeding programs in selecting varieties with elongated ears. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The level of Al3+ is an indicator for many diseases of human, so the selective and sensitive detection of Al3+ is critically important for human health. In this study, a simple and sensitive ratiometric fluorescent sensor for the detection of Al3+ in the aqueous solution was developed based on the inner filter effect (IFE) and static quenching effect (SQE) of the carbon dots (CDs) and fluorescein. The preparation of CDs was facile and green by a one‐step hydrothermal method, using the fresh Melia azedarach L. leaves as the raw material. The fluorescence of CDs at 430 nm was quenched owing to the combination of IFE and SQE while the fluorescence of fluorescein at 515 nm was enhanced upon adding fluorescein. Meanwhile, fluorescein interacted with Al3+ resulting in the quenching of the fluorescence of fluorescein at 515 nm and the recovering of the fluorescence of CDs at 430 nm with the addition of Al3+ into the system of CDs‐fluorescein. The linear range of the ratiometric fluorescent sensor (F515/F430) for Al3+ detection was 0–500 μM and the detection limit was 0.216 μM. Importantly, it had been successfully applied in the detection of Al3+ in the drinking and environmental water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A facile and rapid fluorescent sensing system for palladium ion (Pd2+) and iron ion (Fe3+) has been established based on carbon dots (CDs) using fresh Momordica charantia as the sole precursor via a one‐step hydrothermal treatment. The added Pd2+ and Fe3+ lead to the fluorescence quenching of CDs due to the static quenching effect (SQE). Such fluorescence response can be quenched by Pd2+ and Fe3+ in the linear ranges of 0–325 μM and 0–150 μM. Meanwhile, this sensing system exhibits good selectivity and sensitivity toward Pd2+ and Fe3+ over other analytes with low detection limits of 0.348 μM and 0.175 μM, respectively. Furthermore, the proposed sensing system has been successfully used for Pd2+ and Fe3+ in tap and environmental water and the recoveries range from 96.25 % to 107.3 %. The results mentioned above demonstrate its great promise as a practical platform for Pd2+ and Fe3+ sensing in aqueous media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Determination of strain path across martensitic transformation in materials with two transformation orientation relationships (ORs) is challenging due to the temporal and spatial limitation of the modern techniques. In this work, an analyzing strategy, i.e. , the determination of transformation path via the variant organization feature of martensite, was suggested and applied for the Ni–Mn-based alloys as an example, based on the consideration that the different crystallographic symmetries of transformation systems will result in distinct organizations of martensite variants. For the selected Ni–Mn-based alloys, the orientation examination revealed that both the K−S and the Pitsch OR are respected. Further analyses in terms of the strain and stress compatibility condition and the minimum energy criteria showed that, theoretically, the K−S path produces 2 variants as a self-accommodated variant group, whereas the Pitsch path produces 4 variants as a self-accommodated variant group. Compared with the experimental results, the Pitsch path is the energetically favorable transformation path and actually occurs in stress-free austenite of the Ni−Mn based alloys. The significance of this work is multi-fold. It first resolves the long puzzling issue of transformation strain path of Ni–Mn-based alloys. Moreover, the analyzing scheme can be generalized to determine the transformation characters for martensitic transformation in other systems with multiple possible transformation orientation relationships. Image, graphical abstract [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Modified sulfoaluminate cement was prepared as a new kind of cutoff wall material. • Calcined layered double hydroxide is added to cement to improve its properties. • The diffusion distribution curve was fitted using an exponential function. • Optimal ratio selected by anti-corrosion and barrier ability. • The effect of the cutoff wall for sulfate was simulated by Visual MODFLOW. Calcined layered double hydroxide (CLDH) was used to modify sulfoaluminate cement (SAC) mortar to develop a new sulfate-resistant barrier material. Through investigations into mechanical properties, permeability, microstructure, and migration characteristics, the results demonstrated that the addition of CLDH improved the mechanical properties and pore structure of SAC mortar and inhibited the diffusion of SO 4 2-. Based on its anti-corrosion and barrier ability, the optimal CLDH dosage in SAC mortar was determined to be 2 % of the cement mass. Service life calculations and Visual MODFLOW simulations demonstrated that the SAC-CLDH cutoff wall has significant durability and barrier effect on sulfate. Compared to the site without the SAC-CLDH cutoff wall, the effective dispersion distance and area of sulfate decreased by 88.79 % and 93.43 % during 4000 days. This finding provides a new reference for the containment and management of high-concentration sulfate-contaminated sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Young, low-income mothers demonstrated different types of social relationships with key people in their lives. • Mothers with strong social relationships developed strong relationships with doulas from the beginning of services. • Mothers with alienation from their parent figure had less involvement during pregnancy but more involvement postpartum. Relationships with family, partners and friends may shape mothers' involvement with home visiting services, and discrepancies exist in the literature regarding whether supportive social relationships are associated with more service involvement or less involvement. Mothers with more support may be more involved in services because their history of support may enable them to build trusting working alliances with service providers (relationships-beget-relationships). Alternatively, mothers with less support may be more involved because they may be in greater needs of services (relationship-compensation). This study examined patterns of mothers' social relationships and associations with the mothers' working alliances (agreement on tasks and goals, bonding) and use of home-visiting services provided by doulas in pregnancy and early postpartum. Data were collected from young, low-income mothers (N = 147; mean age = 18.5 years old; 49.7% African American, 41.5% Latina, and 8.8% European American/Other) who participated in doula-enhanced-home-visiting programs and from program administrative systems. Doulas provided home visits starting in pregnancy through six weeks postpartum and provided support during childbirth at the hospital. Eight indicators of mothers' relationships with their current parent figure (usually their mother; PF), the father of their baby (FOB), and general social network were measured. Latent profile analysis identified four relationship profiles: strong support from PF, FOB and others (27%), moderate support overall (40%), moderate support from FOB but alienation from PF (15%), and moderate support from PF but alienation from FOB (18%). Mothers with strong social relationships reported higher agreement with their doula on tasks/goals both during pregnancy and postpartum; mothers with challenging relationships with their parent figure had fewer pregnancy home visits and were less likely to have doula hospital attendance but had similar frequency of postnatal home visits as other classes. Relationship profiles were not associated with bonding with the doula, postnatal service frequency, or early service discontinuation. This study primarily provided support to the relationships-beget-relationships mechanism, but also suggested that mothers with a challenging history with their parent figure may become more involved in services after the birth of their baby. A deep understanding of young mothers' relationship history can help home visitors provide equitable and individualized services to promote family and child wellbeing, especially for mothers with challenging histories with their caregiver. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We analysed over 350 references from all well-famed databases. • We provided a comprehensive survey on deep learning in food category recognition. • This review encompassed current challenges & applications, strengths & limitations. • Fundamental deep learning rules and performance assessment methods were reviewed. • Convolutional neural networks, transfer and semi-supervised learning were reviewed. Integrating artificial intelligence with food category recognition has been a field of interest for research for the past few decades. It is potentially one of the next steps in revolutionizing human interaction with food. The modern advent of big data and the development of data-oriented fields like deep learning have provided advancements in food category recognition. With increasing computational power and ever-larger food datasets, the approach's potential has yet to be realized. This survey provides an overview of methods that can be applied to various food category recognition tasks, including detecting type, ingredients, quality, and quantity. We survey the core components for constructing a machine learning system for food category recognition, including datasets, data augmentation, hand-crafted feature extraction, and machine learning algorithms. We place a particular focus on the field of deep learning, including the utilization of convolutional neural networks, transfer learning, and semi-supervised learning. We provide an overview of relevant studies to promote further developments in food category recognition for research and industrial applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The accurate analysis of single-nucleotide polymorphisms is of great significance for clinical detection and diagnosis. Based on the hybridization hindrance caused by graphene oxide (GO) and hairpin probe, we report a T7 Exo-assisted cyclic amplification technique to distinguish single-base mismatch for highly sensitive and selective detection of mutant-type DNA. When the mutant-type target is completely complementary to the probe, the T7 Exo hydrolyzes the probe and releases the fluorescent molecule from the GO surface, resulting in a fluorescence signal. Conversely, when the wild-type mismatch target is present, the weak hybridization prevents the release of FAM-labeled probe from the GO surface. Therefore, the FAM-labeled probe cannot be degraded efficiently by T7 Exo, and the fluorescence is still quenched by GO. The detection limit of the proposed method can be as low as 34 fM due to the cyclic signal amplification. The experimental results showed that the established method could be used to detect single-nucleotide polymorphisms accurately and sensitively at low cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. Parenting styles are complex and have been well studied in parents of children and adolescents; however, less is known about parenting styles in early infancy, especially among ethnic minority groups. This study examines empirically identifiable profiles of early parenting that are associated with later infant socioemotional development. Design. 239 young, low-income, African American (54.8%) and Latina (45.2%) mothers were videorecorded with their 3-month-old infants. At 13-months, mothers reported on their infants' socioemotional development. Results. Person-oriented latent class analysis was used to identify four parenting styles: Sensitive/Stimulating (25%), Warm/Unstimulating (37%), Engaged/Tough (22%), and Disengaged (16%). The most common style among African American mothers was Engaged/Tough (34.4%), and the most prevalent style among Latina mothers was Warm/Unstimulating (48.2%). Infants of Warm/Unstimulating mothers had the lowest reported levels of problem behavior at 13 months, whereas infants of Sensitive/Stimulating mothers had the highest reported mastery motivation. Infants of Disengaged mothers had the highest reported levels of internalizing and total problem behavior and the lowest reported mastery motivation. Conclusions. Qualitatively distinct styles of early parenting link to different infant socioemotional outcomes in ways not fully captured by single dimensions of parenting. Practitioners working with young mothers from diverse ethnic backgrounds may be more effective at promoting positive parenting and infant development if they understand and can build on the strengths of certain parenting styles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We attempted to analyze the aberrant pathways and genes underlying the successive stages of colorectal cancer (CRC). The CRC related microarray data (GSE77953) were retrieved from Gene Expression Omnibus database, which included 17 colonic adenoma, 17 carcinoma, 11 CRC metastases, and 13 normal colonic epithelium samples. The differential expression patterns in colonic adenoma, carcinoma, and metastases were analyzed. Gene functional interaction (FI) and coexpressed network were constructed. Pathway enrichment analysis was performed to investigate the perturbed pathways, and disease-related genes were explored based on the Comparative Toxicogenomics Database. Total 438 genes were identified to be differentially expressed in colonic adenoma, 885 in carcinoma and 736 in metastases. The upregulated genes in adenoma were significantly related with ribosome, oxidative phosphorylation, and protein export related pathways. The downregulated genes in carcinoma and metastases were enriched in the same pathways, such as nitrogen metabolism, mineral absorption, and steroid hormone biosynthesis. FI network was constructed with 219 and 3914 edges, which were further divided to 12 modules. The genes in module 0 were closely related with ribosome, protein export, and RNA transport. Coexpressed genes were enriched in ribosome, protein export, and mineral absorption pathways. Total eight common upregulated genes were found to be the CRC-related genes such as RNF43 (ring finger protein 43), EIF3H (eukaryotic translation initiation factor 3 subunit H), and STRAP (serine/threonine kinase receptor associated protein). The common downregulated genes included ABCG2 (ATP binding cassette subfamily G member 2), GCG (glucagon), and SULT1A1 (sulfotransferase family 1A member 1). Oxidative phosphorylation, nitrogen metabolism, mineral absorption, and protein synthesis may significantly be perturbed in the progression of CRC. The overexpression of EIF3H may be the predictor for CRC formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a new form of combined pulsed laser (CPL) consisting of continuous wave (CW) laser and nanosecond (ns) pulse train was proposed for drilling Q235B steel without high-pressure gas jet. The average power of CW laser ranged from 100 to 700 W, while the average power of the ns laser was fixed at 12 W. The experiments were carried out to study the influence of the average CW laser power on the drilling efficiency and quality of CPL. The results show that there were two completely different matching mechanisms between the CW laser and ns pulse train. Firstly, during the CPL drilling with the 100-200 W CW laser, the ns pulse train could be used to timely and periodically eject the central part of the molten metal, leaving a recast layer with a thickness of up to 200 μm. In addition, for the CPL drilling with the 550 W CW laser, a little part of molten metal was continuously ejected by the ns pulse train, and all of the remaining molten metal could be removed by the boiling of molten metal, thus leaving a recast layer with thickness less than 10 μm. The new CPL presented in this paper has an important guiding significance for improving the quality and making full use of the high efficiency of CW laser drilling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Profound and comprehensive knowledge on hot deformation of metastable β titanium alloy is essential to process optimization and microstructure control. In this work, the hot compression behavior of a β quenched metastable β titanium alloy is thoroughly studied by examining microstructural evolution to resolve the related deformation mechanisms. It is demonstrated that the deformation of the alloy presents three characteristic stress-strain stages: a linear stage (Stage I), a discontinuous yielding (Stage II) and a steady-state (Stage III). Before and during Stage I, the β to α phase transformation happened intensively along the β grain boundaries with more than 90% of the boundaries occupied by grain boundaries α (α GB). The linear behavior deviates from the Young's modulus when the linear deformation proceeds to the late stage, indicating the onset of plastic deformation. This behavior results from dislocation slip near β grain boundary regions. The discontinuous yielding of Stage II is originated from the fragmentation of the α GB and the intensive formation of mobile dislocations near the β grain boundary areas. The steady-state of Stage III arises from two orientation dependent deformation modes of the β grains. For those in favorable activation orientation for their {110} β <1 1 ¯ 1> β systems with respect to the external compressive load (type I), the deformation is realized by the dislocation slip and by the formation of slip bands; whereas for those with their {1 1 ¯ 2 ¯ } β < 1 ¯ 1 1 ¯ > β systems - the major lattice deformation for structure change from β to α - in favorable activation orientations (type II), the deformation is achieved by intensive phase transformation by forming intragranular α precipitates. The present results provide new information on hot deformation mechanisms of metastable β titanium alloys, especially the phase transformation associated lattice deformation as an important plastic deformation mode. Image 1 • Hot deformation of Ti-7333 is studied in connection with multiscale microstructures. • Contribution of the fragmentation of α GB to the discontinuous yielding is evidenced. • Two orientation dependent deformation modes of β grains in steady-state are revealed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, hotspot regions, QTL clusters, and candidate genes for eight ear-related traits of maize (ear length, ear diameter, kernel row number, kernel number per row, kernel length, kernel width, kernel thickness, and 100-kernel weight) were summarized and analyzed over the past three decades. This review aims to (1) comprehensively summarize and analyze previous studies on QTLs associated with these eight ear-related traits and identify hotspot bin regions located on maize chromosomes and key candidate genes associated with the ear-related traits and (2) compile major and stable QTLs and QTL clusters from various mapping populations and mapping methods and techniques providing valuable insights for fine mapping, gene cloning, and breeding for high-yield and high-quality maize. Previous research has demonstrated that QTLs for ear-related traits are distributed across all ten chromosomes in maize, and the phenotypic variation explained by a single QTL ranged from 0.40% to 36.76%. In total, 23 QTL hotspot bins for ear-related traits were identified across all ten chromosomes. The most prominent hotspot region is bin 4.08 on chromosome 4 with 15 QTLs related to eight ear-related traits. Additionally, this study identified 48 candidate genes associated with ear-related traits. Out of these, five have been cloned and validated, while twenty-eight candidate genes located in the QTL hotspots were defined by this study. This review offers a deeper understanding of the advancements in QTL mapping and the identification of key candidates associated with eight ear-related traits. These insights will undoubtedly assist maize breeders in formulating strategies to develop higher-yield maize varieties, contributing to global food security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Bamboo charcoal tube (BCT) has been demonstrated to be the air-cathode for microbial fuel cells (MFCs). To enhance the performance of MFCs with BCT cathodes, we herein focus on optimizing BCT diameters and doping with nitrogen and phosphorus elements to improve the physical and chemical properties of BCT cathodes. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) analyses indicated that the cathode with 35 mm inner diameter had relatively ideal pore size distribution. Polarization curves, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and cyclic voltammetry results suggested that the cathode (35 mm inner diameter) delivered the highest power density of 7.5 ± 0.6 W m−3 among the cathodes with different diameters (27, 31, 35 and 39 mm). It was mainly because of its high oxygen reduction reaction performance, low cathode resistance, and beneficial effects on anode biofilm. In addition, rotating disk electrode (RDE) tests revealed that nitrogen and phosphorus doping could significantly improve the ORR catalytic activity of cathode by around 25% in the limiting current density. Highlights • Physical properties of BCT cathodes with different diameters were tested. • The MFC using BCT cathode with a diameter of 35 mm had the highest power density. • The MFC power density was increased nearly 25% through the doping with N and P. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Many phase transformations produce crystallographic variants. Under a mechanical constraint, certain variants could be selected. Although efforts have been made on resolving the selection rule, the transformation lattice deformation associated selection mechanism has not been well addressed. Thus in the present work, α variant selection of the β to α transformation in a metastable β-Ti alloy under compression was studied. Results show that the selection of the α variants is strongly affected by the imposed strain and the applied load with dependence on the local crystal perfection of the β grains. In the slightly deformed β grains, 2 Burger orientation relationship (BOR) variants forming 'cross-shaped' clusters and interrelated by a 90° rotation around the <1 1.38 2. 38 ¯ 0> α axis are selected and form in large quantities (group I variants). Such variants consume the maximum deformation work by the applied load. This energy consumption is rooted from the maximum strain contribution of the selected variants to the macroscopic deformation and the maximum shear stress from the external load resolved on their { 1 1 ¯ 2 ¯ } β < 1 ¯ 1 1 ¯ > β systems for transformation. In the heavily deformed β grains occupied by dislocation slip bands, several numbers (2–4) of BOR variants are selected but form in much less quantities (group II variants). The selection energy criterion is still obeyed by the group II variants but with restriction from the local deformation. The present work provides clear information on the interweaving of the imposed compression with the internal lattice deformation and its impact on the β to α transformation variant selection. Graphical abstract Image 1 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The number of patients with Alzheimer's disease is increasing rapidly every year. Scholars often use computer vision and machine learning methods to develop an automatic diagnosis system.Objective: In this study, we developed a novel machine learning system that can make diagnoses automatically from brain magnetic resonance images.Methods: First, the brain imaging was processed, including skull stripping and spatial normalization. Second, one axial slice was selected from the volumetric image, and stationary wavelet entropy (SWE) was done to extract the texture features. Third, a single-hidden-layer neural network was used as the classifier. Finally, a predator-prey particle swarm optimization was proposed to train the weights and biases of the classifier.Results: Our method used 4-level decomposition and yielded 13 SWE features. The classification yielded an overall accuracy of 92.73±1.03%, a sensitivity of 92.69±1.29%, and a specificity of 92.78±1.51%. The area under the curve is 0.95±0.02. Additionally, this method only cost 0.88 s to identify a subject in online stage, after its volumetric image is preprocessed.Conclusion: In terms of classification performance, our method performs better than 10 state-of-the-art approaches and the performance of human observers. Therefore, this proposed method is effective in the detection of Alzheimer's disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The autonomous ground vehicles have attracted a great deal of attention as viable solutions to a wide variety of military and civilian applications. However, the energy consumption plays a major role in the navigation of autonomous ground vehicles in challenging environments, especially if they are left to operate unattended under limited on-board power, such as planetary exploration, border patrol, etc. The autonomous ground vehicles are expected to perform more tasks more efficiently with limited power in these scenarios. Although plenty of research has developed an effective methodology for generating dynamically feasible and energy efficient trajectories for skid steering or differential steering vehicles, few studies on path planning for ackermann steering autonomous ground vehicles are available. In this study, an energy efficient path planning method with guarantee on completeness is proposed for autonomous ground vehicle with ackermann steering which is based on A ∗ search algorithm. Firstly, the energy cost model is established for the autonomous ground vehicle using its kinematic constraints. Then, given the start and goal states, the energy-aware motion primitives are generated offline using the energy cost model to calculate the cost of each primary trajectory. Lastly, the energy efficient path planner is proposed and the analysis for completeness properties is given. The effectiveness of the proposed energy efficient path planner is verified by simulation over 150 randomly generated maps and real vehicle tests. The results show that a small increase in the distance of a path over the distance optimal path can result in a reduction of energy cost by nearly 26.9% in simulation and 21.09% in real test scenario for autonomous ground vehicles with ackermann steering. • An energy cost model is given for autonomous ground vehicle with ackermann steering. • An energy efficient path planner is proposed. The completeness of it is guaranteed. • It shows that the energy cost of path given by energy efficient planner is reduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While attention dysregulation is a promising early indicator of neurodevelopmental risk, in particular attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), it is difficult to characterize clinical concern due to its developmental expectability at the transition to toddlerhood. Thus, explicating the typical:atypical continuum of risk indicators is among the key future directions for research to promote early identification and intervention, and prevent decrements in the attainment of developmental milestones into early childhood. In this paper, we present the Multidimensional Assessment Profiles—Attention Regulation Infant‐Toddler (MAPS‐AR‐IT) Scale, a novel parent‐report survey of dimensional, developmentally specified indicators of attention (dys)regulation. Item Response Theory was employed to characterize the typical:atypical spectrum of both normative and more concerning dysregulation (including the contexts in which behavior occurs). We provide evidence of the validity of this measure in capturing the full typical:atypical spectrum via a longitudinal sample of typically developing children at 12–18 months of age (baseline) via concurrent scores on well‐validated temperament and clinical measures. We also examine longitudinal stability and predictive validity if the MAPS‐AR‐IT via a clinical interview of ADHD symptoms at 24–30 months (follow‐up). While not diagnostic, we present evidence of the utility of the MAPS‐AR‐IT in explicating individual neurodevelopmental risk and elucidating the broader typicality of behaviors related to attention (dys)regulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: In light of the youth mental health crisis, as 1 in 5 children have a mental disorder diagnosis by age 3, identification of transdiagnostic behavioral vulnerability prior to impairing psychopathology must occur at an earlier phase of the clinical sequence. Here, we lay the groundwork for a pragmatic irritability measure to identify at‐risk infant‐toddlers. Methods: Data comprised N = 350 diverse infant‐toddlers and their mothers assessed at ∼14 months old for irritability (Multidimensional Assessment Profiles‐ Temper Loss‐Infant/Toddler (MAPS‐TL‐IT) and impairment (Early Childhood Irritability‐Related Impairment Interview, E‐CRI; and Family Life Impairment Scale (FLIS). Bimonthly follow‐up surveys assessed impairment (FLIS) over the following year. Results: Stepwise logistic regression indicated that 5 MAPS‐TL‐IT items were most informative for differentiating concurrent impairment on the FLIS: "frustrated about small things"; "hit, bite, or kick during tantrums"; "trouble cheering up when grumpy"; "grumpy during fun activities" and "tantrums in public". With this summed score, Receiver Operating Characteristics analysis differentiating concurrent impairment on the E‐CRI indicated good classification accuracy for (Area under the curve = 0.755, p < 0.05), with a cutoff of 5 maximizing sensitivity (71.4%) and specificity (70.6%). Elevated irritability on this MAPS‐TL‐IT clinically optimized screener increased likelihood of persistently elevated FLIS impairment trajectories over the following year more than fourfold (OR = 4.37; Confidence intervals = 2.40–7.97, p < 0.001). Conclusions: Our findings represent the first step toward a pragmatic tool for screening for transdiagnostic mental health risk in toddlers, optimized for feasibility in clinical care. This has potential to strengthen resilience pathways via earlier identification of mental health risk and corollary prevention in toddlers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It relies on the synergy between artificial intelligence (AI) and software engineering, improving both software productivity and quality, for example, providing coding suggestions for better productivity or locating defects to avoid poor quality. Intelligent software engineering is an emerging topic that has attracted great attention in both academia and industry. The first paper, titled 'Syntax-based metamorphic relation prediction via the bagging framework' by Li et al., proposes a multi-dimensional program structure-based metamorphic relation prediction approach, which is composed of feature extraction and prediction model building. [Extracted from the article]

Phase transformation in solids always follows specific orientation relationships (ORs). The OR usually ensures a minimum lattice deformation for the structure change. However, in many cases different ORs are respected by the same transformation. The selection role and the link between the OR and the existing crystal defects needs further investigation. Thus, in this work, the α to β heating phase transformation induced by high density Electric Current Pulse (ECP) treatments in an annealed Cu–40%Zn alloy was investigated. Results show that the β phase obeys the K-S OR when formed along the α grain boundaries or in their vicinities, or the N-W OR when formed in the α grain interiors. In the former sites, the {111} α /< 1 1 ¯ 0 > α dislocation arrays were frequently observed, whereas in the latter, the {111} α /< 11 2 ¯ > α stacking faults were often found. Transformation strain analyses revealed that under the K-S OR the maximum lattice deformation required is a shear on the {111} α plane in the < 1 1 ¯ 0 > α direction, whereas under the N-W OR the maximum deformation is a shear on the {1 11 } α plane in the < 11 2 ¯ > α direction. Thus the existing {111} α /< 1 1 ¯ 0 > α dislocation arrays along the α grain boundaries and in their vicinities provide pre-strain required by the transformation via the K-S path, whereas the {111} α /< 11 2 ¯ > α stacking faults boarded by {111} α /< 11 2 ¯ > α partial dislocations offer pre-strain facilitating the transformation via the N-W path. The present results provide new information on the role of crystal defects on phase transformation strain path and the selection of transformation ORs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An out-of-band (OB) third-order intermodulation (IM3) cancellation technique is proposed and analyzed. By exploiting a baseband (BB) auxiliary path (AP) with high-pass feature, the in-band desired signal, and OB interferers are split. OB IM3 products are then reconstructed in the AP and cancelled in the BB. The approach is implemented using a 65-nm CMOS 0.5- to 2.5-GHz frequency-translational noise-cancelling receiver, and it achieves 8.8-MHz BB bandwidth, 40-dB gain, 3.3-dB noise figure, 5 dBm OB third-order input intercept points (IIP3), and −6.5-dBm OB B1dB without IM3 cancellation with 36 mW at 1-GHz local oscillator (LO) frequency and 1.2-V supply. After IM3 cancellation, the effective OB-IIP3 has increased to 32.5 dBm with an extra 34 mW for narrowband interferers (two tones). For wideband interferers, 18.8-dB cancellation is demonstrated over 10 MHz with two −15-dBm modulated interferers. The LO leakage is −92 and −88 dBm at 1- and 2-GHz LO, respectively. This technique can achieve both high OB linearity and good LO isolation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: This study aimed to uncover new potential genes associated with the inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs). Materials and Methods: The datasets GSE36807 and GSE9686 were obtained from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO). Totally, 24 Crohn’s disease (CD) samples, 20 ulcerative colitis (UC) samples and 15 healthy controls in the two datasets were used for our analysis. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified by limma package. Then, co-expression network was constructed by weighted gene correlation network analysis (WGCNA) package, and co-expression network modules were obtained via clustering method. The top 100 genes with the highest connectivity degrees were selected to construct a new co-expression network (CEN). Besides, pathway enrichment analysis for the genes in identified modules was conducted with the clusterProfiler package in R. Results: Totally, 302 and 2276 DEGs were respectively identified in CD and UC samples, and 291 ones were both differentially expressed in the two subtypes. Five modules were identified from the CEN. In the new CEN consisted of the top 100 genes with the highest connectivity degrees, the up-regulated DEGs all belonged to module 5, and the down-regulated ones all belonged to module 1. Furthermore, pathway enrichment analysis showed that some DEGs were related to primary immunodeficiency (e.g., CD4, CD3D and CD40LG), complement and coagulation cascades (e.g., C2, C1QB and C7) and nitrogen metabolism (e.g., CA1, CA12 and CA2). Conclusion: The DEGs correlated with primary immunodeficiency, complement and coagulation cascades and nitrogen metabolism might be important for the development of IBD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

T1-weighted MRI has been extensively used to extract imaging biomarkers and build classification models for differentiating Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients from healthy controls, but only recently have brain connectome networks derived from diffusion-weighted MRI been used to model AD progression and various stages of disease such as mild cognitive impairment (MCI). MCI, as a possible prodromal stage of AD, has gained intense interest recently, since it may be used to assess risk factors for AD. Little work has been done to combine information from both white matter and gray matter, and it is unknown how much classification power the diffusion-weighted MRI-derived structural connectome could provide beyond information available from T1-weighted MRI. In this paper, we focused on investigating whether diffusion-weighted MRI-derived structural connectome can improve differentiating healthy controls subjects from those with MCI. Specifically, we proposed a novel feature-ranking method to build classification models using the most highly ranked feature variables to classify MCI with healthy controls. We verified our method on two independent cohorts including the second stage of Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI2) database and the National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center (NACC) database. Our results indicated that 1) diffusion-weighted MRI-derived structural connectome can complement T1-weighted MRI in the classification task; 2) the feature-rank method is effective because of the identified consistent T1-weighted MRI and network feature variables on ADNI2 and NACC. Furthermore, by comparing the top-ranked feature variables from ADNI2, NACC, and combined dataset, we concluded that cross-validation using independent cohorts is necessary and highly recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]