Search

SnTe is an emerging IV-VI metal chalcogenide, but its low Seebeck coefficient and high thermal conductivity mainly originating from the high hole concentration limit its thermoelectric performance. In this work, an amorphous carbon core-shell-coated PbTe nanostructure prepared by a "bottom-up" method is first incorporated into the Sn1-ySbyTe matrix to enhance the thermoelectric performance of SnTe. The square-like PbTe nanoparticles maintain their original cubic morphology and do not grow up obviously after the SPS process due to the coating of the C layer, bringing about the formation of nanopores locally, while Sb alloying induces Sb point defects and Sb-rich precipitates. All these unique hierarchical microstructures finally lead to an ultralow lattice thermal conductivity (∼0.48 W-1 m-1 K-1) approaching amorphous limits (∼0.40 W-1 m-1 K-1). In addition, the incorporation of PbTe@C core-shell nanostructures decreases the carrier mobility obviously with a slight loss in carrier concentration, resulting in the deterioration of electrical properties to a certain extent. As a result, a peak thermoelectric figure of merit (ZT) of 1.07 is achieved for Sn0.89Sb0.11Te-5%PbTe@C at 873 K, which is approximately 154.76% higher than that of pristine SnTe. This work provides a new strategy to enhance the thermoelectric performance of SnTe and also offers a new insight into other related thermoelectric systems.

Introduction: Tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (ACP5) plays crucial roles in multiple pathological processes, including the genesis and progression of malignant tumors. We performed this study with the purpose of determining whether ACP5 is a crucial biomarker significantly related to prognoses of gastric cancer (GC) patients. Methods: The expression level of ACP5 level was assessed among 170 GC specimens using immunohistochemistry. The associations between ACP5 expression and clinicopathological variables were evaluated. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were performed to confirm independent prognostic factors for GC patients. Results: It was revealed that ACP5 expression level in GC tissue was significantly associated with depth of invasion (p = 0.029) and TNM stage (p = 0.036). ACP5 was demonstrated by multivariate Cox regression analysis to be an independent prognostic factor for overall survival (OS) (p = 0.001) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) (p = 0.011) of GC patients. Conclusions: The expression of ACP5 in GC tissue was significantly higher than that in normal tissues, and its overexpression was associated with a poorer prognosis, suggesting its potential roles in preventing and treating GC.

4H-SiC substrates and homo-epitaxial layers were obtained using the traditional methods of physical vapor transport and chemical vapor deposition. Defect morphology has been studied using both Synchrotron White Beam X-ray Topography and Monochromatic Beam X-ray Topography. Molten KOH etching method was adopted to further investigate the dislocation behavior mechanisms. Deflected dislocations were observed at the periphery regions in both substrate and epitaxial wafers. 3C polytypes and half loop arrays were observed in the 4H-SiC epitaxial wafer. It is also found that the majority of basal plane dislocations are converted to threading edge dislocations in the epitaxial wafer samples. The proportion of BPD to TED conversion depends on the surface step morphology and growth mode in epitaxial growth which in turn depends on the C/Si ratio. By the optimization of etching time prior to epitaxy and C/Si ratio, high-quality epitaxial wafers with extremely low basal plane dislocations densities (＜0.1 cm-2) was obtained.

Aim. To improve the identification and computed tomography (CT) diagnostic accuracy of chronic active Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated enteritis (CAEAE) by evaluating its CT findings and clinical manifestation. Methods. The data of three patients with pathologically and clinically confirmed CAEAE who underwent CT enterography (CTE) were retrospectively reviewed from January 2018 to October 2019. The following data were evaluated: imaging characteristics (length of involvement, pattern of mural thickening, pattern of attenuation, perienteric abnormalities), clinical symptoms, endoscopic records, laboratory examinations, and pathologic findings. Results. Based on CT findings, two patients demonstrated segmental bowel wall thickening (involvement length >6 cm), asymmetric thickening, layered attenuation, fat stranding, and adenopathy, whereas the remaining one had no positive finding. The endoscopic results of all patients showed numerous irregular ulcers in the colon, and one patient had a focal esophageal ulcer. The major clinical symptoms were abdominal pain (n=3), retrosternal pain (n=1), fever (n=3), diarrhea (n=2), hematochezia (n=1), and adenopathy (n=3). The main laboratory examination indicators were increased serum EBV DNA load (n=1) and increased inflammatory markers (n=3). With regard to the main pathologic findings, all patients showed positive EBV-encoded RNA (EBER) situ hybridization in the colonic biopsy specimen, with one patient being positive in the esophagus. Conclusion. CAEAE is rare and is usually misdiagnosed as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The imaging features of CAEAE overlap with those of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. The presence of segmental and asymmetric bowel wall thickening, layered attenuation, and fat stranding in the CTE image may be helpful in differentiating CAEAE from IBD.

AIM To investigate the characteristics and clinical value of chest computed tomography (CT) images of novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP). MATERIALS AND METHODS Clinical data and CT images of 80 cases of NCP were collected. The clinical manifestations and laboratory test results of the patients were analysed. The lesions in each lung segment of the patient's chest CT images were characterised. Lesions were scored according to length and diffusivity. RESULTS The main clinical manifestations were fever, dry cough, fatigue, a little white sputum, or diarrhoea. A total of 1,702 scored lesions were found in the first chest CT images of 80 patients. The lesions were located mainly in the subpleural area of the lungs (92.4%). Most of the lesions were ground-glass opacity, and subsequent fusions could increase in range and spread mainly in the subpleural area. Pulmonary consolidation accounted for 44.1% of all of the lesions. Of the 80 cases, 76 patients (95%) had bilateral lung disease, four (5%) patients had unilateral lung disease, and eight (10%) patients had cord shadow. CONCLUSION The chest CT of NCP patients is characterised by the onset of bilateral ground-glass lesions located in the subpleural area of the lung, and progressive lesions that result in consolidation with no migratory lesions. Pleural effusions and mediastinal lymphadenopathy are rare. As patients can have inflammatory changes in the lungs alongside a negative early nucleic acid test, chest CT, in combination with epidemiological and laboratory tests, is a useful examination to evaluate the disease and curative effect., Highlights • NCP is characterized by GGO and consolidation in the subpleural area. • Pleural effusions and mediastinal lymphadenopathy are rare in COVID-19 patients. • CT shows abnormal in some patients with negative nucleic acid or laboratory tests.

Gastric cancer (GC) is the third leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide. Conventional chemotherapy has been proven useful to only a portion of the patients. Previous developed targeted drugs are more effective and tolerable than conventional drugs. Thus the development of novel drugs targeting markers is an urgent task and the main direction for future research. Ethaselen, an inhibitor of thioredoxin reductase (TrxR), has been considered an important anticancer target drug. Previous studies show that it is effective on treating many kinds of cancers. In this paper, we examined that ethaselen effectively inhibited the growth of gastric cancer cells and promoted apoptosis. Organoids were cultured from patient-derived cells in a three-dimension form which are widely used in cancer research to help us understand cancer cells behavior at the sub-organ level and develop novel drugs. We established a drug testing and screening system using GC-derived organoids by recapitulating tumor microenvironment. We confirmed that the TrxR-targeting ethaselen could be a novel and effective drug for gastric cancer treatment.

In this paper, we investigate the influences of inner core radius, shell thickness, dielectric function of inner core and surrounding medium on the refractive index sensitivity of dielectric–metal nanotube based on the quasi-static theory. Theoretical calculation results show that the refractive index sensitivity of dielectric–metal nanotube can be well optimized by tuning the geometrical parameters. The refractive index sensitivity of two-layered dielectric–metal nanotube increases exponentially with decreasing the wall thickness, but increases linearly with decreasing the refractive index of surrounding medium. In addition, the refractive index sensitivity of metal–dielectric–metal nanotube is also investigated, the calculation shows that the refractive index sensitivity of silver–dielectric–silver nanotube is higher than that of gold–dielectric–gold nanotube under the same parameter. The physical mechanism is investigated based on the plasmon hybridization theory. Our study provides a way to analyze and broaden the applications in sensor ability.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect the motion-correction reconstruction algorithm SnapShot Freeze (SSF) on the diagnostic performance of coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) using high-resolution, wide-detector CT. Methods: CCTA was performed using an electrocardiography-triggered auto-gating protocol in 62 patients. All images were reconstructed using both standard algorithm and motioncorrection algorithm (SSF). According to the American Heart Association (AHA) guidelines for coronary angiography, the coronary artery was divided into 15 segments. The coronary artery segments were evaluated using a 4-point Likert scale to determine the image quality. Arteries with a score greater than 1 were further evaluated by two expert radiologists blinded to conditions. The diagnostic performance of SSF was compared in the patients with high heart rate (HR ≥ 75 beats per minute) compared to low HR (< 75 beats per minute). Results: At the segmental level, the Likert score for segments 1–4 and 6–14 were higher in SSF compared to standard algorithm (p < 0.05). The proportion of images that was improved by SSF was greater for the high HR systolic phase imaging (66.7%) than for the low HR diastolic phase imaging (34.3%, p < 0.05). Conclusion: The SSF algorithm improves coronary CTA images acquired using a 256-row wide detector CT, compared to standard algorithm, particularly in patients with high HR.

To investigate the optimal pre- and post-adaptive statistical iterative reconstruction-V (ASiR-V) levels in pediatric abdominal computed tomography (CT) to minimize radiation exposure and maintain image quality using an animal model. A total of 10 standard piglets were selected and scanned to obtain unenhanced and enhanced images under different pre-ASiR-V conditions. The corresponding images were obtained using ASiR-V algorithm at different post-ASiR-V levels. CT value, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), contrast noise ratio (CNR) of abdominal tissues, subjective image score, and radiation dose of unenhanced and enhanced scans were analyzed. With the increase of pre-ASiR-V level, the radiation dose in piglets gradually decreased (P < 0.05). Within the same group of pre-ASiR-V, the image noise was decreased (P < 0.05) by increasing post-ASiR-V level. There was no statistical difference between SNR and CNR values. In unenhanced CT, the subjective score of the images with the combination of 40% pre- and 60% post-ASiR-V levels had no statistical difference compared to the combination of 0% pre- and 60% post-ASiR-V levels, while the radiation dose decreased by 31.6%. In the enhanced CT, the subjective image score with the 60% pre- and 60% post-ASiR-V combination had no statistical difference compared to the 0% pre- and 60% post-ASiR-V combination, while the radiation dose was reduced by 48.9%. The combined use of pre- and post-ASiR-V maintains image quality at the reduced radiation dose. The optimal level for unenhanced CT is 40% pre-combined with 60% post-ASiR-V, while that for enhanced CT is 60% pre- combined with 60% post-ASiR-V in pediatric abdominal CT.

Tian Gao,1,* Xiao-xin Huang,1,* Wu-yun Wang,1,2Miao-fang Wu,1 Zhong-qiu Lin,1 Jing Li11Department of Gynecologic Oncology, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510120, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Gynecology, Hangzhou Women’s Hospital, Hangzhou 310008, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workObjectives: For patients with advanced ovarian cancer, neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) can significantly increase the rate of optimal cytoreduction. However, this does not translate into a survival benefit. The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility and effect of neoadjuvant laparoscopic hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (NLHIPEC).Methods: Between March 2016 and February 2018, 14 patients with advanced ovarian cancer who were not candidates for optimal cytoreduction via primary debulking surgery (PDS) received NLHIPEC. Their clinical data were retrospectively analyzed.Results: No patients experienced intraoperative complications during NLHIPEC. Grade 3 adverse events (AEs) were noted in two (14.3%) patients, and all patients received planned NACT without dose delay or dose reduction. Following NACT, CA125 levels

Optical properties and refractive index sensitivity abilities of three-layered silver/gold-dielectric-silver bimetallic nanoshells are investigated based on quasi-static theory. The results show that absorption spectra of silver/gold-dielectric-silver bimetallic nanoshells can be well tuned by changing the inner core radius, middle dielectric radius and outer shell layer thickness. Local surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) shifts of | ω − − 〉 mode show a red-shift with increasing the inner core radius and the thickness of middle dielectric layer, while a blue-shift with increasing the thickness of outer shell. It is interesting to find that the shifts of | ω − + 〉 mode are related to the ratio e 2 ∕ e 4 , the component of core and nanoshell. In addition, the refractive index sensitivity abilities of three-layered silver/gold-dielectric-silver bimetallic nanoshells are also reported. A higher refractive index sensitivity ability can be obtained by adjusting its geometric size and component. | ω − − 〉 mode gets more intensity with increasing the surrounding medium dielectric function, while | ω − + 〉 mode fades down. The intensity difference between | ω − − 〉 mode and | ω − + 〉 mode is mainly effected by the surrounding medium dielectric function, its geometric parameter, middle layer dielectric function, the component of core and nanoshell. Our study provides a way to analyze sensitivity application of nanoshells and broadens the application of nanoshells in sensor ability.

Schizophrenia is associated with an increased risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS), which is an important risk factor for developing cognitive impairment in the general population. A few case-control studies have explored the relationship between MetS and cognitive deficits in individuals with schizophrenia but with inconsistent findings. This meta-analysis of case-control studies was carried out to explore the association between MetS and cognitive performance in patients with schizophrenia. Only case-control studies assessing the association of cognitive function and MetS in patients with schizophrenia were identified. Cognitive function was assessed using the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) scale. Six case-control studies (n = 992) comparing cognition between patients with schizophrenia with MetS (n = 426) and those without MetS (n = 566) using the RBANS were identified. Compared to patients with schizophrenia without MetS, patients with schizophrenia and MetS had significantly more impairments in RBANS total scores [standardized mean difference (SMD) = −0.26, 95% confidence interval (CI): −0.51 to −0.02; I2 = 72%; p = 0.03], immediate memory (SMD = -0.32, 95% CI: −0.54 to −0.10; I2 = 66%; p = 0.005), attention (SMD = -0.29, 95% CI: −0.56 to −0.02; I2 = 77%; p = 0.03), and delayed memory (SMD = -0.24, 95% CI: −0.46 to −0.03; I2 = 64%; p = 0.03). No group difference was found regarding visuospatial skills and language (p > 0.05). This meta-analysis found that schizophrenia patients with MetS had worse performance on certain cognitive tasks than non-MetS patients.

Background Laparoscopic surgery has been widely accepted to treat early-stage gastric cancer. However, it is still controversial to perform laparoscopic gastrectomy plus D2 lymphadenectomy for locally advanced gastric cancer. We performed the present study to compare the long-term outcomes of patients after laparoscopic or open gastrectomy plus D2 lymphadenectomy. Methods The clinicopathological data of 182 gastric cancer patients receiving gastrectomy plus D2 lymphadenectomy between January 2011 and December 2015 at Shenzhen Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital were retrospectively retrieved. The overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) of these 182 patients were compared. Then, the prognostic significance of positive lymph node ratio (LNR) was assessed. Results As a whole, OS (P = 0.789) and DFS (P = 0.672) of patients receiving laparoscopic gastrectomy plus D2 lymphadenectomy were not significantly different from those of patients receiving open surgery. For stage I patients, laparoscopic gastrectomy plus D2 lymphadenectomy was not significantly different from open surgery in terms of OS (P = 0.573) and DFS (P = 0.157). Similarly, for stage II patients, laparoscopic gastrectomy plus D2 lymphadenectomy was not significantly different from open surgery in terms of OS (P = 0.567) and DFS (P = 0.830). For stage III patients, laparoscopic gastrectomy plus D2 lymphadenectomy was not significantly different from open surgery in terms of OS (P = 0.773) and DFS (P = 0.404). Laparoscopic or open gastrectomy plus D2 lymphadenectomy was not proven by Cox regression analysis to be an independent prognostic factor for OS and DFS. High LNR was significantly associated with worse OS (P < 0.001) and DFS (P < 0.001). Surgical type did not significantly affect prognosis of patients with low LNR or survival of patients with high LNR. Conclusions For patients with gastric cancer, laparoscopic gastrectomy plus D2 lymphadenectomy was not inferior to open surgery in terms of long-term outcomes. LNR is a useful prognostic marker for GC patients.

The effects of inner nanowire radius, shell thickness, the dielectric functions of middle layer and surrounding medium on localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) of gold-dielectric-silver nanotube are studied based on the quasi-staticapproximation. Theoretical calculation results show that LSPR of gold-dielectric-silver nanotube and LSPR numbers can bewell optimized by adjusting its geometrical parameters. The longer wavelength of | ω − − 〉 mode takes place a distinct red-shift with increasing the inner nanowire radius and the thickness of middle dielectric layer,while a blue-shift with increasing outer nanotube thickness. The physical mechanisms are explained based on the plasmon hybridization theory, induced charges and phase retardation. In addition, the effects of middle dielectric function and surrounding medium on LSPR, and the local electric field factor are also reported. Our study provides the potential appications of gold-dielectric-silver nanotube in biological tissues, sensor and related regions.

The artificial ground freezing (AGF) method is widely used for soil reinforcement in underground engineering. The AGF method has been confirmed very effective, however, it consumes a great deal of energy during construction. Therefore, it is of great significance to study its energy conversion and utilization, which is very important for better and more energy-efficient employment of this method. In this paper, a novel method, which could effectively calculate the energy utilization rate (EUR), is proposed to evaluate the energy conversion efficiency of a typical AGF project. First of all, the brine temperature and ground temperature are monitored and analyzed. Secondly, according to the monitored data and actual layout of freezing pipes, a sophisticated three-dimensional solid model is established, which considers the thermal-mechanical coupling and ice-water phase change. Based on the numerical simulation, the variation of the temperature field as well as the expansion process of the frozen soil curtain are analyzed, and the effectiveness of the numerical model is further validated by comparison between the measured and simulated results. Thirdly, variations of three key parameters including the output energy, elastic strain energy and heat energy during the active freezing period are calculated and analyzed. Finally, the EUR curve during the AGF process is acquired based on the calculated indicators. The trend of EUR can be divided into four stages, while the EUR is zero in the initial stage, reaches a peak of 0.79 in the rise stage, and then decreases slowly in the decline stage and stable stage. According to the EUR curve, constructive measures to improve energy conversion and utilization are proposed. It is concluded that this novel method is very effective for the assessment of energy utilization in AGF projects.

Localized surface plasmon resonances (LSPRs) of Ag-dielectric-Ag multi-layered nanoshell are studied by quasi-static approximation and plasmon hybridization theory. Absorption properties of multi-layered nanoshell with the silver core and nanoshell separated by a dielectric layer exhibit strong coupling between the core and nanoshell. The result shows absorption spectrum of LSPRS is influenced by the refractive index of surrounding medium, the dielectric constant of middle dielectric layer, the thickness of inner core radius and outer shell layer. LSPR shift of the longest wavelength $\left |\omega _{-}^{-}\right >$ is red-shifted with increasing the inner core radius. It is interesting to find that longer wavelength $\left |\omega _{-}^{+}\right >$ mode is mainly effected by the ratio constant of the surrounding medium refractive index e 4 to the middle layer dielectric constant e 2. $\left |\omega _{-}^{+}\right >$ mode takes place a blue-shift with increasing inner core radius when e 2 > e 4, a red-shift when e 2 < e 4, and no-shifting when e 2 = e 4. However, the influence of dielectric layer radius to $\left |\omega _{-}^{+}\right >$ mode shows the different property as that of increasing the inner core radius. The underlying mechanisms are analyzed with the plasmon hybridization theory and the distribution of induced charge interaction between the inner core and outer shell. In addition, the influence of core radius, middle dielectric layer radius and outer shell radius to sensitivity of Ag-dielectric-Ag multi-layered nanoshell are also reported, a higher sensitivity could be gotten by adjusting geometrical parameters. Our theoretical study could give an easy way to analyze properties of the core-shell nanosphere based on plasmon hybridization theory and the induced charge interaction, and usefully broaden the applications in nano-optics.

In this paper, the authors developed a three dimensional shell-spring numerical model of a shield tunnel, in which the elastic shell elements were adopted to model the segments and the spring models were used for the simulation of the segmental joints. The highlight of this research is that the non-linearity of the joint bending stiffness was taken into consideration, which was first determined through the numerical simulation by using a refined 3D continuum model of the segment-joint structure. The automatic iteration of the joint bending stiffness was achieved through programming with the ANSYS ADPL software. Based on a specific engineering example, a 3D continuum-shell-spring model was established to analyze the internal forces of shield tunnel segmental linings subject to swelling soils. The developed numerical model and its application in the analysis of the internal forces of shield tunnel segmental linings in swelling ground will provide useful reference and guidance for the numerical calculation in similar engineering projects in future.

Spleen-deficiency syndrome and damp-heat syndrome are the two most common syndromes of vaginitis in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Although it is known that the vaginal microbiota is closely associated with vaginitis, present studies have not fully elucidated the relationship between the composition of the vaginal microbiome and type of TCM syndrome because of the limitations in the present reductionist approaches. Samples of vaginal secretions were collected from patients with bacterial vaginitis and healthy subjects with spleen-deficiency syndrome and damp-heat syndrome, in order to analyze the constitution of the vaginal microflora using 16S rRNA sequencing methods that encompass taxonomic units, alpha diversity rarefaction curves, and principal component analyses. This prospective study indicated that there was a statistically significant difference in the composition of the vaginal microbiome between patients with spleen-deficiency syndrome and patients with damp-heat syndrome.Streptococcuswas the dominant microbiota in patients with spleen-deficiency syndrome. This can serve as a biomarker for differentiating spleen-deficiency syndrome and damp-heat syndrome. In addition, as indicated by the findings on the samples, patients with bacterial vaginitis of dominant abundance inPseudomonadaceaemight be prone to manifest spleen-deficiency syndrome, while patients with bacterial vaginitis of dominant abundance inPrevotellamight be prone to manifest damp-heat syndrome. These present findings can provide a new approach to acquire a scientific understanding of the syndromes of TCM, which in turn would benefit the development of personalized medicine, in terms of ancient medicine and complex biological systems.

Background Tandem mass spectrometry (MS MS) and simple fluorometric assays are currently used in newborn screening programs to detect inborn errors of metabolism (IEM). The aim of the study was to evaluate the clinical utility of exome sequencing as a second tier screening method to assist clinical diagnosis of the newborn. Methods A novel PCR-exome amplification and re-sequencing (PEARS) assay was designed and used to detect mutations in 122 genes associated with 101 IEM. Newborn bloodspots positive by biochemical testing were analysed by PEARS assay to detect pathogenic mutations relevant to the IEM. Results In initial validation studies of genomic DNA samples, PEARS assay correctly detected 25 known mutations associated with 17 different IEM. Retrospective gene analysis of newborns with clinical phenylketonuria (PKU), identified compound heterozygote phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) gene mutations in eight of nine samples (89%). Prospective analysis of 211 bloodspots correctly identified the two true PKU samples, yielding positive and negative predictive values of 100%. Testing of 8 true positive MS MS samples correctly identified potentially pathogenic compound heterozygote genotypes in 2 cases of citrullinemia type 1 and one case each of methylmalonic acidemia, isobutyryl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency, short chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency and glutaric acid type II and heterozygous genotypes in 2 cases of autosomal dominant methioninemia. Analysis of 11 of 12 false positive MS MS samples for other IEM identified heterozygous carriers in 8 cases for the relevant genes associated with the suspected IEM. In the remaining 3 cases, the test revealed compound heterozygote mutations in other metabolic genes not associated with the suspected IEM, indicating a misinterpretation of the original MS MS data. Conclusions The PEARS assay has clinical utility as a rapid and cost effective second-tier test to assist the clinician to accurately diagnose newborns with a suspected IEM. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12881-018-0731-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Violence detection from surveillance video is a challenging and attractive task. This paper introduce a new violence detection using binocular stereo vision. We use the sparse stereo matching method to extract the feature points of both rectified images and obtain the vision disparity of the point. The 3D coordinates of the points are calculated through the standard 3D measurement theory. To describe the spatio-temporal property, we extract features aligned with the trajectories to characterize depth information (Three-dimensional motion vector), appearance (histograms of oriented gradients) and motion (histograms of optical flow). In order to obtain the discriminative feature, this paper adopts sparse coding scheme and support vector machine (SVM) to classify the feature vector as normal or abnormal.

Tunable properties of localized surface plasmon resonances (LSPR) of gold-dielectric multilayered nanoshells are studied by quasi-static theory and plasmon hybridization theory. Multilayered nanoshells with the gold core and nanoshell separated by a spacer layer exhibit strong coupling between the core and nanoshell plasmon resonance modes. It is found that the absorption spectra characteristics of LSPR are sensitive to multiple parameters including the surrounding medium refractive index, the dielectric constant of spacer layer, the radius of inner core gold sphere, outer shell layer thickness, and their coupling strength. The results show that LSPR is mainly influenced by the ratio of spacer layer dielectric constant e 2 to surrounding medium dielectric constant e 4. Absorption spectrum of $\left |\omega _{-}^{+}\right \rangle $ mode is red-shifted with increasing core radius when e 2 > e 4. It is surprising to find that LSPR is blue-shifted with increasing core radius when e 2 < e 4, and no shift when e 2 = e 4. These interesting contrary shifts of $\left |\omega _{-}^{+}\right \rangle $ mode with different ratios e 2/e 4 are well analysed with plasmon hybridization theory and the distributions of induced charges interaction between the inner core and outer shell. In addition, for the sake of clarity, the distributions of electric filed intensity at their plasmon resonance wavelengths are also calculated. This work may provide an alternative approach to analyse property of the core-shell nanoshell particles based on plasmon hybridization theory and the induced charge interaction.

There is increasing evidence that cirrhosis may affect functional connectivity among various brain regions in patients prior to onset of overt hepatic encephalopathy (HE). However, most investigators have focused mainly on alterations in functional connectivity strengths, and the changes in functional connectivity density (FCD) are largely unknown. Here, we investigated alterations in resting-state FCD in patients with hepatitis B virus-related cirrhosis (HBV-RC) without overt HE. Totally, 31 patients with HBV-RC without overt HE and 30 age- and sex-matched healthy controls underwent resting-state functional MRI examinations. FCD mapping was employed to compute local and global FCD maps. Then, short-range and long-range FCD values were calculated and voxel-based comparisons were performed between the two groups. The HBV-RC group showed significant decreases in FCD, including decreased short-range FCDs in the bilateral middle cingulum gyrus/precuneus, the bilateral cuneus, and the left lingual gyrus/inferior occipital gyrus and decreased long-range FCD in the bilateral cuneus/precuneus. In addition, the decreased long-range FCD in the bilateral cuneus/precuneus in the HBV-RC group was related to performance on the psychometric hepatic encephalopathy score (PHES) test. These findings suggest aberrant functional connectivity density in cirrhotic patients prior to overt HE onset, which may provide better insight into understanding the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying the cirrhotic-related cognitive impairment.

Real-time health monitoring of cementitious materials under external loadings is of great significance to help engineers evaluate structural safety state and ensure timely maintenance. As a promising nondestructive testing method, the electromechanical impedance (EMI) method has been widely applied in the field of structure health monitoring (SHM) in civil engineering. In this study, this method was explored in monitoring the stiffness degradation of hardened cement paste subjected to compression loadings. Based on the theoretical modelling, a simplified one-dimensional analytical model was established based upon the piezo-elasticity theory to interpret the correlation between the PZT transducer and the cement specimen in the presence of uniaxial compression loading. Moreover, by embedding the PZT transducer inside cement specimens, the conductance signatures in two different frequency ranges throughout the entire loading process were captured and analyzed. It is revealed that the trend of the EMI spectra is compatible with the cement deterioration. More importantly, the resonance frequency and the statistic metric correlation coefficient (CC) can serve as good indicators to quantitatively assess the stiffness degradation of cement paste under uniaxial compression loadings. This research well validates the effectiveness and applicability of the EMI method in real-time monitoring of cement stiffness degradation under compression loadings.

Children's oral health is the foundation of a healthy life. Dental caries is a common disease among children, which not only affects children's physical and mental health, but also has a negative impact on their families and the surrounding social environment. The world health organization (WHO) and the international dental union (FDI) have established a 2020 global goal for oral health. At present, the prevalence of dental caries among children in China is high, the awareness rate of oral health knowledge and behavioral development is low, the ability of oral health services at the grassroots level is weak, and the oral health work of children needs to be strengthened. This paper is a review paper and examines the basis of the disease and the recent studies carried out in various parts of The Peoples Republic of China, including the Hong Kong Special Administrative area. It recommended that oral hygiene be included in school curricula as part of children's general education, and called on Chinese teachers and parents to participate. At the same time, it is suggested that oral health care programmes be incorporated into general health education programmes and that children with dental caries be encouraged to take further active treatment in time.

Human action recognition has many applications including design of human–machine system. Identifying the interaction between the driver and the vehicle information system is necessary to accurately identify the driver’s intention and improve the stability of the vehicle. A machine learning-based framework for interaction action recognition of drivers was proposed in this chapter. Several dimensionality-reduction algorithms (PCA, Isomap, LLE, LE) for interaction action recognition are compared in this chapter. The test sequence is mapped into a low-dimensional space through these dimensionality-reduction algorithms, and traditional classifiers (naive Gaussian, logistic regression, SVM, Kneighbors, DecisionTree) were trained in order to test the effect of dimensionality-reduction. Results show that “LLE+SVM” achieves the highest precision rate.

With the rapid development of intelligent transportation, the public transport intelligence dispatching system is playing an increasing important role. However, the traditional statistical analysis method can not meet the requirements of current bus passenger flow analysis and prediction. The realization of bus system optimization based on large data plays an important role in solving the shortage of traditional statistical methods, and it is the key to realize the short period prediction of bus traffic. Based on the linear regression forecasting method, this paper uses MATLAB-R2016a as the system development environment, and compares the three forecasting methods of linear regression forecasting model, grey prediction model and time series prediction model, and gives the test to realize the bus system optimization technology. Through the forecast of the passenger flow in the short period of a bus line in Nantong, the optimization of the bus line is perfected and the traffic congestion is alleviated by the dispatch center.

Deep learning has strong abilities in finding and expressing characteristics of pictures. Recent years, with the arrival of big data era and the development of computers, deep learning has made great breakthroughs and become the focus of the field of computer vision. First the history and classification of deep learning are presented. This thesis also introduces the basic theory of typical deep learning models on computer vision, which include convolutional neural network, recurrent neural network and generative adversarial network. And then summarizing the research situations and progress of deep learning on image classification, image detection, image segmentation as well as video recognition and prediction. Finally, the development and trend of deep learning in the field of computer vision are analyzed. The combination of convolutional neural network and recurrent neural network will be a good choice for video recognition and prediction, which still has a big gap between human beings cognition. And it is the generative adversarial network which has strong ability to generate new samples based on the potential distribution will play an important role in computer vision.

Violent detection from video is a hot topic which has wide application. The aim of this paper is to design a novel feature descriptors called motion gradient location and orientation histogram (MoGLOH), which encode not only the local appearance but also explicitly models local motion. Our proposed MoGLOH is composed of two part of information. The first part is the gradient location and orientation histogram (GLOH) describing the spatial appearance, and the second part is an aggregated histogram of optical flow with a log-polar location grid named Optical Flow Orientation Histogram (OFOH) which indicate the movement of feature point. To eliminate the feature noise, the non-parametric Kernel Density Estimation (KDE) is employed on the MoGLOH descriptor. The theoretical analysis demonstrates the proposed algorithm performs robustly and favorably.

Subject to the low pulse repetition frequency (PRF), or under sampling, grating-lobes will appear at azimuth in synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery. In this paper, the presence of particular ring-shaped grating-lobes (RSGLs) in circular SAR (CSAR) imagery is first reported as much as the authors know. Characteristics of RSGLs are analysed in detail, including the radius, the width and the amplitude of RSGLs. Benefiting from the small amplitude of RSGLs, a lower PRF is adequate for acceptable image quality in CSAR. Simulation results validate the conclusions mentioned above.

The local surface plasmon resonances (LSPR) of bimetallic Au-Ag core-shell nanostructure particles are studied using discrete-dipole approximation (DDA) method and plasmon hybridization theory. It is found that LSPR is sensitive to the surrounding medium refractive index, showing a distinct redshift with increasing the surrounding medium refractive index. Au-Ag core-shell nanostructure exhibits a strong coupling between the core and shell plasmon resonance modes. The coupled resonance mode wavelengths show dependence on the layer thickness and the composition of core and shell metal. LSPR can be tuned over an extended wavelength range by adjusting the ratio of core to shell. The lower energy mode ω − of Au-Ag core-shell nanoparticle shows a redshift with increasing Ag shell thickness or Au core radius, while the higher energy mode ω + shows the opposite behaviors. In addition, Ag-Au core-shell nanostructure compound particles are also studied with the same method, whose properties are different from that of Au-Ag core-shells. For the sake of clarity, the wavelength shifts of LSPR are plotted as functions of surrounding media refractive index, core radius, shell thickness, and core-shell ratio with figures of merits (FOM). The underlying mechanisms are analyzed with the plasmon hybridization theory and phase retardation effect.

Recently, there has been an increased interest in optimizing horizontal multi-frac completion technologies used to complete offshore low permeability reservoirs in Western South China Sea, but the high-risk and high operating costs are the key problems to hold back the application of this technology, so the impact of economic factors should be taken into full account before fracturing design. This paper shows an new optimization approach of fracturing design by considering the relationship between economic aspects, reservoir size and fracturing treatment size, each fracturing stage of horizontal well is approximated by a rectangular drainage areas and the unified fracture design method is used to calculate the dimensionless productivity index, and an Optimal Proppant Index Function is established with maximization of economic profit as the objective function, while the Optimal Proppant Index Function is determined, the optimal fracture volume and parameters would be obtained.

In this paper, a camera ranging method for agricultural robot localization in arable farming is described. Three calibration objects in different directions in the field are set. The distances between the robot are calculated, and the calibration objects are used the camera to obtain the robot position. The benchmarking procedure in Matlab includes image binarization of the calibration object and the curve fitting method was used to establish the relationship between the pixels number of the calibration object and the actual distance. The verification results show that the relative error of ranging is less than 1.5%. Furthermore, the camera ranging method for agricultural robot localization is proved to be easy and feasible.

Due to the uncertainty of the factors that influence the network service time and other characters of college student, Bayesian Network is used to model this kind of system. Different algorithms are used for learning Bayesian Networks in order to compare several models. It is suggested that researchers can use Bayesian Networks to explore the potential relationship between variables of complex social problems. The result indicates that learning target and family closeness degree are the key variables which influenced college students network service time. Origin of student and family economy didnt influence college students network service time directly. Schools and community should strengthen the education of college students life planning and communication with parents.

In this paper we report the optimal design and fabrication of a gold-on-silica linear segmented surface-electrode ion trap. By optimizing the thickness and width of the electrodes, we improved the trapping ability and trap scalability. By using some practical experimental operation methods, we successfully minimized the trap heating rate. Consequently, we could trap a string of up to 38 ions, and a zigzag structure with 24 ions, and transport two trapped ions to different zones. We also studied the influences of the ion chip surface on the ion lifetime. The excellent trapping ability and flexibility of operation of the planar ion trap shows that it has high feasibility for application in the development a practical quantum information processor or quantum simulator.

Objective The present study was performed to explore the clinical features, diagnosis, and treatment of adenoid cystic carcinoma of the Bartholin’s gland. Methods The clinical data of a case of adenoid cystic carcinoma of the Bartholin’s gland were examined, and the clinical manifestation, diagnosis, and treatment were analyzed. Results Adenoid cystic carcinoma of the Bartholin’s gland has a low incidence. The main clinical manifestations are vulvar lumps, dyspareunia, pain, itching, and bleeding. The diagnosis is based on gynecological examination and pathological biopsy, and the treatment is mainly surgical excision. Conclusion Adenoid cystic carcinoma of the Bartholin’s gland is rare and lacks specificity. Pathological biopsy is the gold standard for diagnosis, and surgical resection should be performed for treatment.

Continuous seasonal drought in past 3 years greatly affects rice production of Yunnan, China. Because upland rice has stronger performance than paddy rice for mountain farming, to develop mechanized production of upland rice is more beneficial to ensure food security of mountainous area. In this study, we investigate and survey traditional upland rice cultivation of peasant household in mountainous rural area of Lancang county, and use Cobb-Douglas production function to analyze the relationship between mechanized and non-mechanized upland rice cultivation. The results show that mechanized upland rice cultivation not only can increase the yield, but also is superior to non-mechanized system in techno-economics. Rational utilizing farm machinery is feasible to upland rice cultivation and will promote the development of the rice production of Yunnan Province.

The article proposed that the green seeing ratio should be introduced in high density planning and design of residential area in China, pointing out that the green seeing ratio is a clear, effective index of strong operational in visual ecological design. It is necessary and feasible that the green seeing ratio as a evaluation index in the planning and construction of high density urban residential area in China. Advocates to take a combination of centralized and decentralized groups-residential areas and other ways of planning that by reducing the area of road, natural green details, take the tortuous roads and other methods can effectively improve the green seeing ratio. Some guidelines being followed in the building layout, open space design, road shape, plant greening in the detail design can effectively improve the green seeing ratio of high density residential area.

The dust haze has posed a serious threat to residents physical and psychological health in China. PM2.5 is the main cause of dust haze. Recent studies on the distribution of PM2.5 points out that the uneven distribution of PM2.5 in city small scale landscape like residential area prevails. The landscape pattern, the maldistribution of pollution sources like motorways, architectural layouts, greening rate, plant community are considered to be the major causes. If residential areas site selection and landscape pattern are optimized, combining road network layout, form design, greening rate and building height are planned following design guidelines, the environment quality can be bettered and the exposure to PM2.5 can be reduced.

Direct feedback linearization control was applied to permanent magnet synchronous generator (PMSG) wind energy conversion system (WECS), which was to reduce the cost of wind energy conversion system and improve its performance. The PMSG-based wind energy conversion system was constructed with mathematical models of aerodynamics subsystem, drive train subsystem and simplified electromagnetic subsystem. With feedback linearization control theory based on differential geometry, the coordinated transformation and nonlinear state feedback were obtained and PMSG wind energy conversion system was linearized. With MATLAB/Simulink platform, the model and control strategy was established and the simulation result shows this control system with feasible speed tracking performance, which can effectively implement maximum energy capture.

An automatic watering controller with AT89S52 single-chip microcomputer was developed. According to the moisture condition detected by soil moisture sensor, the system could control the watering quantity by using fuzzy control rules to limit opening and closing time of electromagnetic valve of the irrigation system. Mamdani inference algorithm was employed as fuzzy control model for this closed-loop control system. Soil moisture sensor was put into the substrate for roots growth to obtain moisture information and used as the input. By comparing the water needed for plant growth, water demand and the electromagnetic valve opening and closing time was determined by the single-chip microcomputer program. Centroid method of defuzzification was used to determine the quantitative level of watering quantity. This fuzzy controller was designed by MATLAB fuzzy logic toolbox. The control system was simulated by Simulink. Simulation results show that this control method has good stability.

The ramp B of one overpass was designed as curved steel orthotropic box girder, whose deck was welded with open shaped bulb ribs in the range of driveways. Then, one detailed finite element model was built to simulate the structure. For the two arrangements of bulb towards and back to web in the cantilever, the tangential stresses of diaphragm cutout were compared under the action of vehicle load. In accordance with above research, it can be concluded that the stress will be more reasonable with the bulb back to web. After altering the transverse position of the vehicle load and calculating the tangential stress along the edge of diaphragm cutout, based on further analysis, it’s generally believed that the following two reasons made the arrangement of bulb back to web more appropriate at least. First of all, the diaphragm connected with the rib adjacent to the web could share part of vertical load. What's more, it could increase the distance from the edge of the cutout to the web center. What come next was to change the diaphragm cutout size, and that parameter optimization was carried out. The results show that a radius of 40-50mm is more applicable for the arc on the bottom of the diaphragm cutout.

In this empirical study, we draw on concepts of internal marketing to provide nursing managers of hospitals with an effective education method for healthcare service innovation. A cross-sectional study was used. Subjects for this study were nurses at two district hospitals in Taiwan. Internal marketing practices significantly affect service innovation. In particular, service training, rewarding employee performance, and a clear organizational vision are positively correlated with service innovation. To increase a hospital's internal resource capacity, education and training are often used to positively influence the innovative ability of employees. Nursing managers of hospitals could apply education and training strategies derived from internal marketing practices to increase nurses' knowledge, improve their nursing care and innovation skills and improve the quality of service to patients.

Aim We conducted this study to evaluate the role of multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) in diagnosing and differential diagnosis hepatic veno-occlusive disease (HVOD), and as well as assessing the clinical therapeutic effects. Methods From 2007 to 2010, 10 inpatients with weight increasing, liver pains, ascites, jaundice and history of taking gynura rhizome before hospitalization were scanned with a 64-MDCT. The data were reconstructed every 0.625 mm and reviewed using multiplanar reconstruction (MPR) and liver CT angiography (CTA) on a GE AW4.2 workstation. Patients were re-scanned with MDCT after medication so that the clinical therapeutic effect could be evaluated before the patients discharging from hospital. Results In 10 HVOD patients, the diagnoses of MDCT were coincident with clinical results. All patients had ascites and pleural fluid, hepatomegaly except the caudate lobe in MDCT. Failure to view hepatic veins in hepatic 3 phase scans, but portal veins and inferior vena cava were unobstructed. In portal-phase, hepatic enhancements were non-uniform. Three patients were incorrectly diagnosed before hospital admission. All patients improved significantly after hepato-protection and supporting therapy. No ascites, hydrothorax, hepatomegaly and obstruction of hepatic veins were observed by MDCT before patients were discharged from hospital. Conclusion Multidetector computed tomography combined with MPR and liver CTA images are helpful in the diagnosis and differential diagnosis of HVOD and in the evaluation of clinical therapeutic effects.

Kirenol is a diterpenoid compound purified from the Chinese Herba Siegesbeckiae. Siegesbeckiae has been employed for the treatment of arthritis for centuries, its safety and efficacy are documented through a long history of human use.To investigate the effects on collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) and anti-inflammatory mechanism of kirenol.Kirenol was administrated intragastrically in rats after the onset of CIA. Pathological changes were evaluated by paw swelling and histopathology. Concentration of IL-1β in synovial fluid and adrenal corticotropin (ACTH) in plasma were determined by Elisa. Western blot was performed to detect the expression of annexin-1 and glucocorticoid receptor alpha (GRα) in synovium. NF-κB DNA binding activity was assessed by electrophoretic mobility shift assays (EMSA).Kirenol (1, 2, and 4 mg/kg) and prednisolone depressed paw swelling and reduced IL-1β of synovial fluid in the CIA rats (p0.05 or p0.01). Kirenol and prednisolone upregulated nuclear annexin-1 and inhibited NF-κB activity in synovium of CIA. The inhibitory effect of kirenol and prednisolone on NF-κB activity was enhanced by anti-annexin-1 Ab. Prednisolone, but not kirenol, downregulated plasma ACTH and GRα expression significantly (p0.01).Kirenol and prednisolone can upregulate nuclear annexin-1 which interacts with NF-κB to inhibit NF-κB activity, reduce cytokines expression and thereby attenuate inflammation of CIA joints. Kirenol does not lead to ACTH or GR downregulation, which is in contrast to classic glucocorticoid prednisolone. Kirenol shares with GCs similar anti-inflammatory mechanism but bypass the considerable limitation of GCs treatment.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the relative values of 2D plane view and 3D intracavity view of CT virtual colonoscopy in displaying colon excavated lesions. Cleaned porcine colon with ulcerative lesion was scanned with multidetector CT. The data were reconstructed and reviewed using 2D plane view and 3D volume-rendered images on a GE AW4.2 workstation. The 3D volume-rendered images showed superiority in displaying excavated lesions.