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Smooth morphing trailing edge (SMTE) has been receiving more attention as a new wing design concept in the past few years due to its high potential in reducing cruise drag, structural weight, aerod...

Modular multilevel converters (MMCs) are very promising and attractive in medium-/high-voltage applications. One of the main technical challenges associated with MMCs is to precharge all submodule (SM) capacitors to their nominal voltage values during a startup process. This article proposes a simple and effective startup strategy for MMCs based on a deadbeat predictive current control. This strategy can realize a fast precharge for all the SM capacitors from either ac-side or dc-side main voltages without any inrush current and, thus, guarantees a rapid and safe startup of MMCs. With the developed strategy, precharge currents from both ac-side and dc-side can be easily regulated in a closed-loop manner with an excellent dynamic performance. Moreover, conventional controller design and parameter tuning are not necessary, which greatly reduces design burdens and structural complexities of the control algorithm, and consequently facilitates its implementations. Detailed design processes and considerations of the proposed startup strategy are introduced and analyzed. The effectiveness and performance of the developed strategy are verified by sufficient experimental results.

Objectives The aim of this study was to investigate the electrocardiographic characteristics of ventricular arrhythmias (VAs) originating near the His bundle (HB) and use the R/S ratio in lead III (RIII/SIII ratio) to predict successful ablation of para-Hisian VAs. Background Catheter ablation for idiopathic VAs near the HB is often challenging, and data are limited. Methods The present study included 134 consecutive patients undergoing catheter ablation of para-Hisian VAs. The electrocardiographic characteristics in these patients were retrospectively evaluated with successful ablation and failed ablation. Results Successful ablation was achieved in 115 (85.8%) of the 134 patients. There was no significant difference in QRS duration between the successful and the failed ablation groups. The ablation success rate was significantly lower for para-Hisian VAs with a predominantly positive R wave in lead III than those with a predominantly negative S wave in lead III. The significant factor associated with successful ablation was the RIII/SIII ratio. The RIII/SIII ratio ≤1.1 predicted the successful ablation of para-Hisian VAs with high sensitivity (80.9%) and specificity (94.7%). The RIII/SIII ratio of >1.2 had high sensitivity (100.0%) and specificity (82.8%) to predict the distance Conclusions The RIII/SIII ratio was a helpful predictor of the successful ablation of VAs originating in the vicinity of the HB. This may be useful for planning ablation of para-Hisian VAs and minimizing the risk of inadvertent atrioventricular block.

Identification of carotid artery atherosclerosis is conventionally based on measurements of luminal stenosis. However, histopathologic studies demonstrate considerable differences between plaques with identical degrees of stenosis and indicate that certain plaque features are associated with increased risk for ischemic events. As a result of the rapid technological evolution in medical imaging, several important steps have been taken in the field of carotid plaque imaging allowing us to visualize the carotid atherosclerotic plaque and its composition in great detail. For computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, positron emission tomography, and ultrasound scan, evidence has accumulated on novel imaging-based markers that confer information on carotid plaque vulnerability, such as intraplaque hemorrhage and lipid-rich necrotic cores. In terms of the imaging-based identification of individuals at high risk of stroke, routine assessments of such imaging markers are the way forward for improving current clinical practice. The current review highlights the main characteristics of the vulnerable plaque indicating their role in the etiology of ischemic stroke as identified by intensive plaque imaging.

Background Topical pharmacological agents typically used to treat postoperative sore throat (POST) after tracheal intubation include nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), corticosteroids, lidocaine, Glycyrrhiza (licorice), and N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonists (including ketamine and magnesium). However, the optimal prophylactic drug remains elusive. Methods The literature published before September 8, 2019 was searched on the PubMed, the Embase, the Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) covering topical prophylactic medications for patients with POST were included. Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) system was used to assess the quality of evidence. The primary outcome is the risk of POST. Combining both direct and indirect evidence, a network meta-analysis was performed to assess odds ratios (ORs) between the topical pharmacological agents and surface under the cumulative ranking (SUCRA) curve for the treatment-based outcomes. This study is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42020158985. Results Sixty-two RCTs (at least 73% of which were double blinded) that included a total of 6708 subjects and compared 6 categories of drugs and/or placebos were ultimately enrolled. All preventive interventions except lidocaine were more effective than placebo at the 4 time intervals. Lidocaine (OR: 0.35, 95% credible interval [CrI], 0.16-0.79) has a greater POST preventative intervention effect than the placebo at a time interval of only 2 to 3 hours after surgery. Relative to lidocaine, the risk of POST except 2 to 3 hours was lower for the following treatments: corticosteroids, ketamine, magnesium, NSAIDs, and Glycyrrhiza. The NMDA receptor antagonists studied here included ketamine and magnesium. Magnesium generally demonstrated greater benefit than ketamine at 24 hours postsurgery/extubation (OR: 0.41, 95% CrI, 0.18-0.92). Compared with ketamine, corticosteroids were associated with a reduced risk of POST during the 4 to 6 hours (OR: 0.40, 95% CrI, 0.19-0.83) and 24 hours (OR: 0.34, 95% CrI, 0.16-0.72) time intervals. During the 2 to 3 hours time interval, Glycyrrhiza (OR: 0.38, 95% CrI, 0.15-0.97) was more efficacious than magnesium. Conclusions Our analysis shows that, among the 6 topical medications studied, lidocaine is not optimal for topical use to prevent POST. Glycyrrhizin, corticosteroids, NSAIDs, and NMDA receptor antagonists (ketamine and magnesium) are associated with a reduced postoperative pharyngeal pain across the 4 postsurgical time intervals studied, all of which can be chosen according to the clinical experience of the anesthesiologists and the patient preferences and are recommended for the reduction of postoperative throat pain.

The increasing penetration of renewable energy resources (RESs) leads to a continuous displacement of synchronous generators. Since the grid integration of RESs is usually achieved through inertialess power converters, the system inertia reduces and the power system frequency stability is compromised. Consequently, unexpected generator tripping, load shedding, and even blackouts may occur and pose a great threat to the system normal operation. In view of these challenges, this article explores the possibility of providing the inertia support from power-electronics interfaced smart loads. Specifically, a transformerless electric spring topology and the associated control strategy have been developed to provide a substantial inertia support from the noncritical load. As compared with existing inertia enhancement techniques, the proposed solution is cost-effective without the need of additional energy storage units. The smart load inertia provision capability is quantitatively analyzed and experimentally verified on a laboratory-scale test. In the testing results, 40% and 18% reductions of the rate of change of frequency and the maximum frequency deviation are, respectively, observed with a 12% smart load penetration ratio.

Efficient and precise three-dimensional (3D) measurement is an important issue in the field of machine vision. In this paper, a measurement method for indoor key points is proposed with structured lights and omnidirectional vision system and the system can achieve the wide field of view and accurate results. In this paper, the process of obtaining indoor key points is as follows: Firstly, through the analysis of the system imaging model, an omnidirectional vision system based on structured light is constructed. Secondly, the full convolution neural network is used to estimate the scene for the dataset. Then, according to the geometric relationship between the scenery point and its reference point in structured light, for obtaining the 3D coordinates of the unstructured light point is presented. Finally, combining the full convolution network model and the structured light 3D vision model, the 3D mathematical representation of the key points of the indoor scene frame is completed. The experimental results proved that the proposed method can accurately reconstruct indoor scenes, and the measurement error is about 2%.

It is not denied that real-time monitoring of radar products is an important part in actual meteorological operations. But the weather radar often brings out abnormal radar echoes due to various factors, such as climate and hardware failure. So it is of great practical significance and research value to realize automatic identification of radar anomaly products. However, the traditional algorithms to identify anomalies of weather radar echo images are not the most accurate and efficient. In order to improve the efficiency of the anomaly identification, a novel method combining the theory of classical image processing and deep learning was proposed. The proposed method mainly includes three parts: coordinate transformation, integral projection, and classification using deep learning. Furthermore, extensive experiments have been done to validate the performance of the new algorithm. The results show that the recognition rate of the proposed method can reach up to more than 95%, which can successfully achieve the goal of screening abnormal radar echo images; also, the computation speed of it is fairly satisfactory.

This study examined the design of joints reinforced by sleeves for connecting circular concrete-filled steel tube columns to steel beams. Six half-scale specimens, including four bolt-weld joints reinforced by sleeves and two bolt and stiffened end-plate joints, were designed and tested under cyclic loading to evaluate the seismic behavior of these joints. The joint construction and beam-column stiffness ratio were taken as the main parameters in the tests. The seismic behaviors, including the failure modes, hysteretic curves, ductility, strength and stiffness degradation, and energy dissipation, were investigated. The experimental results showed that no obvious bolt loosening, fracture, or widespread weld cracking appeared in the joints reinforced by sleeves. Furthermore, the joint strength and stiffness were markedly increased by the sleeves in the joint core area. Overall, most specimens exhibited full hysteresis loops and excellent ductilities, the equivalent viscous damping coefficients were 0.263∼0.532, and the ductility coefficients were 1.77∼3.42. The interstory drift ratios satisfied the requirements specified by technical regulations. The connections of these types exhibit favorable energy dissipations and can be effectively utilized for building construction in earthquake-prone areas. This research should contribute to the future engineering applications of concrete-filled steel tube to composite structure.

The effect of substrate temperature, growth rate and film thickness on the crystallographic characteristics of polycrystalline Bi thin films by molecular beam epitaxy and semimetal–semiconductor transition are discussed. Meanwhile, a structure-zone model and a two-transport-channels model are introduced to explain the crystal growth characteristics and the semimetal–semiconductor transition., The preferred orientation growth characteristics and surface roughness of polycrystalline bis­muth (Bi) thin films fabricated on glass substrates using the molecular beam epitaxy method were investigated at temperatures ranging from 18 to 150°C. The crystallization and morphology were analyzed in detail and the polycrystalline metal film structure-zone model (SZM) was modified to fit the polycrystalline Bi thin film. The boundary temperature between Zone T and Zone II in the SZM shifted to higher temperatures with the increase in film thickness or the decrease of growth rate. Furthermore, the effect of the thickness and surface roughness on the transport properties was investigated, especially for Bi thin films in Zone II. A two-transport channels model was adopted to reveal the influence of the film thickness on the competition between the metallic surface states and the semiconducting bulk states, which is consistent with the results of Bi single-crystal films. Therefore, the polycrystalline Bi thin films are expected to replace the single-crystal films in the application of spintronic devices.

Background Humeral lateral condyle fractures (HLCFs) are common paediatric fractures. Radiographs are hard to accurately evaluate and diagnose the damage of articular epiphyseal cartilage in HLCFs. Methods 60 children who should be suspected to be HLCFs in clinical practice from Dec 2015 to Nov 2017 were continuously included as the first part patients. Subsequently, 35 HLCFs patients with complete follow-up information who had no obvious displacement on radiograph were the second part patients. The sensitivity and specificity of radiograph and MRI in diagnosing of HLCFs and their stability were calculated respectively. Calculated the sensitivity and specificity of each scan sequence of MRI in diagnosing of HLCFs osteochondral fractures. The degree of fracture displacement was measured respectively. Compared the ratio of surgical treatment, secondary fracture displacement and complications between the stable fracture group and the unstable fracture group on MRI in part 2 patients. Results Sensitivity of diagnosing HLCFs by MRI was significantly higher than radiograph (100.00% vs. 89.09%, P = 0.03). Sensitivity of diagnosing integrity of trochlear cartilage chain by MRI was 96.30%, which was significantly higher than that by radiograph (62.96%, P P = 0.01 and P = 0.02, respectively). The degree of HLCFs displacement by MRI was higher than radiograph (P P Conclusions MRI is superior to the radiograph of elbow joint in evaluating and diagnosing children HLCFs and their stability. The coronal 3D-FS-FSPGR/3D-FSPGR sequence is a significant sequence for diagnosing osteochondral fractures in HLCFs. MRI can provide important clinical value for treatment decisions of HLCFs without significant displacement.

In this paper, we propose and experimentally demonstrate a three-dimensional (3D) microscopic system that reconstructs a 3D image based on structured light illumination. The spatial pattern of the structured light changes according to the profile of the object, and by measuring the change, a 3D image of the object is reconstructed. The structured light is generated with a digital micro-mirror device (DMD), which controls the structured light pattern to change in a kHz rate and enables the system to record the 3D information in real time. The working distance of the imaging system is 9 cm at a resolution of 20 μm. The resolution, working distance, and real-time 3D imaging enable the system to be applied in bridge and road crack examinations, and structure fault detection of transportation infrastructures.

Application of heterostructures in electromagnetic interference shielding application has been limited by the issue of the uniformly and dispersity of composites. Herein, we synthesized carbonized hydrochars/ZnO nanocrystals (CH/ZnO) composites via a strategy of expanding the interface of heterostructure. The introduction of dispersed ZnO nanocrystals leads to the emergence of the special heterostructure, associated with significant interfacial polarizations, resulting in an upgraded microwave absorption properties. It is demonstrated that the optimized reflection loss can achieve −49.24 dB with the thickness of merely 1.24 mm, and effective bandwidth (less than −10 dB) is ranging from 13.2 GHz to 16.6 GHz. The CH/ZnO composites in this work are outstanding microwave absorber with the merits of lightweight, easy preparation, wide source of raw materials and low cost.

Objective Batroxobin is a medicinal preparation extracted from the venom of the Fer-de-Lance snake, and is used to lower blood viscosity, promote blood fibrinogen decomposition, and inhibit thrombosis. This research is to investigate whether batroxobin can improve the survival of random skin flaps in a rat model. Materials and methods Dorsal McFarlane flaps were harvested from 36 rats divided into two groups. Experimental group: Batroxobin was administered via the tail vein once daily. Control group: The same amount of normal saline was injected instead. On day 2, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were measured. On day 7, tissue slices were stained with haematoxylin and eosin. Expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was immunohistochemically evaluated. Microcirculatory flow was measured by laser Doppler flowmetry. Flap angiography, using the lead oxide-gelatin injection technique, was performed with the aid of a soft X-ray machine. Results The batroxobin group exhibited a greater mean flap survival area, a better microcirculatory flow, and higher-level expression of SOD and VEGF compared with the control group. However, the MDA level was significantly reduced. Conclusion Batroxobin effectively improved the survival of random skin flaps.

A novel fabrication of non-polar Sb-doped ZnO homojunction was realized via a facile and reproducible low-temperature aqueous solution deposition in the presence of Sb dopant dissolved in ethylene glycol (EG). The undoped non-polar ZnO films were introduced as the non-polar substrates for the non-polar growth of Sb-doped ZnO film as well as the SZO/ZnO homojunction. The parameters including the reaction time and dopant concentration for the synthesis of non-polar SZO/ZnO homojunction were identified. The existence and distribution of Sb dopant in SZO layer were confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and elemental mapping analysis. The I–V measurement result indicated the p-type conduction of SZO layer and the synthesized p-SZO/n-ZnO homojunction with non-polar preferred orientations possessed both ultra-low turn-on voltage (1.5 V) and large rectification rate (>105). The excitation of orange-red light emissions from deep-level energy band gap demonstrated the (SbZn-xVZn) complex defect pattern. This novel non-polar SZO/ZnO homojunction could be an excellent candidate for the applications of one-dimensional ZnO nanomaterials in the electronic/photoelectronic field.

The considerably enhanced opto-electronic properties of ZnO films with non-polar orientations have been realized by introducing oxygen vacancies. Excitation of oxygen vacancies has been achieved by oxygen-deficient post-annealing treatment. The existence of oxygen vacancies is directly confirmed by cross-sectional XPS and positron annihilation Doppler broadening measurements. An enhanced UV-emission, more simplex green-light emission and sharply decreased electrical resistivity of post-annealed non-polar oriented ZnO films have been acquired in oxygen-deficient atmosphere. I-V measurement indicates that non-polar oriented ZnO/p-Si heterojunction with optimized post-annealing treatment owns an excellent forward electrical transportation and extremely low threshold voltage, have great competitiveness for the commonly used one-dimensional ZnO nanomaterials in photo-electronic field.

Objectives To describe the clinical and genetic features of a Chinese peroxisome biogenesis disorder 6B patient with PEX10 mutations and review PEX10–related peroxisomal disorders. Patients and methods The proband is a 7-year-old boy with mild mental retardation and gait instability, intention tremor and nystagmus. An extensive clinical and laboratory evaluation including molecular genetic studies was performed. Genomic DNA was extracted from peripheral blood using the standardized phenol/chloroform extraction method, and the coding region of the PEX10 gene was sequenced in three family members. Results Cerebral MRI showed cerebellar atrophy. Magnetic resonance spectroscopy revealed a decreased N-acetyl aspartate peak in the cerebellum. Nerve conduction velocity examination found prolonged motor and sensory nerve potential latencies (proximal obvious), decreased potential amplitude, and slow nerve conduction velocity. Routine blood tests and biochemistries were abnormal. The PEX10 gene test showed compound heterozygous mutations (c.209 G > A, p. G70E and c.830 T > C, p. L277 P). The mutation c.830 T > C, p. L277 P has been previously reported, whereas c.209 G > A, p. G70E is novel. Conclusion We identified an ataxia case of peroxisome biogenesis disorder 6B caused by novel compound heterozygous mutations of the PEX10 gene. Peroxisome biogenesis disorders should be considered in the differential diagnosis of autosomal recessive ataxia, especially cases with early onset.

This paper presents an ultra-wideband metal-mountable antenna used in the ultra-highfrequency (UHF) partial discharge (PD) detection. The designed antenna combines a coplanar waveguide antenna and multilayer substrates to effectively broaden its bandwidth when mounted on a conductive surface. These substrates consist of two layers of FR-4 dielectric substrates and two layers of the absorbing gasket, which is adapted to absorb the reflected electromagnetic signals. The parametric study is conducted to optimize antenna performance. A prototype is fabricated to confirm the design, and the measurement results show good agreement with the simulation. When mounted on the metal plate, the proposed antenna covers the UHF bandwidth of 400 MHz-3 GHz for S11

We propose a mechanism of Rydberg double antiblockade by virtue of a resonant dipole-dipole interaction between a pair of Rydberg atoms placed at short distances scaling as 1/R3. By combining this novel excitation regime with microwave-driven fields and dissipative dynamics, a stationary qutrit entangled state can be obtained with high quality, the corresponding steady-state fidelity and purity are insensitive to the variations of the dynamical parameters. Furthermore, we introduce time-dependent laser fields with periodically modulated amplitude to speed up the entanglement creation process. Numerical simulations reveal that the order of magnitude of the shortened convergence time is about 103 in units of ω0, and the acceleration effect appears valid in broad parametric space. The present results enrich the physics of the Rydberg antiblockade regimes and may receive more attention for the experimental investigations in dissipative dynamics of neutral atoms.

A range of perceptual and cognitive processes have been characterized from the perspective of probabilistic representations and inference. To understand the neural circuit mechanism underlying these probabilistic computations, we develop a new theory based on complex spatiotemporal dynamics of neural population activity. We first implement and explore this theory in a biophysically realistic, spiking neural circuit. Population activity patterns emerging from the circuit capture the realistic variability or fluctuations of neural dynamics not only in time but also in space; such spatial fluctuations, however, are ignored in traditional models of neural computations. These activity patterns implement a new type of probabilistic computations that we call Fractional Neural Sampling (FNS). We further develop a normative model to reveal the algorithmic nature of FNS and its powerful computational advantages for representing multimodal distributions, a major challenge faced by existing theories. We show that FNS accounts for recent experimental observations of perceptual inference and makes experimentally testable predictions.

Virtual rehabilitation for post-stroke patients have gained traction over the last few years, while motion tracking system has seen implementation through different rehabilitation centers and in a handful of medical environments, a completely home-based system has their own set of extra challenges. The core issue with any virtual system is that the patient might get demotivated and lack of human touch can make them depressed. While a motion-based system in the medical environments or the physiotherapy center can still be observed by a caregiver, a home-based system completely relies on the patient being motivated enough to carry out the session. In this paper, we explore currently available telerehabilitation systems and discover common issues faced within those systems. The reviewed technology in this paper showed a clear sign of iterative improvement but there are limitations observed in patient-therapist communication and implementation of gamification to keep the stroke-patients motivated. The goal of this study is to introduce the possibility of a telerehabilitation system that features a communication module and implements gamification ideas, all contained within a cloud-based solution which would allow real-time observation and communication between the therapists and the patients.

BackgroundIndigo naturalis is a blue dye in ancient, as well as an extensive used traditional Chinese medicine. It has a wide spectrum of pharmacological properties and can be used to treat numerous ailments such as leukemia, psoriasis, and ulcerative colitis. This article aims to expand our understanding of indigo naturalis in terms of its chemical constituents, pharmacological action and clinical applications.MethodsWe searched PubMed, web of science, CNKI, Google academic, Elsevier and other databases with the key words of “Indigo naturalis”, and reviewed and sorted out the modern research of indigo naturalis based on our research results.ResultsWe outlined the traditional manufacturing process, chemical composition and quality control of indigo naturalis, systematically reviewed traditional applictions, pharmacological activities and mechanism of indigo naturalis, and summarized its clinical trials about treatment of psoriasis, leukemia and ulcerative colitis.ConclusionsIndigo naturalis has a variety of pharmacological activities, such as anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antibacterial, antiviral, immunomodulatory and so on. It has very good clinical effect on psoriasis, leukemia and ulcerative colitis. However, it should be noted that long-term use of indigo naturalis may produce some reversible adverse reactions. In summarize, indigo naturalis is an extremely important drug with great value and potential.

We propose and experimentally demonstrate an optical pulse sampling method for photonic blind source separation. The photonic system processes and separates wideband signals based on the statistical information of the mixed signals and thus the sampling frequency can be orders of magnitude lower than the bandwidth of the signals. The ultra-fast optical pulse functions as a tweezer that collects samples of the signals at very low sampling rates, and each sample is short enough to maintain the statistical properties of the signals. The low sampling frequency reduces the workloads of the analog to digital conversion and digital signal processing systems. In the meantime, the short pulse sampling maintains the accuracy of the sampled signals, so the statistical properties of the undersampling signals are the same as the statistical properties of the original signals. With the optical pulses generated from a mode-locked laser, the optical pulse sampling system is able to process and separate mixed signals with bandwidth over 100GHz and achieves a dynamic range of 30dB.

The growing penetration level of distributed generation (DG) requires power converters to be more grid-friendly. Driven by this demand, grid-forming converters have emerged as a promising solution for DG integration. Through proper control strategies, a grid-forming converter can emulate the synchronous generator and provide substantial frequency and voltage support to the grid. Although the normal operation of grid-forming converters has been well studied in the existing works, the converter controls under large disturbances such as fault conditions have not been fully addressed yet. To fill this gap, this paper explores the operation of grid-forming converters under 3-phase symmetrical voltage sags. Moreover, a low voltage ride through (LVRT) strategy is developed to regulate the frequency and voltage magnitude of grid-forming converters. With the strategy, the grid-forming converter can provide voltage support and avoid being overloaded during grid faults. Finally, simulation results are provided to verify the proposed LVRT strategy.

Modular multilevel converters (MMCs) are very promising and attractive in medium/high-voltage applications. This paper proposes a unified startup strategy for MMCs from either ac-side or dc-side based on a deadbeat predictive current control. With the developed control strategy, charging currents from both sides can be simultaneously regulated in a closed-loop manner with an excellent dynamic performance. Therefore, all the SM capacitors can be fast charged to the rated voltage value, guaranteeing a rapid and safety startup of MMCs. Moreover, conventional separated and complex controller design and parameter tuning are not necessary, which greatly reduces algorithm calculation burdens and structure complexities. Detailed development processes and design considerations of the proposed startup strategy are introduced and analyzed. The effectiveness and performance of the developed algorithm are verified by experiments.

BACKGROUND This study analyzed the epidemiological characteristics and trends of trauma injuries in Ruijin Hospital North, Shanghai, China, and the feasibility of methods to prevent trauma. MATERIAL AND METHODS In this retrospective cross-sectional study, the electronic databases of Ruijin Hospital North were searched for patients who experienced severe trauma from 2013 to 2016. Characteristics of severe trauma were analyzed, including trauma mechanism, gender, reasons for injury, and injury-associated causes of death. RESULTS Of the 17,093 patients who experienced trauma during the study period, 11,165 (65.3%) were male and 5,928 (34.7%) were female. Analysis by age showed that the highest incidence of traumatic injuries was in subjects aged 25-34 years, whereas analysis by occupation showed the highest incidence of injury in migrant workers without higher education. Classification by Injury Severity Score (ISS) showed that 12,563 (73.5%) subjects had minor injuries, 4,273 (25.0%) had serious injuries, and 256 (1.5%) had severe injuries. In addition, 256 (1.5%) subjects died, with traffic accidents and falling injuries being the main causes of death. The incidence of injury peaked at 9-11 am and 2-4 pm and was significantly higher in autumn and winter than in spring and summer. CONCLUSIONS Most trauma patients were young adults. Injuries due to traffic accidents and falling were the main causes of death, with disregard of driving regulations and other health and safety regulations being the main cause of trauma. Trauma injuries may be prevented by strengthening education and by obeying traffic laws and construction site safety regulations.

The unique advantages of terahertz waves can greatly promote the development of security check, body measurement and other fields. In order to study the scattering characteristics of clothes made of different materials in the terahertz band, a terahertz radar system operating at 220GHz was used, and experiments on six kinds of clothes were carried out. It can be seen from the results that all kinds of clothes tested cannot completely block the penetration of the terahertz wave. On this basis, super-resolution imaging of the mannequin in clothes is realized through the orthogonal matching pursuit algorithm combined with compressed sensing theory. The results show that this algorithm has better resolution and anti-interference performance than the traditional one-dimensional imaging algorithm.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Inflammatory changes in the fat tissue surrounding the coronary arteries have been associated with coronary artery disease and high-risk vulnerable plaques. Our aim was to investigate possible correlations between the presence and degree of perivascular fat density and a marker of vulnerable carotid plaque, namely contrast plaque enhancement on CTA. MATERIALS AND METHODS: One-hundred patients (76 men, 24 women; mean age, 69 years) who underwent CT angiography for investigation of carotid artery stenosis were retrospectively analyzed. Contrast plaque enhancement and perivascular fat density were measured in 100 carotid arteries, and values were stratified according to symptomatic (ipsilateral-to-cerebrovascular symptoms)/asymptomatic status (carotid artery with the most severe degree of stenosis). Correlation coefficients (Pearson ρ product moment) were calculated between the contrast plaque enhancement and perivascular fat density. The differences among the correlation ρ values were calculated using the Fisher r-to-z transformation. Mann-Whitney analysis was also calculated to test differences between the groups. RESULTS: There was a statistically significant positive correlation between contrast plaque enhancement and perivascular fat density (ρ value = 0.6582, P value = .001). The correlation was stronger for symptomatic rather than asymptomatic patients (ρ value = 0.7052, P value = .001 versus ρ value = 0.4092, P value = .001). CONCLUSIONS: There was a positive association between perivascular fat density and contrast plaque enhancement on CTA. This correlation was stronger for symptomatic rather than asymptomatic patients. Our results suggest that perivascular fat density could be used as an indirect marker of plaque instability.

We demonstrate an interferometer method to improve the depth of field of the microscopic three-dimensional imaging system with structured light illumination. Both phase and amplitude of the optical waves are recorded for wavefront reconstruction.

Odor pollution did not only disturb the human normal life but also aroused the attention of environmental researchers and environmental protection departments. Therefore, the research on odor detecting method and instrument is important to theory and application. On this basis, the self-developed microfluidic chip capillary column is used in our odor detecting system. In this paper, lead the chip column into the chromatography separation system, with its small size, high efficiency, easy integration, and other characteristics to replace the original traditional column. The chip column was used in many gas experiments for several typical VOCs. At different carrier gas flow rates, the baseline value, toluene response, and toluene and methyl sulfide mixed gas separation were compared to verify the experiment to determine the optimal carrier gas flow rate in accordance with its response and separation degree. Under the premise of ensuring column efficiency as high as possible, it is determined that the optimal carrier gas flow rate is 6 ml/min. This paper shows the most proper carrier gas flow rate of our odor detecting system with the self-developed microfluidic chip capillary column.

In order to implement an effective directed medium access control and routing protocol in a directed ad hoc network, the node in the network should know the state of the neighboring nodes. However, it is difficult to sense signals in other directions, due to the strong directivity of the directional antenna. It will result in problems such as link collision. In order to solve the above problems, this paper proposes an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) based neighbor discover and tracking protocol for directional ad-hoc network. Then this paper discusses the neighboring state partitioning method based on discovery time and multiple resource unit access and frame format design based on OFDMA. The simulation results show that compared with the directional transmission and reception algorithms protocol, the protocol proposed in this paper increases the number of neighbor discovered nodes by 200\(\%\) when the number of neighbor nodes is about 30. The nodes can connect neighbor nodes frequently, and it improves accuracy of neighbor nodes position.

We demonstrate a photonic weight bank for neuromorphic computing by using multimode fibers. Weights control for multiple inputs of a photonic neuron are achieved by tuning the coupling power to the modes in multimode fibers.

Objective To unravel if there was muscular ion channel dysfunction in paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia (PKD) patients using the exercises tests (ET). Methods Sixty PKD patients including 28 PRRT2 mutations carriers were enrolled in this study, as well as 19 hypokalaemic periodic paralysis (HypoPP) patients as the positive controls and 45 healthy subjects as the negative controls. ET including long exercise test (LET) and short exercise test (SET) was performed in the corresponding subjects. Results In the LET, both the overall PKD patients and HypoPP patients had greater CMAP amplitude and area increments during exercise than healthy controls. At most 25% of PKD patients were identified from the normality with greater amplitude increment than the area. On the contrary, 50% of HypoPP patients were differentiated with greater area increment than the amplitude. More percentage of PRRT2− patients than PRRT2+ patients had abnormal average amplitude increment. Unexpectedly, five PKD patients had abnormal maximum CMAP amplitude decrements after exercise in the LET, and one had abnormal maximum immediate amplitude decrement in the SET. Conclusions Distinct ET manifestations were found in PKD patients compared to normal controls and HypoPP patients. Significance Abnormal muscle membrane excitability might be involved in the mechanisms responsible for PKD.

Funder: DH | NIHR | Health Services Research Programme (NIHR Health Services Research Programme); doi: https://doi.org/10.13039/501100001923, Spectral-domain OCT (SD-OCT) provides high resolution images enabling identification of individual retinal layers. We included 32,923 participants aged 40-69 years old from UK Biobank. Questionnaires, physical examination, and eye examination including SD-OCT imaging were performed. SD OCT measured photoreceptor layer thickness includes photoreceptor layer thickness: inner nuclear layer-retinal pigment epithelium (INL-RPE) and the specific sublayers of the photoreceptor: inner nuclear layer-external limiting membrane (INL-ELM); external limiting membrane-inner segment outer segment (ELM-ISOS); and inner segment outer segment-retinal pigment epithelium (ISOS-RPE). In multivariate regression models, the total average INL-RPE was observed to be thinner in older aged, females, Black ethnicity, smokers, participants with higher systolic blood pressure, more negative refractive error, lower IOPcc and lower corneal hysteresis. The overall INL-ELM, ELM-ISOS and ISOS-RPE thickness was significantly associated with sex and race. Total average of INL-ELM thickness was additionally associated with age and refractive error, while ELM-ISOS was additionally associated with age, smoking status, SBP and refractive error; and ISOS-RPE was additionally associated with smoking status, IOPcc and corneal hysteresis. Hence, we found novel associations of ethnicity, smoking, systolic blood pressure, refraction, IOPcc and corneal hysteresis with photoreceptor thickness.

Background The objective of this meta-analysis was to illustrate the clinical outcomes and safety of two different managements for supracondylar humeral fractures in children. Methods In January 2018, a systematic computer-based search was conducted in PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, and Google database. Data on patients prepared for two different managements for supracondylar humeral fractures in children were retrieved. The primary endpoint was the cosmetic and clinical outcomes based on the criteria of Flynn, ulnar nerve injury, and the occurrence of infection. After testing for publication bias and heterogeneity between studies, data were aggregated for random-effects models when necessary. Results Six clinical studies with 581 patients were ultimately included in the meta-analysis. There was no significant difference between the closed reduction and percutaneous cross-pinning, and open reduction and internal fixation in terms of the cosmetic and clinical outcomes based on the criteria of Flynn, ulnar nerve injury, and the occurrence of infection (P > 0.05). Conclusions Closed reduction and percutaneous pinning, and open reduction and internal fixation of supracondylar humeral fractures in children result in similar construct stability and functional outcome. More high quality randomized controlled trials are needed to identify this conclusion.

Background Paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia is the most common type of paroxysmal dyskinesia. Approximately half of the cases of paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia worldwide are attributable to proline-rich transmembrane protein 2 mutations. Objective The objective of this study was to investigate potential causative genes and clinical characteristics in proline-rich transmembrane protein 2-negative patients with paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia. Methods We analyzed clinical manifestations and performed exome sequencing in a cohort of 163 proline-rich transmembrane protein 2-negative probands, followed by filtering data with a paroxysmal movement disorders gene panel. Sanger sequencing, segregation analysis, and phenotypic reevaluation were used to substantiate the findings. Results The clinical characteristics of the enrolled 163 probands were summarized. A total of 39 heterozygous variants were identified, of which 33 were classified as benign, likely benign, and uncertain significance. The remaining 6 variants (3 novel, 3 documented) were pathogenic and likely pathogenic. Of these, 3 were de novo (potassium calcium-activated channel subfamily M alpha 1, c.1534A>G; solute carrier family 2 member 1, c.418G>A; sodium voltage-gated channel alpha subunit 8, c.3640G>A) in 3 sporadic individuals, respectively. The other 3 (paroxysmal nonkinesiogenic dyskinesia protein, c.956dupA; potassium voltage-gated channel subfamily A member 1, c.765C>A; Dishevelled, Egl-10, and Pleckstrin domain containing 5, c.3311C>T) cosegregated in 3 families. All 6 cases presented with typical paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia characteristics, except for the Dishevelled, Egl-10, and Pleckstrin domain containing 5 family, where the proband's mother had abnormal discharges in her temporal lobes in addition to paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia episodes. Conclusions Our findings extend the genotypic spectrum of paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia and establish the associations between paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia and genes classically related to other paroxysmal movement disorders. De novo variants might be a cause of sporadic paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia. © 2018 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.

A shield-driven tunnel is deformed along the longitudinal direction when subjected to seismic loadings; the circumferential joint is the key position of the shield-driven tunnel when such longitudinal deformation occurs. In this study, the variations of the internal forces (including both axial forces and bending moments) in the longitudinal direction of the tunnel are analyzed through a numerical method based on the longitudinal equivalent continuous model (LECM). The results show that the internal forces of the tunnel are mainly an axial force caused by longitudinal excitation, and a vertical bending moment caused by transverse excitation. Based on the stress distribution of the circumferential joint, a full-scale test is conducted, and the test results are compared with those obtained by a refined numerical model with 16 segmental rings. It is shown that the variation of the opening and bolt strain of the circumferential joint follows that of the internal force. When the tunnel is subjected to longitudinal tensile forces or bending moments, the distribution rules for the bolt stress at the position of the largest opening are essentially the same. Moreover, the distribution characteristics of the concrete strain on the segment surface at the position of the largest opening are essentially the same. The maximum tensile strain appears on the outer surface of the sleeve side segment. However, the maximum compressive strain appears on the inner surface of the hand hole side segment. The maximum principal stress and damaged plasticity of the segment generally appear near the sleeve and hand hole, and have a limited influence on the segment surface. Finally, a failure test shows that the segment becomes damaged before the bolt yield, with more severe damage occurring in the sleeve side segment.

Carbon-based composites are widely utilized in the electromagnetic (EM) wave absorbing field in virtue of good dielectric properties, low density, and excellent environmental resistance. Based on the strategy of constructing the heterostructure interfaces, the C/ZnO nanofiber composites with unique 3D cross-linked network have been successfully designed by electrospinning. The results manifest that the C/ZnO nanofiber composites carbonized at 700 ℃ have strong EM wave absorbing properties owing to the synergy of the interface polarization, geometrical effect and the less eddy current loss. The maximum reflection loss of the composites at 11.44 GHz is − 61.91 dB under the corresponding thickness of 2.59 mm. Meanwhile, the effective absorption bandwidth can reach as wide as 5.60 GHz, covering almost Ku bands. The advantages of lightweight, easy preparation, low cost and environmentally friendly prove our obtained C/ZnO nanofiber composites a potential material for microwave absorption.

The magnetoresistance anisotropic effect of (00l)-oriented semimetal polycrystalline bismuth (Bi) films is proposed as a candidate for Ettingshausen device and magnetoresistance device. By tuning film samples, 29 nm thickness (00l)-oriented columnar bismuth films with different grain sizes were prepared. The electrical transport measurement results showed that due to the different grain sizes, the magnetoresistance anisotropy of the Bi films with the same thicknesses differed by 3 times at low temperatures (T = 2 K). The main collision mechanism controlling the Bi film resistance was discriminated by whether the surface scattering or grain boundary scattering, based upon whether the magnetoresistance depends on the thickness or the grain sizes. The analysis result indicated that the surface scattering of the Bi film directly affected the semimetal to semiconductor transition. The present study provides a pathway for the electronic device application operating at low temperature by controlling the grain sizes.