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Clustering and switching are hypothesised to reflect the automatic and controlled components in category fluency, respectively, but how they are associated with cognitive functions has not been fully elucidated, due to several uncertainties. (1) The conventional scoring method that segregates responses by semantic categories could not optimally dissociate the automatic and controlled components. (2) The temporal structure of individual responses, as characterised by mean retrieval time (MRT) and mean switching time (MST), has seldom been analysed alongside the more well-studied variables, cluster size (CS) and number of switches (NS). (3) Most studies examined only one to a few semantic categories, raising concerns of generalisability. This study built upon a distance-based automatic clustering procedure, referred to as temporal–semantic distance procedure, to thoroughly characterise the category fluency performance. Linear mixed-effects (LME) modelling was applied to re-examine the differential associations of clustering and switching with cognitive functions with a sample of 80 university students. Our results revealed that although lexical retrieval speed (LRS) is clearly the determining factor for effective clustering and switching, matrix reasoning and processing speed also have significant roles to play, possibly in the processes of identifying and validating the semantic relationships. Interestingly, total fluency score was accurately predicted by the four clustering/switching indices alone; including the cognitive variables did not significantly improve the prediction. These findings underline the importance of the clustering and switching indices in explaining the category fluency performance and the cognitive demands in category fluency.

In chemical looping technology when applied to gasification, reforming, and chemical syntheses, the operating pressure is an important factor that dictates the reactant conversion and product forma...

Compound Kushen injection (CKI) is the most widely used traditional Chinese medicine preparation for the comprehensive treatment of colorectal cancer (CRC) in China, but its underlying molecular mechanisms of action are still unclear. The present study employed a network pharmacology approach, in which we constructed a “bioactive compound-target-pathway” network. Experimental RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) analysis was performed to identify a key “bioactive compound-target-pathway” network for subsequent experimental validation. Cell cycle, proliferation, autophagy, and apoptosis assays and a model of azoxymethane/dextran sodium sulfate-induced colorectal carcinogenesis in mice were employed to detect the biological effect of CKI on CRC. Real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction, Western blot, and immunohistochemistry were performed to verify the selected targets and pathways. We constructed a predicted network that included 82 bioactive compounds, 34 targets, and 33 pathways and further screened an anti-CRC CKI “biological compound (hesperetin 7-O-rutinoside, genistein 7-O-rutinoside, and trifolirhizin)-target (p53 and checkpoint kinase 1 [CHEK1])” network that targeted the “cell cycle pathway”. Validation experiments showed that CKI effectively induced the cell-cycle arrest of CRC cells in vitro and suppressed the development of CRC in vivo by downregulating the expression of p53 and CHEK1. Our findings confirmed that inducing cell-cycle arrest by CKI is an important mechanism of its anti-CRC action, which provides a direct and scientific experimental basis for the clinical application of CKI.

EEG-based biometrics has gained great attention in recent years due to its superiority over traditional biometrics in terms of its resistance to circumvention. While there are numerous choices of data acquisition protocol, the present study is carried out with the least demanding resting-state condition. Motivated by neurophysiological knowledge, a type of novel feature, namely the intrinsic mode correlation (IMCOR), is proposed. It is designed by combining the nonstationary multivariate empirical mode decomposition (NA-MEMD) and the concept of brain connectivity. With machine learning classifiers, our system yields promising performance in a 81-class classification (F1 score: 0.99) within a single session. For 32-class cross-session classification, an F1 score of 0.55 is attained. The results suggest that the proposed method might be vulnerable to temporal effects and between-session variability. This study highlights the uniqueness of the proposed non-stationary and connectivity-based feature and demonstrated its success as a biometrics. Further investigation is needed to make the method practically useful.

Purpose: Multiple myeloma is an insidious haematological malignancy characterised by monoclonal proliferation of plasma cells in the bone marrow. Extramedullary plasmacytoma is a rare manifestation of multiple myeloma and usually occurs in the upper respiratory tract. Orbital involvement is particularly uncommon, but may be associated with devastating visual impairment and poor clinical outcomes. Therefore, this article aims to highlight the need for multidisciplinary management of orbital extramedullary plasmacytoma. Methods: This is a retrospective observational case series of five patients. All presented to the authors for management of orbital extramedullary plasmacytomas from 2004 to 2015 at Prince of Wales and Mater Hospitals in Sydney, Australia. Medical records were reviewed for pertinent information including demographics, disease features, management strategy, and clinical progress. The study met Medical Ethics Board standards and is in accordance with the Helsinki Agreements. Results: This case series of five patients underscores the poor prognosis of orbital extramedullary plasmacytoma. Despite aggressive multidisciplinary management, four of these five patients succumbed to their illness during the study period. However, multidisciplinary management did manage to minimise symptoms and preserve quality of life. Conclusions: On a case-by-case basis, patients may derive palliative benefit from orbital surgery in conjunction with radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Orbital surgeons are encouraged to work within a multidisciplinary framework of medical specialists, including haematologists and radiation oncologists, when determining the optimal management plan in cases of orbital extramedullary plasmacytoma.

Numerical simulations of pre-cracked concrete subjected to dynamic impact compressive stress wave are carried out via DRFPA (Dynamic Realistic Failure Process Analysis). This code is validated firstly by comparing experimental results. Then, the initiation, propagation and coalescence of wing cracks and secondary cracks are numerically investigated by varying elastic modulus, uniaxial compressive strength, and homogeneity index of some phases (bond and aggregate) of concrete. The numerically simulated concrete failure mode (tension/shear failure) and its development in both quasi-coplanar plane and concrete bridge are analyzed and discussed. Numerical results show that the tension failure occurs firstly whereas shear failure occurs shortly thereafter with continuous dynamic loadings and its reflected wave. Meanwhile, the evolution of wing cracks and secondary cracks are numerically investigated. In addition, the effect of elastic modulus, uniaxial compressive strength, and homogeneity index of concrete phases on the crack evolutions are also studied.

Aim To demonstrate the clinical value of prospective electrocardiography (ECG)-triggered cardiac computed tomography (CT) with low concentration contrast medium, low tube voltage, and adaptive statistic iterative reconstruction (ASIR) to reduce both radiation and contrast dose in examining infants with complex congenital heart disease (CHD). Materials and methods Forty-four consecutive infants (19 male, 25 female, age: 8.06±4.33 months, weight: 7.31±1.36 kg) with complex CHD underwent prospective ECG-triggered low-dose cardiac CT using 80 kVp and 120 mA. The contrast agent was iodixanol (270 mg iodine/ml, Visipaque, GE Healthcare, Co. Cork, Ireland). Cardiac CT images were reconstructed with 70% ASIR. The quantitative CT image quality was assessed by image noise in adipose tissue and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) in the aorta. The qualitative image analysis was performed on a five-point grading scale by two independent reviewers and interobserver variability was calculated. The results of 32 CT examinations were also compared with the available surgical results for diagnostic accuracy evaluation. Results The effective dose was 0.55±0.10 mSv for the patient population. The iodine load was 3.95±0.73 g iodine. Image noise in adipose tissue was 16.24±1.42 HU and CNR in aorta was 21.90±7.10. All images were acceptable for diagnosis with an average score of 4.52±0.38 and good agreement between reviewers (kappa=0.75). Compared to the surgery results in 32 cases, CT was 97% and 88% accurate diagnosing extracardiac and intracardiac defects, respectively. Conclusion Prospective ECG-triggered cardiac CT using 80 kVp, low-concentration iodinated contrast agent (270 mg iodine/ml) and 70% ASIR reconstruction provides excellent image quality and accurate diagnosis for complex congenital heart disease in infants with reduced contrast medium dose and low radiation dose.

Congenital amusia is a lifelong neurodevelopmental disorder of fine-grained pitch processing. In this fMRI study, we examined the neural bases of congenial amusia in speakers of a tonal language – Cantonese. Previous studies on non-tonal language speakers suggest that the neural deficits of congenital amusia lie in the music-selective neural circuitry in the right inferior frontal gyrus (IFG). However, it is unclear whether this finding can generalize to congenital amusics in tonal languages. Tonal language experience has been reported to shape the neural processing of pitch, which raises the question of how tonal language experience affects the neural bases of congenital amusia. To investigate this question, we examined the neural circuitries sub-serving the processing of relative pitch interval in pitch-matched Cantonese level tone and musical stimuli in 11 Cantonese-speaking amusics and 11 musically intact controls. Cantonese-speaking amusics exhibited abnormal brain activities in a widely distributed neural network during the processing of lexical tone and musical stimuli. Whereas the controls exhibited significant activation in the right superior temporal gyrus (STG) in the lexical tone condition and in the cerebellum regardless of the lexical tone and music conditions, no activation was found in the amusics in those regions, which likely reflects a dysfunctional neural mechanism of relative pitch processing in the amusics. Furthermore, the amusics showed abnormally strong activation of the right middle frontal gyrus and precuneus when the pitch stimuli were repeated, which presumably reflect deficits of attending to repeated pitch stimuli or encoding them into working memory. No significant group difference was found in the right IFG in either the whole-brain analysis or region-of-interest analysis. These findings imply that the neural deficits in tonal language speakers might differ from those in non-tonal language speakers, and overlap partly with the neural circuitries of lexical tone processing (e.g. right STG).

The popularity of pre-workout supplements is rising amongst professional athletes and fitness enthusiasts. Despite increased usage, the safety profile of pre-workout supplements is likely to be not well understood. Additionally, many different brands use various undisclosed proprietary blends of active ingredients creating safety regulation difficulties. This lack of oversight could prove unsafe for certain patients. This patient MK is a 33-year-old healthy housewife who presented with central chest tightness, pre-syncope and mild dyspnoea to the emergency department via ambulance. The presentation was in the context of recent strenuous exercise and ingestion of a pre-workout supplement (

Background Compound Kushen Injection (CKI) has been clinically used in China for 15 years to treat various types of solid tumors, including colorectal cancer. Here we examine cell cycle arrest, induced autophagy, and mutant p53 pathways perturbed by CKI in colorectal cancer cells. We and other groups have shown that CKI alters p53 gene expression patterns and suppresses proliferation in colorectal cancer cells. Methods We measured the effect of CKI on cell proliferation, cell cycle progression and autophagy in sw480 and sw620 colorectal cancer cells in vitro, and carcinogenesis and the progression of azoxymethane/dextran sodium sulfate-induced colorectal cancer in ICR mice in vivo. We also used RNA sequencing to analyze mRNA expression altered by CKI, and further validated the expression of mutant p53 and several genes in the cell cycle pathway using reverse transcriptase-quantitative PCR and western blotting. Using network pharmacology (BATMAN-TCM database), we have also predicted the active ingredients in CKI involved in regulating the expression of mutant p53. Results We show evidence that CKI significantly suppressed proliferation and cell cycle progression, and induced autophagy of sw480 and sw620 cells in vitro; it also inhibited the development of inflammatory colorectal cancer in vivo. We also show that the down-regulated expression of mutant p53 and adjustments in several key genes related closely to cell-cycle progression. Furthermore, N-oxysophocarpine, lupenone, and geranylacetone were predicted to be the active ingredients of CKI involved in the down-regulated expression of mutant p53. Conclusion Our results indicate that CKI likely acts as a potential anti-cancer therapeutic agent that targets the cell cycle pathway, suggesting a key role in the development of a novel subsidiary therapeutic approach against mutant p53 in patients with colorectal cancer.

Anomalously cold winters with extreme storms intensify natural gas (NG) markets due to heightened residential and commercial demands, which include heating, electricity generation, disrupted distribution, and consumer pricing. While extended weather forecasting has become an indicator for NG management, seasonal (2-3 month) prediction could mitigate the impact of extreme winters on the NG market for consumers and industry. Interrelated climate patterns of ocean and circulation anomalies exhibit characteristics useful for developing effective seasonal outlooks of NG storage and consumption due to their influence on the persistence and intensity of extreme winter weather in North America. This study explores the connection between the Pacific-North American climate systems and the NG market in the U.S., connecting macro-scale oceanic and atmospheric processes to regional NG storage and consumption. Western Pacific sea surface temperatures and atmospheric pressure patterns describe significant variation in seasonal NG storage and consumption. Prediction of these coupled climate processes with relatively long persistence is useful for estimating NG storage; this could facilitate economic adaptation toward extreme winter weather conditions. Understanding the implicated impact of climate variability on NG is a crucial step towards economic adaptation to climate change.

Aim This study aimed to determine the contributions of basal excess glycaemia (BEG) and prandial excess glycaemia (PEG) to overall excess glycaemia in type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients treated with metformin alone. Methods Outpatients with T2D treated with metformin alone ( n =46) who underwent continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) were divided into tertiles according to glycated haemoglobin (HbA 1c ) levels. For each CGM trace, the glucose area under the curve (AUC)>5.5mmol/L was expressed as the AUC overall , representing overall excess glycaemia. The sum of glucose AUCs above the premeal glucose level at 4h after breakfast, lunch and dinner was expressed as the AUC peg , representing PEG. The contribution of PEG to overall excess glycaemia was calculated as (AUC peg /AUC overall )×100%. The contribution of BEG was calculated as [(AUC overall −AUC peg )/AUC overall ]×100%. Factors related to PEG contribution were also analysed. Results BEG constituted more than half the overall excess glycaemia in all HbA 1c tertiles. The contribution of PEG was negatively correlated with HbA 1c and mean glucose values before each meal. Prebreakfast and predinner glucose values were the dominant factors affecting PEG contribution and was independent of HbA 1c . Conclusion In patients treated with metformin alone, BEG was the major contributor to excess glycaemia at HbA 1c levels ≥7.7%, while PEG and BEG contributions were similar and stable below this level. For HbA 1c levels ≥7.7%, add-on therapy to metformin should preferentially target control of BEG, whereas targeting both BEG and PEG could be of equivalent importance with lower HbA 1c levels.

The dual channel Miniature optical Transmitter (MTx) is developed for the ATLAS Phase-I upgrade requiring durable performance in the Large Hadron Collider environment. The data transmission has achieved 8 Gbps per channel with a custom-designed LOCld laser driver and 850 nm VCSELs packaged in transmitter optical sub-assemblies (TOSAs). The performance of the MTx opto-electronics is evaluated. Accelerated aging tests of the VCSELs were conducted in a chamber at 85 °C, 85% relative humidity, with TOSA and bare-die samples prepared in non-hermetic condition. Radiation tolerance of the VCSELs was investigated with 30 MeV and 70 MeV protons. The radiation induced effects in data transmission were investigated for light-power degradation and parameters of eye-diagrams.

Background Living donor liver transplantation may put the donor at risk of physical and psychological impacts. Recovery of physical and psychological function as well as quality of life (QOL) in living liver donors warrants investigation. Objectives This study aims to examine the recovery of liver function, emotional status, and QOL in living liver donors through a comparison with the general population and reference values. Methods This descriptive, comparative study included 97 living liver donors who underwent surgery from 2008 to 2012 and were divided into 4 groups according to their postoperative period (1 year [n = 31], 2 years [n = 31], 3 years [n = 21], and 4 years above [n = 14]). Data were collected retrospectively in a medical center in northern Taiwan. Results The mean aspartate aminotransferase level was 20.2–32.1 U/L, the mean alanine aminotransferase level was 14.7–33.5 U/L, and the mean total bilirubin level was 10.8–15.5 μmol/L among the 4 groups. Among donors of the 4 groups, 23.8%–51.6% and 0%–29% were defined as having a mild level of anxiety and depression, respectively. Donors in the 1- and 2-year groups had poorer QOL in the physical function, role physical, vitality, and mental health domains than did the general population of Taiwan (P Conclusions Liver function was at normal levels in all 4 groups. The emotional and psychological function of living liver donors should be monitored and health-related QOL should be promoted during the first and second year after liver donation.

Hybrid improper ferroelectrics have their electric polarization generated by two or more combined non-ferroelectric structural distortions such as the rotation and tilting of Ti-O octahedral in Ca3Ti2O7 (CTO) family. In this work, we prepared different thickness CTO thin films on Pt substrates by pulsed laser deposition, and investigated their ferroelectric polarization reversal and the current transport properties by using the piezoresponse force microscopy and conducting atomic force microscopy, respectively. It is found that the CTO films exhibit clear ferroelectric domain switching and ferroelectric resistance switching behaviors, and the maximum resistive ratios of CTO film reaches ∼1750. These results demonstrate that hybrid improper ferroelectrics CTO films are promising materials for being employed in non-volatile memory and logic devices.

The aim of this study is to characterize the extreme rainfall event on 21–22 July 2012 in Beijing, and its impact on human vulnerability. Based on the available meteorological and rainfall data from Beijing meteorological stations and Surface Weather Observation Stations, the study draws hourly rainfall maps to simulate the rainfall amount and spatial distribution. Using these maps, this paper provides a quantitative analysis of the impact of the temporal and spatial characteristics of rainfall on the vulnerability of three population groups, according to age, gender and total number of victims. The results of three linear regression models indicate the different effects of extreme rainfall parameters on victims with different characteristics. The analysis of victim data in this extreme rainfall event represents the distribution and characteristics of victims in the eight affected districts, and concludes that the "vulnerable group" are males and adults in this extreme rainfall event. This paper is an initial effort to analyze the impact of an extreme rainfall event on the vulnerability of populations with different characteristics quantitatively, which can be used by stakeholders to prioritize the extreme rainfall event impact issues, and develop contingency plans to address and prevent the human and structural damages caused by the extreme rainfall events.

Thermal ablation of a copper foil surface by a single femtosecond laser pulse of duration 120 fs and wavelength 800 nm was investigated herein both theoretically and experimentally. A 1D two-temperature model with temperature-dependent material properties was considered, including the extended Drude model for dynamic optical properties. The rapid phase change and phase explosion models were incorporated to simulate the material ablation process. The simulated ablation depths agree well with the experimental measurements for the high laser fluence regime ranging from 6.1 to 63.4 J/cm2.

Purpose Research on symptom clusters is a newly emerging field in oncology; however, little evidence regarding symptom clusters in head and neck cancer (HNC) is currently available. To clarify this under-researched area, we investigated symptom clusters among patients with HNC treated with surgery and postoperative radiotherapy. We also examined the pattern of symptom clusters throughout the treatment course. Method A convenience sample of 100 patients with HNC was recruited in the Ear, Nose, and Throat unit of a medical center in Taiwan. Before undergoing postoperative radiotherapy, patients were asked to complete the MD Anderson Symptom Inventory and a demographic sheet. Patients completed the same inventory questionnaire at week 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 of radiotherapy. Result Two symptom clusters were observed, and they were stable throughout the course of radiotherapy. Cluster 1, the HNC-specific cluster, comprised the symptoms of pain, dry mouth, lack of appetite, sleep disturbance, fatigue, drowsiness, distress, and sadness. Cluster 2, the gastrointestinal cluster, included nausea, vomiting, numbness, shortness of breath, and difficulty remembering. Conclusion This study advanced our knowledge of symptom clusters in patients with HNC. The results are expected to contribute to the development of appropriate assessment and nursing interventions targeting multiple symptoms that may coexist in postoperative radiotherapy.

Aim To evaluate surgical outcomes (SOs) and visual outcomes (VOs) in cataract surgery comparing the Centurion® phacoemulsification system (CPS) with the Infiniti® phacoemulsification system (IPS). Methods Prospective, consecutive study in a single-site private practice. Totally 412 patients undergoing cataract surgery with either the CPS using the 30-degree balanced® tip (n=207) or the IPS using the 30-degree Kelman® tip (n=205). Intraoperative and postoperative outcomes were documented prospectively up to one month follow-up. Nuclear sclerosis (NS) grade, cumulated dissipated energy (CDE), preoperative corrected distance visual acuity (CDVA), and CDVA at one month were recorded. Results CDE was 13.50% less in the whole CPS compared with the whole IPS subcohort. In eyes with NS grade III or greater, CDE was 28.87% less with CPS (n=70) compared with IPS (n=44) (P=0.010). Surgical complications were not statistically different between the two subcohorts (P=0.083), but in the one case of vitreous loss using the CPS, CDVA of 6/4 was achieved at one month. The mean CDVAs (VOs) at one month for NS grade III and above cataracts were -0.17 logMAR (6/4.5) in the CPS and -0.15 logMAR (6/4.5) in the IPS subcohort respectively (P=0.033). Conclusion CDE is 28.87% less, and VOs are significantly improved, in denser cataracts in the CPS compared with the IPS. The authors recommend the CPS for cases with denser nuclei.

Emerging byte-addressable non-volatile memory (NVM) technologies, such as PCM and ReRAM, offer significant gains in terms of density and power consumption over their volatile counterparts. Their write endurance is, however, orders of magnitude lower than DRAM, potentially causing devices to fail in seconds. Therefore, to use NVM as DRAM replacement, writes must be managed carefully. In this paper, we study the endurance problem for NVM main memories with realistic server workloads. We explore three existing techniques to extend NVM lifetime: last-level cache replacement policies, compression, and NVM wear-leveling. The first two approaches increase lifetime by reducing the write traffic from the cache to the main memory. Wear-leveling spreads writes and reduces hotspots responsible for fast failures. Even though custom replacement policies and compression are common in DRAM caches inside NAND flash devices, we find that they provide insufficient lifetime gains for NVM main memories with realistic server workloads. Caching writes is effective, but adapting the replacement policy only provides modest write reductions by 10%, while compression schemes must quadruple the cache capacity to achieve reductions of 20%. In both cases, the lifetime increases by an order of magnitude, which, for example, translates in an improvement from 12 days to 6 months for PCM. In contrast, wear-leveling algorithms can increase overall lifetime by at least two orders of magnitude, for instance, from 12 days to 15 years for PCM. These results indicate that wear-leveling techniques are more promising to ensure that NVM technologies are feasible to use as DRAM replacement.

A thermal runaway potential was identified for the conversion of a tertiary alcohol to a hydroxypyrrolotriazine intermediate in the synthesis of brivanib alaninate. A continuous process was developed to mitigate the potential thermal runaway and allow for safer scale-up. This paper describes the hazard analysis, process development, reactor development, reaction engineering model development, and scale-up of the continuous process. The process includes three separate and stable feed streams that are mixed in distinct order using in-line static mixers. Heat exchangers are arranged and connected to facilitate a “plug flow” reactor scheme allowing sufficient residence time for reaction completion. The process has been scaled-up to the pilot plant and to manufacturing.

Thermal ablation of copper films by a single Ti:Sapphire femtosecond laser pulse of wavelength 800 nm and duration 100 fs was investigated experimentally and theoretically. The laser experiments were performed; the ablation depth and crater profiles were measured for laser fluences up to 1037 J/cm. A comprehensive axisymmetric model, including a two-temperature model, phase change models for rapid melting and evaporation, and a phase explosion model for ejecting metastable liquid and vapor, was developed to simulate the laser material ablation process. The simulated ablation depths and crater profiles agree well with the experimental measurements.

The coal direct chemical looping (CDCL) combustion process using an iron-based oxygen carrier has been developed and demonstrated in a 25-kWth subpilot unit. The CDCL subpilot unit is the first chemical looping demonstration unit with a circulating moving bed for the solid fuel conversions. To date, the CDCL subpilot unit at OSU has been operated for more than 550 h. The feasibility of the subpilot unit with various types of solid fuels including sub-bituminous coal and lignite coal has been tested. This article discusses the operational experience of a successful 200-h integrated, continuous demonstration with sub-bituminous coal and lignite coal. Throughout the 200-h continuous operation, the CDCL subpilot unit showed steady behavior in terms of solid circulation, coal handling, and oxygen carrier reactivity and recyclability. Tests with both coals confirmed more than 90% coal conversion with 99.5 vol % purity of CO2 achieved in the reducer. The sound design of the reducer allowed for nearly full coal c...

We demonstrate the good-performance In0.5Ga0.5As-based metal-oxide-semiconductor capacitor (MOSCAP) on GaAs substrate using metal-organic chemical vapor deposition technique. In0.5Ga0.5As film grown on GaAs substrate is proved to be high quality with threading dislocation density as low as 106 cm-2. The performance of the MOSCAPs is comparable to that of In0.53Ga0.47As/InP-based devices grown by molecular beam epitaxy technique. The devices show a nice capacitance-voltage response, with small frequency dispersion. The parallel conductance contours show the free movement of Fermi level with the gate bias. Acceptable interface trap density Dit values of 5 × 1011-2 × 1012 eV-1 · cm-2 in the energy range of 0.64-0.52 eV above the InGaAs valence band maximum in In0.5Ga0.5As/GaAs MOSCAPs obtained by conductance methods were shown.

Abdominal superficial surgical incision elicits cardioprotection against myocardial ischemia reperfusion (I/R) injury in mice. This cardioprotective phenomenon, termed remote preconditioning of trauma (RPCT), results in an 80 to 85 % reduction in cardiac infarct size. We evaluated cardioprotection and the molecular mechanisms of remote postconditioning of trauma (RPostCT) in a murine I/R injury model. Mice were analyzed using a previously established I/R injury model. An abdominal superficial surgical incision was made 45 min after myocardial ischemia at the end of coronary occlusion, and infarct size was determined 24 h after reperfusion. The results indicated that a strong cardioprotective effect occurred during RPostCT (56.94 ± 2.71 % sham vs. 15.58 ± 2.16 % RPostCT; the mean area of the infarct divided by the mean area of the region at risk; p ≤ 0.05; n = 10). Furthermore, pharmacological intervention revealed neurogenic signaling involvement in the beneficial effects of RPostCT via sensory and sympathetic thoracic nerves. Pharmacological experiments in transgenic mice demonstrated that bradykinin receptors, β-adrenergic receptors (AR), and protein kinase C were implicated in the cardioprotective effects of RPostCT. RPostCT significantly decreased myocardial infarction size via neurogenic transmission and various signaling pathways. This study describes a new cardiac I/R injury prevention method that might lead to the development of therapies that are more clinically relevant for myocardial I/R injury.

Primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease remain a public health priority. Effective risk stratification of patients is a central requisite for effective preventative care and several scoring systems incorporating biomarkers have been used for prognostication in patients to guide intervention decisions. Thrombosis of atherosclerotic coronary arteries is the main mechanism behind the acute coronary syndromes and since platelets play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of thrombosis, atherogenesis, and angiogenesis, platelet-derived biomarkers are an attractive concept. This review assesses the potential and the limitations of a range of platelet-based assays as biomarkers for coronary artery disease.

Most sinograms (i.e., Chinese characters) are phonograms (phonetic compounds). A phonogram is composed of a semantic radical and a phonetic radical, with the former usually implying the meaning of the phonogram, and the latter providing cues to its pronunciation. This study focused on the sub-lexical processing of semantic radicals which are themselves free standing sinograms. Two primed naming experiments were carried out to examine whether the meanings and pronunciations of the semantic radicals embedded in phonograms were activated or not during sinogram recognition. In Experiment 1, semantically opaque phonograms were used as primes. We observed facilitatory priming effects for targets which were semantically related to the semantic radicals embedded in primes, but not to the primes themselves. These effects were present for low-frequency primes, but not for high-frequency primes. Experiment 2 used only low-frequency phonograms as primes. We observed facilitatory priming effects for targets which were homophones of the semantic radicals embedded in primes, but not of the primes themselves. These results suggest that sub-lexical semantic and phonological information of semantic radicals are activated, and that the activation processes are modulated by the lexical frequency of the host phonograms. Our study shows that sub-lexical processing of semantic radicals is similar to that of phonetic radicals, indicating no fundamental difference between sub-lexical processing of semantic and phonetic radicals, supporting the view that a radical has a unique representation irrespective of its function in the orthographic system of Taft’s model.

A visual speller is a brain–computer interface that empowers users with limited motor functionality to input text into a computer by measuring their electroencephalographic responses to visual stimuli. Most prior research on visual spellers has focused on input of alphabetic text. Adapting a speller for other types of segmental or syllabic script is straightforward because such scripts comprise sufficiently few characters that they may all be displayed to the user simultaneously. Logographic scripts, such as Chinese hanzi, however, impose a challenge: How should the thousands of Chinese characters be displayed to the user? Here, we present a visual speller, based on Farwell and Donchin's P300 Speller, for Chinese character input. The speller uses a novel shape-based method called the First–Last, or FLAST, method to encode more than 7,000 Chinese characters. Characters are input by selecting two components, from a set of 56 distinct components, that match the shape of the target character, followed by sele...

Purpose This study investigates the impact of intertalker variations on the process of mapping acoustic variations on tone categories in two different tone languages. Method Pitch stimuli manipulated from four voice ranges were presented in isolation through a blocked-talker design. Listeners were instructed to identify the stimuli that they heard as lexical tones in their native language. Results Tone identification of Mandarin listeners exhibited relatively stable normalization regardless of the voice, whereas tone identification of Cantonese listeners was unstable and susceptible to the influence of intertalker variations. In the case of Cantonese listeners, intertalker variations had a larger effect on the perception of F0 height dimension than of F0 slope dimension. Conclusion The comparison between Cantonese and Mandarin listeners' performances reveals an interaction of intertalker variations and the types of tone contrasts in each language. For Cantonese tones, which depend heavily on F0 height distinctions, intertalker variations result in F0 overlapping and, consequently, ambiguities among them in isolated tone perception. For Mandarin tones, which are distinctive in terms of their F0 contours, the differences in F0 contours alone seem sufficient to elicit reliable tone identification. Intertalker variations therefore have relatively limited effect on Mandarin tone perception.

A trilevel resist system was employed to fabricate self-aligned, submicron emitter finger In0.52Al0.48As/In0.42Ga0.58As0.77Sb0.23/ In0.53Ga0.47As double heterojunction bipolar transistors (DHBTs). Selective wet-etchants were used to define the emitter fingers and to form an InGaAs guard-ring around the emitter fingers. Due to the low energy bandgap of the InGaAsSb base layer and type II base-collector junction, a low turn-on voltage of 0.38 V at 1 A/cm2 and a high dc current gain of 123.8 for a DHBT with a 0.65 x 8.65 µm2 emitter area were obtained. A unity gain cut-off frequency (fT) of 260 GHz and a maximum oscillation frequency (fmax) of 485 GHz at JC = 302 kA/cm2 were achieved.

We report a reconstruction method, called a back-projection filtered (BPF) algorithm, for fan beam differential phase contrast computed tomography (DPC-CT) with equidistant geometrical configuration. This work comprises a numerical study of the algorithm and its experimental verification with a three-grating interferometer and an x-ray tube source. The numerical simulation and experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method can deal with several classes of truncated datasets. It could be of interest in future medical phase contrast imaging applications.

In the application of high temperature superconducting (HTS) magnetic levitation (maglev) system under vertical inclination of permanent magnetic guideway (PMG), the component of the total weight of levitation body above the PMG will be changed. Therefore, the influence of the vertical inclination of PMG on levitation characteristics of HTS maglev system cannot be ignored, such as the levitation gap, the levitation force, guidance force and driving force of the linear motor. In order to investigate the influence of the vertical inclination angle on levitation characteristics of the HTS maglev system, a HTS maglev launch platform has been designed and fabricated for the investigation the influence of vertical inclination angle between the range of 0° and 18° on the levitation and guidance and driving force parameters of the HTS maglev launch platform. Experimental results show that the levitation gap was the main levitation characteristic for HTS maglev system under vertical inclination of PMG, which increased with increment of the vertical inclination angle. However, the levitation force, and the driving force of the linear motor decreased. The guidance force could not be influenced by the increment of levitation gap. The experimental results are helpful toward improving the running performance of the HTS Maglev launch system.

This paper presents a coastal hydrodynamic model for simulating coastal barrier breaching flows through an inlet which are mostly induced by extreme hydrological conditions such as storm/hurricane surges, waves and tides. In order to simulate wave field and wave-induced flow field in a coast, a wave action spectral model is coupled with a hydrodynamic model. The Godunov-type shock-capturing technique is used in the hydrodynamic model to simulate the supercritical flows and shocks driven by the extreme storm conditions. The hydrodynamic model is based on the solution of depth-averaged non-linear shallow water equations with all physical forcings common to coastal hydrological conditions so that it is capable of simulating multiple flow regimes, in which subcritical, transcritical, or supercritical flows may happen. The bed slope terms in the system of equations are treated in such a way that exact balance between flux gradient and bed slope terms is achieved under still water condition. The wave model readily provides the radiation stresses that represent the shortwave-averaged forcings in a water column and take into account wave-induced nearshore currents. In the coupled system, the models are operated systematically. The coastal hydrodynamic model is shown to accurately reproduce analytical and benchmark numerical solutions. To further test the accuracy of the model, flow through a coastal inlet with a storm surge is simulated and the results are compared with an established coastal flow model. Finally, the model is examined to simulate a severe storm surge that develops supercritical flows and the results are found to be encouraging.

Increasing concerns over growing CO2 levels in the atmosphere have led to a worldwide demand for efficient, cost-effective, and clean carbon capture technologies. One of these technologies is the Carbonation−Calcination Reaction (CCR) process, which utilizes a calcium-based sorbent in a high-temperature reaction (carbonation) to capture the CO2 from the flue gas stream and releases a pure stream of CO2 in the subsequent calcination reaction that can be sequestered. A 120 KWth subpilot-scale combustion plant utilizing coal at 20 pph along with natural gas has been established at The Ohio State University to test the CCR process. Experimental studies on CO2 capture using calcium-based sorbents have been performed at this facility. Greater than 99% CO2 and SO2 capture has been achieved at the subpilot-scale facility on a once-through basis at a Ca:C mole ratio of 1.6. In addition, the sorbent reactivity is maintained over multiple cycles by the incorporation of a sorbent reactivation hydration step in the ca...

Using models, we have demonstrated an efficient approach to identify optimal solvent compositions during conceptual design of an active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) process. A ternary solvent system was considered for a reaction, extraction, distillation, and crystallization sequence. Two thermodynamic models, NRTL-SAC and NRTL, as well as Aspen modeling tools, were employed to predict the liquid−liquid, vapor−liquid, and solid−liquid phase behaviors. We used these modeling tools to identify a solvent composition space for the reaction that allows for reasonable reaction volume while continuously removing a byproduct into a second aqueous phase. This composition also reduces API loss during subsequent aqueous extractions. Furthermore, the composition of the organic phase allows for an efficient azeotropic distillation during solvent exchange, resulting in a shorter cycle time needed to achieve the desired composition for final crystallization. Overall solvent usage for the process is also significantly...

The majority of the extant languages have one of three dominant basic word orders: SVO, SOV or VSO. Various hypotheses have been proposed to explain this word order bias, including the existence of a universal grammar, the learnability imposed by cognitive constraints, the descent of modern languages from an ancestral protolanguage, and the constraints from functional principles. We run simulations using a multi-agent computational model to study this bias. Following a local order approach, the model simulates individual language processing mechanisms in production and comprehension. The simulation results demonstrate that the semantic structures that a language encodes can constrain the global syntax, and that local syntax can help trigger bias towards the global order SOV/SVO (or VOS/OVS).

Chemical compositions, crystalline structures and thermal properties of bombax cotton and natural colored cottons including laurel green, bottle green and brown cotton were investigated by chemical analysis, SEM, IR spectra and X-ray diffraction. The results showed that the crystallinity and crystallite sizes of laurel green cotton were lower than those of bottle green cotton because of the excess content of suberin in the former. The crystallinity of brown cotton was similar to that of white cotton, and bombax cotton had the lowest crystallinity but its crystallite orientation was the highest. Thermal property of bottle green cotton was the most stable, whose decomposition temperature was higher of 30°C than that of common white cotton because of its higher lignin content, and bombax cotton had the lowest thermal degradation temperature. But bottle green cotton reached the highest decomposition speed and made decomposition finish within a very short time, and bombax cotton was just the reverse.

A compositionality-regularity coevolution model is adopted to explore the effect of social structure on language emergence and maintenance. Based on this model, we explore language evolution in three experiments, and discuss the role of a popular agent in language evolution, the relationship between mutual understanding and social hierarchy, and the effect of inter-community communications and that of simple linguistic features on convergence of communal languages in two communities. This work embodies several important interactions during social learning, and introduces a new approach that manipulates individuals' probabilities to participate in social interactions to study the effect of social structure. We hope it will stimulate further theoretical and empirical explorations on language evolution in a social environment.

We develop networks using the syllables (both base syllables and tonal syllables) and characters of Chinese. The nodes (vertices) of the networks represent the syllables of the syllable network and the characters of the character network respectively. The links (edges) are established between any two syllables (or two characters) that form part of one or more words. We use two dictionaries to perform the analysis: a Putonghua 1 dictionary and a Cantonese dictionary. All networks here show low distances and high clustering coefficients compared with ER random networks. The degree distributions all follow a power-law; however, the exponents for the base syllable, tonal syllable and Chinese character networks differ considerably. These differences may account for the different cognitive processes used when constructing new Chinese words. The networks are compared to the syllabic networks of Portuguese in terms of the magnitude of the power-law exponent. The Chinese character network is found to be t...

High-temperature superconducting (HTS) maglev vehicle is well known as one of the most potential applications of bulk high-temperature superconductors (HTSCs) in transported levitation system. Many efforts have promoted the practice of the HTS maglev vehicle in people's life by enhancing the load capability and stability. Besides improving the material performance of bulk HTSC and optimizing permanent magnet guideway (PMG), magnetization method of bulk HTSC is also very effective for more stable levitation. Up to now, applied onboard bulk HTSCs are directly magnetized by field cooling above the PMG for the present HTS maglev test vehicles or prototypes in China, Germany, Russia, Brazil, and Japan. By the direct-field-cooling-magnetization (DFCM) over PMG, maglev performances of the bulk HTSCs are mainly depended on the PMG's magnetic field. However, introducing HTS bulk magnet into the HTS maglev system breaks this dependence, which is magnetized by other non-PMG magnetic field. The feasibility of this HTS bulk magnet for maglev vehicle is investigated in the paper. The HTS bulk magnet is field-cooling magnetized by a Field Control Electromagnets Workbench (FCEW), which produces a constant magnetic field up to 1 T. The levitation and guidance forces of the HTS bulk magnet over PMG with different trapped flux at 15 mm working height (WH) were measured and compared with that by DFCM in the same applied PMG magnetic field at optimal field-cooling height (FCH) 30 mm, WH 15 mm. It is found that HTS bulk magnet can also realize a stable levitation above PMG. The trapped flux of HTS bulk magnet is easily controllable by the charging current of FCEW, which implies the maglev performances of HTS bulk magnet above PMG will be adjustable according to the practical requirement. The more trapped flux HTS bulk magnet will lead to bigger guidance force and smaller repulsion levitation force above PMG. In the case of saturated trapped flux for experimental HTS bulk magnet, it is not effective to improve its maglev performances by increasing of charging magnetic field, when the guidance force at WH 15 mm is 5.7 times larger than that by DFCM of FCH 30 mm. So introducing HTS bulk magnet into the present maglev system is feasible and more controllable to realize stable levitation above applied PMG, which is an important alternative for the present HTS maglev vehicle.

Powder shear testing has been used to assess flowability of powders for at least 48 years [A.W. Jenike, Storage and Flow of Solids, Bull., Eng. Exp. Station, Univ. Utah, vol. 123, 1964]. A fundamental part of the data interpretation involves construction of Mohr’s circles such that they are tangent to the experimental locus; a set of powder shear strengths, τm, measured at variable applied compressive normal stresses, σN. Despite the customary application of this tangency criterion, we have found justifications for it to be scant. In this work, we revisit the Mohr’s circle construction and find that proper construction would require measurement of reactionary lateral powder stresses, σr. We further provide reasoning to support placement of the experimental locus passing through the apex (top) of Mohr’s circles for isotropic or orthotropic powders and not tangentially to them. This placement is not unexpectedly in agreement with the results of a recent numerical simulation [C. Thornton, L. Zhang, Numerical simulations of the direct shear test, Chem. Eng. Technol. 26 (2) (2003) 153–156], and reveals errors in subsequently calculated constants on the order of 20%.

This study is to investigate the relationships between prevalent cardiovascular events (myocardial infarction, stroke and peripheral arterial disease) and carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) in middle-aged and older adults; to assess which of the indexes, IMT in the common carotid artery (CCA), internal carotid artery (ICA) and carotid bifurcation (CB) separately or in combination, is a better correlate. IMT of the CCA, ICA and CB were measured with duplex ultrasound in 1058 individuals (aged between 37 and 86 years old) in a suburban community of Beijing. Histories of cardiovascular events as well as prevalent risk factors were obtained. CIMT were compared between groups with and without cardiovascular events. Associations of cardiovascular events with IMT measurements in CCA, CB and ICA were ascertained. The group with cardiovascular events had higher mean CIMT (0.74 (0.60-0.98) mm vs 0.65 (0.54-0.80) mm, P=0.000) and higher abnormal CIMT proportion (77.20 vs 64.45%, P=0.000). The odds ratio (OR) for myocardial infarction was 1.74 (P=0.010), for stroke 1.98 (P=0.001) and for peripheral arterial disease 1.80 (P=0.072) in abnormal CIMT. However, after adjustment of traditional risk factors, the correlations disappeared, implying that CIMT may act via other risk factors. After adjustment of age, mean CIMT correlated best with total cardiovascular events (OR: 4.39 (2.39-8.04), P=0.000) and stroke (OR: 4.98 (2.55-9.71), P=0.000) separately; mean posterior CIMT correlated with myocardial infarction best (OR: 2.97 (1.68-5.24), P=0.000). CIMT may act as an intermediate point for cardiovascular diseases. Combined CIMT might be the best index associated with cardiovascular diseases.

The levitation height decay was found in the high temperature superconducting (HTS) Maglev test vehicle system during man-loading running. Experimental results show that the no-load levitating system would drift to a new equilibrium position by the external loaded history, but the new equilibrium position will almost not drift by the second-round same loaded history. A new method is proposed to improve the stability of the HTS Maglev vehicle, that is, a pre-load was applied to the HTS Maglev vehicle before running. The impulse responses are performed on the HTS Maglev vehicle before the pre-load and after the pre-load. The results show that the pre-load method is considerably effective to improve the stiffness and damping coefficient of the HTS Maglev vehicle. Moreover, it helps to suppress the levitation height decay and enhance the stability of the HTS Maglev vehicle in practical operation.