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Nitric oxide (NO) is an atmospheric pollutant and climate forcer as well as a key intermediary in the marine nitrogen cycle, but the ocean’s NO contribution and production mechanisms remain unclear. Here, high-resolution NO observations were conducted simultaneously in the surface ocean and the lower atmosphere of the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea; moreover, NO production from photolysis and microbial processes was analyzed. The NO sea–air exchange showed uneven distributions (RSD = 349.1%) with an average flux of 5.3 ± 18.5 × 10–17 mol cm–2 s–1. In coastal waters where nitrite photolysis was the predominant source (89.0%), NO concentrations were remarkably higher (84.7%) than the overall average of the study area. The NO from archaeal nitrification accounted for 52.8% of all microbial production (11.0%). We also examined the relationship between gaseous NO and ozone which helped identify sources of atmospheric NO. The sea-to-air flux of NO in coastal waters was narrowed by contaminated air with elevated NO concentrations. These findings indicate that the emissions of NO from coastal waters, mainly controlled by reactive nitrogen inputs, will increase with the reduced terrestrial NO discharge.

Jun-Hong Ma,1 Yuan Bai,2,3 De-Shun Xie,4 Gui-Fang Yang1 1Neurology Department, Heze Municipal Hospital, Heze, Shandong Province, 274000, People’s Republic of China; 2Vascular Surgery Department, Shanxi Bethune Hospital, Taiyuan, People’s Republic of China; 3Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China; 4CT Department, Heze Municipal Hospital, Heze, Shandong Province, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Yuan Bai, Vascular Surgery Department, Shanxi Bethune Hospital, No. 99, Longcheng Street, Xiaodian District, Taiyuan, 030032, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 13934660965, Email yuanbai_by1830@163.comObjective: To explore the current status of interruption events in nursing document writing in the intensive care unit (ICU) using a cross-sectional survey.Methods: Between May and October 2021, the convenience sampling method was used to observe the interruption events in nursing document writing in the ICU. A total of 54 nurses and 7 indicators were observed: the start time, end time, interruption period, source, type, duration and outcome of interruption events.Results: A total of 438 interruption events in nursing document writing occurred in 85.955 hours, with a frequency of 5.093 times/hour and a duration of 4787.00 (1152.00, 13,109.00) seconds. The frequency of interruption events in nursing document writing was the highest (11 times/hour) and the duration was the longest (9581.50 seconds) from 08:00 to 12:00. The main sources of interruptions for nurses with 10 or more years of service or with the professional title of nurse are nurses themselves and their colleagues. The main sources of interruptions for nurses who have been in charge for 10 years or over are the working environment and doctors. This intervention in work continuity occurs unexpectedly; however, if adjustments are made to nursing procedures, the interruption can be terminated rapidly or adverse consequ

Organic methylated sulfur compounds (MSCs) play key roles in marine planktonic food webs and are also involved in climate regulation through the emission of aerosol-forming gases (dimethylsulfide and methanethiol). Therefore, the study of MSCs naturally bridges a wide range of disciplines, from molecular ecology, through oceanography, up to Earth System modelling. In 2022, a new SCOR Working Group named DMS-PRO was created to address knowledge gaps in MSC research by (i) compiling an open-access database of MSC cycling rates; (ii) publishing standardized operating practices for the determination of MSC cycling rates; and (iii) providing guidance to data users, e.g. modelers. DMS-PRO nucleates 20 researchers from 14 countries in Asia, North and South America, Oceania, and Europe; including 6 members from low- and upper-middle income countries and 6 early-career researchers. Forming a group with a balanced geographic spread was challenging because researchers focusing in this area of study are overwhelmingly associated to institutions based in developed countries. To reduce this imbalance, an overarching aspiration of DMS-PRO is to stimulate research, build capacity, and establish an international, multidisciplinary community of practice on the oceanic cycle of MSCs that can share knowledge and skills with the broader oceanographic and Earth system science communities. In this presentation we will briefly introduce DMS-PRO, share the lessons learned during the initial phase of the project, and outline our plans for achieving the group’s objectives

A range of studies have shown that prenatal maternal stress (PNMS) exposure is associated with offspring autistic-like behaviors, however the potential pathways remain unexplored. This study aimed to evaluate the mediating role of parent-child interactions in early life in the association between PNMS exposure and preschoolers' autistic-like behaviors. Data from 65,928 child-parent dyads were obtained via a primary caregiver-reported questionnaire administered as part of the Longhua Child Cohort Study. To strengthen confidence in the reliability of the results, the analyses were initially conducted on a random selection of 70% of the total sample, and then validated on the remaining 30% of the sample. Analysis of covariance and multiple linear models were employed to estimate the associations between PNMS exposure, parent-child interactions in early life, and children's autistic-like behaviors. The results showed that PNMS exposure was positively associated with the presence of autistic-like behaviors at preschool age. The total indirect effect of the frequency of positive parent-child interactions in early life accounted for 9.69% or 8.99% of the variance of the association. Our findings indicate that parent-child interactions in early life might function as potential mediators of the association between PNMS and the increased risk of offspring autistic-like behaviors.

As the boundary interface between the atmosphere and ocean, the sea-surface microlayer (SML) plays a significant role in the biogeochemical cycles of dissolved organic matter (DOM) and macronutrients in marine environments. In our study, the optical properties of DOM were compared between the sub-surface water (SSW) and the SML during spring, summer and winter in the East China Sea (ECS) and the Yellow Sea (YS). In addition, photoexposure experiments were designed to compare photochemical degradation processes of DOM between the SML and the SSW. Chromophoric DOM (CDOM), fluorescent DOM, dissolved organic carbon, chlorophyll a (Chl a), picoplankton, nutrients and bacteria were frequently enriched in the SML. The enrichment factors (EFs) of tryptophan-like component 4 were significantly higher than other fluorescence components; the longer wavelength absorption values of CDOM showed higher EFs in the SML, and a more significant relationship between CDOM and Chl a in the SML, indicating that autochthonous DOM was more strongly enriched in the SML than the terrestrial DOM. Higher EFs were generally observed in the SML in the off-shore regions than in the coastal regions, and CDOM in the SML was photobleached more after relatively strong irradiation, as also indicated by the lower percentages of humic-like DOM and lower specific UV absorbance values (SUVA254) in the SML than the SSW. Compared to the SSW, the elevated nutrients may stimulate phytoplankton growth, biological activity and then production of abundant fresh autochthonous DOM in the SML. Our results revealed a new enrichment model for exploring the air–sea interface environment, which can explain the more autochthonous properties of DOM in the SML than the SSW.

Objective: Rapid urbanization has led to reduced greenness in many areas, this has been linked to adverse health outcomes. The aim was to determine the association between residential greenness experienced during very early childhood with preschool myopia and astigmatism and to explore the potential mediating role of screen time on any associations. Method: Information regarding socio-demographic characteristics, home address, screen time during early childhood, and refraction data from vision screenings of 53,575 preschoolers from Longhua Child Cohort Study were collected via questionnaires. Residential greenness was calculated as the average of satellite-derived Normalized Difference Vegetation Index in buffers of 100, 250, and 500 m around each child's home address. Logistic and linear regression models were used to examine the relationships between residential greenness, screen time, and preschool myopia and astigmatism. Result: The mean (SD) age of the 53,575 preschoolers was 5.0 (0.7) years, and 24,849 (46.4%) were girls. A total of 1236 (2.3%) preschoolers had myopia and 5347 (10.0%) had astigmatism. In the adjusted model, a higher neighborhood greenness level within 100 m buffers around the home address was associated with decreased risk of myopia (adjusted odds ratios (AOR): 0.62, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.38–0.99), and higher neighborhood greenness levels within 100, 250, and 500 m decreased the risk of astigmatism, and their AORs (95% CIs) were 0.55 (0.43–0.70) for 100 m, 0.59 (0.41–0.83) for 250 m, 0.61 (0.42–0.90) for 500 m, respectively. Greater screen time during early childhood increased the risk of myopia (AOR = 1.33) and astigmatism (AOR = 1.23). Reduction in screen time fully mediated the benefits of greater residential greenness on preschool myopia, but partially mediated that on preschool astigmatism (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Higher residential greenness reduces the risk of preschool myopia and astigmatism; the benefits of residential gre

Exposure to prenatal maternal stress (PNMS) has been implicated as a risk factor for a range of psychiatric disorders in children. However, there have been a few studies showing inconsistent associations between PNMS and offspring autistic-like behaviours. We therefore aimed to examine whether trimester-specific PNMS exposure might be related to an increased risk of autistic-like behaviours among preschoolers. Using data from Longhua Children Cohort Study, mothers of 65,931 preschool children were asked to recall their level of PNMS in each of the three trimesters of pregnancy, while children's current autistic-like behaviours were assessed using the Autism Behaviour Checklist. A series of Cox regression models were fitted to assess the association between PNMS exposure and autistic-like behaviours. After adjusting for potential confounders, the Cox regression models showed that PNMS exposure, especially during the second pregnant trimester, was significantly and positively associated with the presence of children's autistic-like behaviours. The strength of these associations was enhanced with the increase of PNMS exposure level. Furthermore, based on different permutations of exposure versus no exposure in each trimester, the participants were divided into eight groups. A cross-over analysis confirmed the aforementioned finding that the second pregnant trimester might be the sensitive period for PNMS exposure increasing the risk of autistic-like behaviours. Our findings supported the hypothesis of an association between PNMS exposure and autistic-like behaviours among preschoolers. Preventive interventions should be trialled to examine whether minimizing maternal psychological stress during pregnancy, especially the second trimester, may reduce the risk of offspring autistic-like behaviours.

Screen time is becoming increasingly common in daily life. Early and excessive screen use has raised growing concerns for children's neuropsychological development. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between exposure to screen time in early life and the presence of autistic-like behaviors among preschool children. 29,461 child-caregiver dyads at kindergartens in Longhua New District of Shenzhen, China, were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Information concerning socio-demographic characteristics, frequency and duration of children's electronic screen exposure for each year since birth, and autistic-like behaviors (measured by the Autism Behavior Checklist) were collected using a self-administered structured questionnaire completed by the primary caregivers. A series of logistic regression models assessed the association between screen time and autistic-like behaviors. Results indicated that younger initial age, longer daily screen time and longer cumulative years of screen exposure since birth were associated with the presence of autistic-like behaviors at preschool age. The risk was enhanced with the increase of both daily screen time and cumulative years of screen exposure during preschool period. Moreover, the cross-over analysis indicated that the first three years following birth might be a sensitive period for children when screen exposure increases the risk of experiencing autistic-like behaviors. In conclusion, our study implied that screen exposure in early life might increase the occurrence of autistic-like behaviors among preschoolers. These findings support the need for early interventions into preschoolers' screen use, however longitudinal studies are necessary to further confirm the causal relationship between early screen time and the incidence of later autistic-like behaviors among preschool children.

Nitric oxide (NO) is a short-lived intermediate of the oceanic nitrogen cycle, and it is produced by biological and photochemical processes in the ocean. Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is a reactive atmospheric compound which has not been determined in the ocean so far. Here, we present the setup and validation of a novel continuous underway measurement system to measure dissolved NO and NO2 in the surface ocean. The system consists of a seawater/gas equilibration component coupled to a chemiluminescence detector. It was successfully deployed during a 12 day cruise to the East China Sea in May 2018. Dissolved NO and NO2 surface concentrations ranged from

Chen Xu,1,&ast; Junli Fan,1,&ast; Yi Luo,1,&ast; Ziwu Zhao,1,&ast; Peng Tang,1,&ast; Gui Yang,1 Yunbao Pan,1 Shuang Guo,1 Yingjuan Liu,1 Yong Xiong,2 Wen Xie,1 Xinghua Long1 1Department of Laboratory Medicine, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of infectious diseases, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Xinghua Long; Wen XieDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail zhoulongxinghua@qq.com; whxw007@126.comObjective: Patients with rheumatic immune diseases were more likely to develop severe or critical COVID-19. We aimed to determine whether rheumatoid factor antibodies were present in COVID patients and the level and type of rheumatoid factor antibodies produced in COVID-19 patients were related to the degree of the patient’s condition. The study also aimed to determine the prevalence and characteristics of rheumatoid factor antibodies in patients with COVID-19.Methods: Sera collected from 129 patients with COVID-19 were tested for rheumatoid factor antibodies by ELISA. Five patients were tracked for several months to monitor dynamic changes of these antibodies.Results: Rheumatoid-associated autoantibodies were detected in 20.16% of patients (26/129) following infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In addition, IgM-RF was primarily present in critically ill patients, while IgA-RF was mainly present in mild patients. Five patients were able to track for several months to monitor dynamic changes of these antibodies. Rheumatoid factor antibodies peaks in the later phase of the disease and last for longer time. Anti-Jo-1 antibody was found in one of the five patients.Conclusion: This was the case series report that rheumatoid-associated autoantibodies are present in patients with CO

Research into early screen exposure has raised growing concerns about its impact upon children's neuropsychological well-being. However, possible pathways remain unclear. This study therefore aimed not only to evaluate the association between screen exposure during the ages of 0-3 years and preschoolers' autistic-like behaviors, but also the mediating roles of the frequency of caregiver-child interaction, sleep duration and level of participation in outdoor activities. Based on the 2017 survey of the Longhua Child Cohort Study, data of 29,595 child-caregiver dyads were obtained via a caregiver-reported questionnaire, with the data from 29,461 dyads included in the data analysis. Multiple linear and logistic regression models were employed to estimate the associations between screen exposure, caregiver-child interaction, sleep duration, outdoor activities, and children's autistic-like behaviors. The results indicated that screen exposure during 0-3 years of age was associated with the presence of autistic-like behaviors at preschool age, and the strength of the association was enhanced with the increase of average daily screen time (Odds Ratios (ORs) ranging from 1.358 to 4.026). The frequency of caregiver-child interaction and sleep duration mediated 5.32% and 1.19% of the variance of the association respectively, but outdoor activities did not mediate the association. Our findings indicate that preschoolers who are exposed to screens at aged 0-3 years might have an increased risk of autistic-like behaviors, and that, the frequency of caregiver-child interaction and sleep duration might function as potential mediators of this association.

This study aimed to explore the association between screen exposure in early life and preschool myopia. During the baseline survey of the Longhua Child Cohort Study (LCCS), data of 29,595 preschoolers were collected via a caregiver-reported questionnaire regarding children’s socio-demographic characteristics, visual status, screen exposure and relevant parental information. Data of 26,433 preschoolers with normal eyesight or myopia were included in the analysis and cox regression modelling was employed to assess the associations. Results suggested the hypothesis that screen exposure in early life could be significantly and positively associated with preschool myopia, and in agreement with this hypothesis was the association being strengthened with the increasing daily exposure duration and total years of exposure; in the stratification analysis based on the presence of parental myopia, these associations still existed, and the strength of associations was stronger in preschoolers with myopic parents than those without. Moreover, a statistically significant association was only observed between initial screen exposure that occurred during 0–1-years old and myopia for preschoolers without myopic parents, while the significant associations were observed between initial screen exposure that occurred during 0–1, 1–2, 2–3, and after 3 years old and myopia for preschoolers who had myopic parents, with the strongest association found in the group of children initially exposed to electronic screens during 0–1 year old. Thus our findings indicated the hypothesis that screen exposure in early life might be associated with the occurrence of preschool myopia, and that the postnatal first year might be the sensitive period for the association. However, it is premature to conclude that early screen time leads to myopia with current data. Further longitudinal studies performed with cycloplegia are necessary to verify the hypothesis and shed light on the more urgent question whet

Screen media usage has become increasingly prevalent in daily life with children being exposed to screens at an early age. This is a growing public health concern with evidence linking screen exposure to detrimental health outcomes, whereas relationship between screen exposure and the presence of astigmatism among preschoolers remains unknown, thus we aimed to resolve this issue. During the 2017 survey of the Longhua Child Cohort Study, data of 29,595 preschoolers were collected via a caregiver-reported questionnaire regarding socio-demographics, screen exposure and refraction. Cox regression models were adopted to generate adjusted prevalence ratios (APR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) to estimate the association between early screen exposure and astigmatism. 28,029 preschoolers were included in the final analysis. After adjustment for potential confounders, screen exposure during early life was significantly associated with the increased risk of astigmatism (APR and 95% CI: 2.25, 1.76–2.88), and the greatest risk was observed in the period from birth to 1-year (APR and 95% CI: 3.10, 2.41–3.98). The risk of astigmatism increased with both the total years of exposure and the average daily duration of screen exposure. Our findings suggested that preschoolers who were exposed to screens during early life might have an increased risk of astigmatism.

Nitric oxide (NO) is a short-lived intermediate of the oceanic nitrogen cycle. However, our knowledge about its production and consumption pathways in oceanic environments is rudimentary. In order to decipher the major factors affecting NO photochemical production, we irradiated several artificial seawater samples as well as 31 natural surface seawater samples in laboratory experiments. The seawater samples were collected during a cruise to the western tropical North Pacific Ocean (WTNP, a N-S section from 36 to 2 degrees N along 146 to 143 degrees E with 6 and 12 stations, respectively, and a W-E section from 137 to 161 degrees E along the Equator with 13 stations) from November 2015 to January 2016. NO photoproduction rates from dissolved nitrite in artificial seawater showed increasing trends with decreasing pH, increasing temperature, and increasing salinity. In contrast, NO photoproduction rates (average: 0.5 +/- 0.2 x 10(-12) mol L-1 s(-1)) in the natural seawater samples from the WTNP did not show any correlations with pH, water temperature, salinity, or dissolved inorganic nitrite concentrations. The flux induced by NO photoproduction in the WTNP (average: 13 x 10(-12) mol M-2 S-1) was significantly larger than the NO air-sea flux density (average: 1.8 x 10(-12) Mol M-2 S-1), indicating a further NO loss process in the surface layer.

This study aimed to investigate the association between environmental exposure to tobacco smoke (ETS) during early life and astigmatism in Chinese preschool children. In this cross-sectional study, information concerning prenatal and postnatal ETS exposure at three stages of early life (during pregnancy, from birth to one year and from one to three years), visual problems of children and parents (including a confirmed diagnosis of astigmatism), socio-demographics and perinatal characteristics were obtained from 27,890 parent-reported questionnaires. Logistic regression analyses were undertaken to yield adjusted odds ratios (OR) for assessing their associations. After adjusting for the potential confounders, children were more likely to exhibit astigmatism when they were exposed to ETS during pregnancy + from one to three years [OR (95% CI) = 1.37 (1.02, 1.84)], or from birth to one year + from one to three years [OR (95% CI) = 1.36 (1.11, 1.66)], or during pregnancy + from birth to one year + from one to three years old [OR (95% CI) = 1.29 (1.16, 1.45)], compared to children without ETS exposure at any stage of early life. In Chinese preschool children, prenatal and postnatal astigmatism was associated with ETS exposure; the greater the ETS dose, the greater the astigmatism risk.

Nitric oxide (NO) is a short-lived compound of the marine nitrogen cycle; however, our knowledge about its oceanic distribution and turnover is rudimentary. Here we present the measurements of dissolved NO in the surface and bottom layers at 75 stations in the Bohai Sea (BS) and the Yellow Sea (YS) in June 2011. Moreover, NO photoproduction rates were determined at 27 stations in both seas. The NO concentrations in the surface and bottom layers were highly variable and ranged from below the limit of detection (i.e., 32 pmol L−1) to 616 pmol L−1 in the surface layer and 482 pmol L−1 in the bottom layer. There was no significant difference (p>0.05) between the mean NO concentrations in the surface (186±108 pmol L−1) and bottom (174±123 pmol L−1) layers. A decreasing trend of NO in bottom-layer concentrations with salinity indicates a NO input by submarine groundwater discharge. NO in the surface layer was supersaturated at all stations during both day and night and therefore the BS and YS were a persistent source of NO to the atmosphere at the time of our measurements. The average flux was about 4.5×10−16 mol cm−2 s−1 and the flux showed significant positive relationship with the wind speed. The accumulation of NO during daytime was a result of photochemical production, and photoproduction rates were correlated to illuminance. The persistent nighttime NO supersaturation pointed to an unidentified NO dark production. NO sea-to-air flux densities were much lower than the NO photoproduction rates. Therefore, we conclude that the bulk of the NO produced in the mixed layer was rapidly consumed before its release to the atmosphere.

Yi-Xiong Tan,1 Shi-Min Hu,2–4 Yi-Ping You,5 Gui-Lian Yang,6 Wei Wang11Department of Radiology, The Third Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410013, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, Xiangya School of Public Health, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410078, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100053, People’s Republic of China; 4Beijing Key Laboratory of Neuromodulation, Beijing 100053, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hunan Provincial Hospital of Maternal and Child Health, Changsha, Hunan 410008, People’s Republic of China; 6Nutrition Department, Hunan Provincial Hospital of Maternal and Child Health, Changsha, Hunan 410008, People’s Republic of ChinaBackground: Four novel glucose metabolism risk loci (HKDC1 rs4746822, BACE2 rs6517656, SLC16A11 rs13342232 and TMEM163 rs998451) were identified in recent genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of Afro-Caribbean, European, Hispanic, Thai, Mexican, Latin American and Indian populations. None of the abovementioned SNPs has been reported in a Han Chinese population.Aim: To replicate the relationships between HKDC1 rs4746822, BACE2 rs6517656, SLC16A11 rs13342232 and TMEM163 rs998451 with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in a Han Chinese population.Methods: This was a case–control study which enrolled 334 pregnant women with GDM and 367 pregnant women with normal glucose tolerance. The linear regression and logistic regression were used to estimate the association between SNPs with the risk of GDM, HOMA-IR and fasting insulin levels. The fasting insulin concentration and HOMA-IR were log10 transformed before analysis.Results: No significant differences in the alleles and genotypes of SLC16A11 rs13342232, HKDC1 rs4746822 and BACE2 rs6517656 were observed betwe

We developed a new method for the determination of dissolved nitric oxide (NO) in discrete seawater samples based on the combination of a purge-and-trap setup and a fluorometric detection of NO. 2,3-diaminonaphthalene (DAN) reacts with NO in seawater to form the highly fluorescent 2,3-naphthotriazole (NAT). The fluorescence intensity was linear for NO concentrations in the range from 0.14 to 19 nmol L−1. We determined a detection limit of 0.068 nmol L−1, an average recovery coefficient of 83.8 % (80.2–90.0 %), and a relative standard deviation of ±7.2 %. With our method we determined for the first time the temporal and spatial distributions of NO surface concentrations in coastal waters of the Yellow Sea off Qingdao and in Jiaozhou Bay during a cruise in November 2009. The concentrations of NO varied from below the detection limit to 0.50 nmol L−1 with an average of 0.26 ± 0.14 nmol L−1. NO surface concentrations were generally enhanced significantly during daytime, implying that NO formation processes such as NO2− photolysis are much higher during daytime than chemical NO consumption, which, in turn, lead to a significant decrease in NO concentrations during nighttime. In general, NO surface concentrations and measured NO production rates were higher compared to previously reported measurements. This might be caused by the high NO2− surface concentrations encountered during the cruise. Moreover, additional measurements of NO production rates implied that the occurrence of particles and a temperature increase can enhance NO production rates. With the method introduced here, we have a reliable and comparably easy to use method at hand to measure oceanic NO surface concentrations, which can be used to decipher both its temporal and spatial distributions as well as its biogeochemical pathways in the oceans.

Fu-Shan Xue, Hui-Xian Li, Ya-Yang Liu, Gui-Zhen Yang Department of Anesthesiology, Plastic Surgery Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, People’s Republic of China Abstract: The C-MAC videolaryngoscope is the first Macintosh-typed videolaryngoscope. Since the advent of its original version video Macintosh system in 1999, this device has been modified several times. A unique feature of C-MAC device is its ability to provide the 2 options of direct and video laryngoscopy with the same device. The available evidence shows that in patients with normal airways, C-MAC videolaryngoscope compared with direct laryngoscopy can provide comparable or better laryngeal views and exerts less force on maxillary incisors, but does not offer conclusive benefits with regard to intubation time, intubation success, number of intubation attempts, the use of adjuncts, and hemodynamic responses to intubation. In patients with predicted or known difficult airways, C-MAC videolaryngoscope can achieve a better laryngeal view, a higher intubation success rate and a shorter intubation time than direct laryngoscopy. Furthermore, the option to perform direct and video laryngoscopy with the same device makes C-MAC videolaryngoscope exceptionally useful for emergency intubation. In addition, the C-MAC videolaryngoscope is a very good tool for tracheal intubation teaching. However, tracheal intubation with C-MAC videolaryngoscope may occasionally fail and introduction of C-MAC videolaryngoscope in clinical practice must be accompanied by formal training programs in normal and difficult airway managements. Keywords: videolaryngoscopy, direct laryngoscopy, airway management, tracheal intubation, patient safety

Magnetic ZnO, one of the most important diluted magnetic semiconductors (DMS), has attracted great scientific interest because of its possible technological applications in optomagnetic devices. Magnetism in this material is usually delicately tuned by the doping level, dislocations, and local structures. The rational control of magnetism in ZnO is a highly attractive approach for practical applications. Here, the tuning effect of biaxial strain on the d0 magnetism of native imperfect ZnO is demonstrated through first-principles calculations. Our calculation results show that strain conditions have little effect on the defect formation energy of Zn and O vacancies in ZnO, but they do affect the magnetism significantly. For a cation vacancy, increasing the compressive strain will obviously decrease its magnetic moment, while tensile strain cannot change the moment, which remains constant at 2 µB. For a singly charged anion vacancy, however, the dependence of the magnetic moment on strain is opposite to that of the Zn vacancy. Furthermore, the ferromagnetic state is always present, irrespective of the strain type, for ZnO with two zinc vacancies, 2VZns. A large tensile strain is favorable for improving the Curie temperature and realizing room temperature ferromagnetism for ZnO-based native semiconductors. For ZnO with two singly charged oxygen vacancies, 2VO+s, no ferromagnetic ordering can be observed. Our work points the way to the rational design of materials beyond ZnO with novel non-intrinsic functionality by simply tuning the strain in a thin film form.

著者人数: 11名

Gradation, one of the most important physical characters of soils, has significant influence on the stress strain response of coarse aggregate. Accurate prediction of the gradation evolution during loading procedure is an essential part for efficient analysis of strength and deformation characteristics of soil structures. Following Einav's fractal breakage theory, the energy dissipated from particle breakage during loading is assumed to be in direct proportion to the increment of fractal breakage ratio. Method of measuring the gradation evolution during loading as well as a novel yielding model considering gradation evolution of coarse aggregate is then established by employing a well-known energy equation. Investigation of the gradation evolution of coarse aggregates is thus conducted by employing corresponding experimental data from relevant literatures. After that, preliminary discussion of the newly proposed yielding function is also conducted. It is observed that each yield surface during loading corresponds to a specific gradation of coarse aggregate. Moreover, the yield surface is suggested to be a shear strain-based isosurface, of which the shape is mostly determined by shear strain.

Inherently anisotropic soil fabric has a considerable influence on soil strength. To model this kind of inherent anisotropy, a three-dimensional anisotropic failure criterion was proposed, employing a scalar-valued anisotropic variable and a modified general threedimensional isotropic failure criterion. The scalar-valued anisotropic variable in all sectors of the deviatoric plane was defined by correlating a normalized stress tensor with a normalized fabric tensor. Detailed comparison between the available experimental data and the corresponding model predictions in the deviatoric plane was conducted. The proposed failure criterion was shown to well predict the failure behavior in all sectors, especially in sector II with the Lode angle ranging between 60º and 120º, where the prediction was almost in accordance with test data. However, it was also observed that the proposed criterion overestimated the strength of dense Santa Monica Beach sand in sector III where the intermediate principal stress ratio b varied from approximately 0.2 to 0.8, and slightly underestimated the strength when b was between approximately 0.8 and 1. The difference between the model predictions and experimental data was due to the occurrence of shear bending, which might reduce the measured strength. Therefore, the proposed anisotropic failure criterion has a strong ability to characterize the failure behavior of various soils and potentially allows a better description of the influence of the loading direction with respect to the soil fabric.

Self-healing woven glass fabric-reinforced epoxy composite laminates were made by embedding epoxy-and mercaptan-loaded microcapsules. After being subjected to low-velocity impact, the laminates were able to heal the damage in an autonomic way at room temperature. The healing-induced reduction in the damaged areas was visualized using a scanning acoustic microscope. The rate of damage area reduction, which is closely related to the effect of crack rehabilitation and mechanical recovery, is a function of impact energy, content and size of the healing microcapsules. Minor damage, such as microcracks in the matrix, can be completely repaired by the healing system without manual intervention, including external pressure. Microcapsules with larger size and/or higher concentration are propitious for delivering more healing agent to cracked portions, while imposition of lateral pressure on damaged specimens forces the separated faces to approach each other. Both can improve the rate of damage area reduction in the case of severe damage.

Chinese Spallation Neutron Source (CSNS), one project of the 12th five-year-plan scheme of China, is under construction in Guangdong province. Three neutron spectrometers will be installed at the first phase of the project, where two-dimensional position sensitive thermal neutron detectors are required. Before the construction of the neutron detector, a prototype of two-dimensional 200 mmx200 mm Multi-wire Proportional Chamber (MWPC) with the flowing gas of Ar/CO2 (90/10) has been constructed and tested with the 55Fe X-Ray using part of the electronics in 2009, which showed a good performance. Following the test in 2009, the neutron detector has been constructed with the complete electronics and filled with the 6atm.3He + 2.5atm.C3H8 gas mixture in 2010. The neutron detector has been primarily tested with an Am/Be source. In this paper, some new developments of the neutron detector including the design of the high pressure chamber, the optimization of the gas purifying system and the gas filling process will be reported. The results and discussion are also presented in this paper., Comment: 5 pages

In this paper we generalize the flux ratio method Bailey et al. (2009) to the case of two luminosity indicators and search the optimal luminosity-flux ratio relations on a set of spectra whose phases are around not only the date of bright light but also other time. With these relations, a new method is proposed to constrain the host galaxy extinction of SN Ia and its distance. It is first applied to the low redshift supernovas and then to the high redshift ones. The results of the low redshift supernovas indicate that the flux ratio method can indeed give well constraint on the host galaxy extinction parameter E(B-V), but weaker constraints on R_{V}. The high redshift supernova spectra are processed by the same method as the low redshift ones besides some differences due to their high redshift. Among 16 high redshift supernovas, 15 are fitted very well except 03D1gt. Based on these distances, Hubble diagram is drew and the contents of the Universe are analyzed. It supports an acceleration behavior in the late Universe. Therefore, the flux ratio method can give constraints on the host galaxy extinction and supernova distance independently. We believe, through further studies, it may provide a precise tool to probe the acceleration of the Universe than before., Comment: 33 pages, 9 figures and 6 tables

A typical travelling grate-rotary kiln-circular cooler process to produce iron ore pellets and a preliminary selection of measured variables in the pelletising plant available from field-distributed control systems are described. Control strategies of thermal states (heat supply and heat distribution) are obtained, three independent control schemes are extracted and an intelligent control system is developed using a combination of expert system approach to diagnose and remedy the abnormal conditions and Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy model to stabilise the thermal states. The developed intelligent control system has been applied in a Chinese pelletising plant since Oct. 2013. The results indicate that, between Oct. 2013 and Apr. 2014, coal consumption was reduced by 0.38 kg/ton pellets and operation rate of the rotary kiln was increased by 1.71%, compared to the same period the year before, corresponding to a direct reduction of plant energy costs by 760 000 RMB/y., A typical travelling grate-rotary kiln-circular cooler process to produce iron ore pellets and a preliminary selection of measured variables in the pelletising plant available from field-distributed control systems are described. Control strategies of thermal states (heat supply and heat distribution) are obtained, three independent control schemes are extracted and an intelligent control system is developed using a combination of expert system approach to diagnose and remedy the abnormal conditions and Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy model to stabilise the thermal states. The developed intelligent control system has been applied in a Chinese pelletising plant since Oct. 2013. The results indicate that, between Oct. 2013 and Apr. 2014, coal consumption was reduced by 0.38 kg/ton pellets and operation rate of the rotary kiln was increased by 1.71%, compared to the same period the year before, corresponding to a direct reduction of plant energy costs by 760 000 RMB/y.

A mathematical heat- and mass-transfer model of the travelling-grate/rotary-kiln circular cooling process of iron ore pellets and its validation by steady-state production data are described. The results indicate that the accuracy of the model reaches 94, 96 and 79% at zones 1, 2 and 3, respectively, of the circular cooler. An analysis, based on the model, of the influence of the process parameters, feed temperature, cooling air flow rate and moving speed of cooler, on gas-pellet temperature profiles inside the circular cooler is presented. Two data-mining methods - generalised rules induction and K-means clustering - are applied to the steady-state production data in order to obtain expertise operating rules and optimised targets. An operation guidance system to optimise the cooler process is developed in Visual C++ which realises the visualisation of degree of magnetite oxidation and pellet temperature profile at steady state and provides guidance on optimising the circular cooler. The system was run in a Chinese pelletising plant and, from the production indices in the period Oct 2013 (commencement date) to Apr 2014, the consumption of coal and natural gas per ton of pellet was lowered and the operation rate of the circular cooler was enhanced, compared to the same period in the previous year., A mathematical heat- and mass-transfer model of the travelling-grate/rotary-kiln circular cooling process of iron ore pellets and its validation by steady-state production data are described. The results indicate that the accuracy of the model reaches 94, 96 and 79% at zones 1, 2 and 3, respectively, of the circular cooler. An analysis, based on the model, of the influence of the process parameters, feed temperature, cooling air flow rate and moving speed of cooler, on gas-pellet temperature profiles inside the circular cooler is presented. Two data-mining methods - generalised rules induction and K-means clustering - are applied to the steady-state production data in order to obtain expertise operating rules and optimised targets. An operation guidance system to optimise the cooler process is developed in Visual C++ which realises the visualisation of degree of magnetite oxidation and pellet temperature profile at steady state and provides guidance on optimising the circular cooler. The system was run in a Chinese pelletising plant and, from the production indices in the period Oct 2013 (commencement date) to Apr 2014, the consumption of coal and natural gas per ton of pellet was lowered and the operation rate of the circular cooler was enhanced, compared to the same period in the previous year.

Granules of iron ore sintering mixtures comprising adhesive powder and nuclei have been studied with particles in excess of 1.00 mm in size acting as nuclei, particles below 0.25 mm acting as adhesive powder and particles between 0.25-1.00 mm acting as adhesive powder as well as nuclei, depending on the granulation conditions. The boundary value, which distinguishes the powder and nuclei, is closely related to the granulation efficiency, with boundary values of ca. 0.25 and ca. 1.00 mm having granulation efficiencies of less than 50% and more than 90%, respectively. The influence of four iron ore types - Brazilian, Australian or Indian haematite and Brazilian specularite - having various adhesive capabilities on the boundary value and granulation efficiency are described, as well as the effects of granulation moisture content, fineness of raw materials and activity of three types of burnt lime. Good adhesive capability, moisture content of ca. 8%, less than 10% of particles with size of under 0.25 mm, and increasing burnt-lime activity were found to move the boundary value towards 1.00 mm and increase the granulation efficiency., Granules of iron ore sintering mixtures comprising adhesive powder and nuclei have been studied with particles in excess of 1.00 mm in size acting as nuclei, particles below 0.25 mm acting as adhesive powder and particles between 0.25-1.00 mm acting as adhesive powder as well as nuclei, depending on the granulation conditions. The boundary value, which distinguishes the powder and nuclei, is closely related to the granulation efficiency, with boundary values of ca. 0.25 and ca. 1.00 mm having granulation efficiencies of less than 50% and more than 90%, respectively. The influence of four iron ore types - Brazilian, Australian or Indian haematite and Brazilian specularite - having various adhesive capabilities on the boundary value and granulation efficiency are described, as well as the effects of granulation moisture content, fineness of raw materials and activity of three types of burnt lime. Good adhesive capability, moisture content of ca. 8%, less than 10% of particles with size of under 0.25 mm, and increasing burnt-lime activity were found to move the boundary value towards 1.00 mm and increase the granulation efficiency.