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An efficient, renewable, and economic electrocatalyst for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is particularly important for next-generation fuel cells and metal–air batteries, and yet this remains a great challenge. In this contribution, we propose a facile and scalable route to the meso–microporous carbon with high specific surface area and enriched pyridinic nitrogen on the basis of direct carbonization of aquatic Scindapsus prior to ammonia injection. The metal-free catalyst proved to be an excellent electrocatalyst for the ORR in alkaline solutions, in terms of the onset potential and limited diffusion current density. It is comparable to a commercial Pt/C catalyst, arising from the large interface and heavy nitrogen doping. In addition to the robust stability against methanol poisoning and long-term operation, this carbonaceous catalyst provides a scalable and economic alternative choice for construction of high-performance ORR-based energy devices at a low cost, which may propel the applications of emerging green energy technologies.

This study investigated gender differences in the relationship between creativity and academic achievement. A sample of 1082 primary students participated in this study in Beijing, China. Their age ranged between 8 and 15 years old (M =10.41, SD= 0.99). Students’ creativity was measured by the Chinese version of the Torrance Test of Creative Thinking Figural Form A, and academic achievement was based on students’ self‐reported grades of last semester. Results revealed that there was a significantly positive relationship between creativity and academic achievement, ranging from r =.07 to r =.21. Gender differences regarding which aspects of creativity were related to academic achievement were also found. Plausible explanations and implications of the findings in creativity research and education are discussed.

As a notorious hazardous waste, biomass tar has for a long time been recognized as one of the key challenges throughout the progress in biomass gasification for renewable energy and chemical purposes. In this contribution, we report that biomass tar featured with considerably high carbon and nitrogen contents could serve as an ideal source for production of nitrogen-doped highly ultramicroporous carbon following the facile activation approach, which enabled a remarkably high ultramicroporosity based on a direct bottom-up strategy. Further, the disclosed evenly distributed active sites by nitrogen-doped ultramicropores displayed excellent CO2absorption capacity as high as 6.02 and 4.11 mmol/g (1 bar) at 273 and 298 K, respectively, in addition to the corresponding ideal adsorption solvent theory selectivity of 30 and 24, which are all among the highest level of solid CO2absorbents developed thus far. This work may inspire new sparks on rational disposal of tar-like byproducts from pyrolysis of organic solid waste and also encourage future utilization of them for advanced materials for innovative environmental applications, including CO2capture and storage and gaseous pollution control, among others.

Metropolitan cities in China are commonly confronted with unresolved traffic congestion issues, primarily due to rapidly increasing traffic demand. Group disparity between commuting mode choice and its spatial distribution on road networks has enabled us to examine the factors that give rise to the discrepancies and the fundamental spatial causes of traffic congestion. In recent years, micro-perspective, individual, and behavior-based spatial analysis have mushroomed and been facilitated with effective tools such as temporal geographic information systems (T-GIS). It is difficult to study the interrelations between transport and space on the basis of commuting mode choice since the mode choice data are invisible in a specific space such as a particular road network. Therefore, in the field of transport, the classical origin destination (OD) four-stage model (FSM) is usually employed to calculate data when studying commuting mode choice. Based on the relative principles of T-GIS and the platform of ArcGIS, this paper considers Guangzhou as a case study and develops a spatio-temporal tool to examine the daily activities of residents. Meanwhile, the traffic volume distribution in rush hours, which was analyzed according to commuting modes and how they were reflected in the road network, was scrutinized with data extracted from travel diaries. Moreover, efforts were made to explain the relationship between traffic demand and urban spatial structure. Based on the investigation, this research indicates that traffic volumes in divergent groups and on the road networks is driven by: 1) the socio-economic characteristics of travelers; 2) a jobs-housing imbalance under suburbanization; 3) differences in the spatial supply of transport modes; 4) the remains of the Danwei(work unit) system and market development in China; and 5) the transition of urban spatial structure and other factors.