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This study investigates the English spelling of students in grades 2 through 8 in Mainland China. A review of spelling and cross-linguistic research in spelling is presented. The orthographic development of 273 students was assessed "with validated spelling inventories" (Sterbinsky, 2007) to sample developmental features across three layers of English orthography. The sample size and the detailed analyses make this study unique. The 13 features in the analyses spanned development from beginning consonants to roots. Feature analyses predicted grade level, and there were significant differences across grades. Students made predictable spelling errors that reflected a similar developmental sequence to native English speakers. The error analyses across grades adds to the body of cross-linguistic literature illustrating how English language learners develop basic literacy skills in a similar manner to English-L1 children (Chiappe, Siegel, & Gottardo, 2002; Ford, Invernizzi, & Huang, 2014). This study indicates that as some English learners advanced in grades, their L1 has less of an impact on their spelling in English. When orthographic knowledge is examined across the alphabet, pattern, and meaning layers and cross-linguistically, researchers and educators can identify features students have mastered and what they are learning as a guide for a sequence of instruction and monitoring growth.

Oblique convergence across the northern Qilian Shan is accommodated by sub‐parallel strike‐slip and thrust faults that ruptured simultaneously in the Mw 8 Gulang earthquake in 1927. We investigate the kinematics of fault loading in the northern Qilian Shan and provide insights into the conditions necessary for generating multi‐fault earthquakes. We perform Bayesian inversions for the geometry and creep rate on the fault network. We infer that all of the thrust faults are locked north of the Qilian‐Haiyuan strike‐slip fault and are accumulating elastic strain. Multi‐fault earthquakes may occurr in this fault system because the faults are simultaneously loaded by the same source of deformation and are linked together by locked fault segments. The interseismic velocity field alone can not contain the location or activity of individual faults visible in the geomorphology, therefore the short‐term geodetic measurements may not reliably indicate the long‐term behavior of the fault system. Plain Language Summary: This study aims to understand the earthquake hazard in the northern Qilian region of China. We use measurements of ground deformation between earthquakes to infer how the faults are being loaded in the region. We find that the ground deformation can be explained by a simple model with a single, slowly creeping fault at depth that loads all of the overlying faults. Large earthquakes that were caused by slip on many different faults at the same time have occurred in this region before. We suggest these so‐called "multi‐fault" earthquakes may occur because all of the faults are being simultaneously loaded by the same source of stress. Key Points: Oblique convergence in the northern Qilian Shan is accommodated by sub‐parallel thrust and strike‐slip faultingThe short‐term geodetic measurements do not constrain the thrust fault kinematics in the northern Qilian Shan over geological timescalesMulti‐fault earthquakes may be common in the region as all of the shallow thrust faults are linked together by locked fault segments [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mathematical performance of Chinese students, from mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, is widely acclaimed in international comparisons of mathematics achievement. However, in the eyes of the Western educators, the environments established in Chinese schools are deemed relatively unfavourable for mathematics learning. This paper reports on a study that investigates the characteristics of effective mathematics teaching in five Shanghai schools. Findings reveal that those characteristics include (a) teaching with variation; (b) emphasis of precise and elegant mathematical language; (c) emphasis of logical reasoning, mathematical thinking and proofing during teaching; (d) order and serious classroom discipline; (e) strong and coherent teacher-student rapport, and (f) strong collaborative culture amongst mathematics teachers. (Contains 1 table.)

A substantial body of empirical evidence exists to suggest that elevated O3 levels are causing significant impacts on wheat yields at sites representative of highly productive arable regions of China. Here, we extend the DO3SE model (designed to estimate total- and stomatal- O3 deposition for risk assessment) to incorporate a coupled Anet - gsto model to estimate O3 uptake, an O3 damage module (that impacts instantaneous Anet and the timing and rate of senescence), and a crop phenology, carbon allocation and growth model based on the JULES-Crop model. The model structure allows scaling from the leaf to the canopy to allow for multiple leaf populations and canopy layers. The DO3SE-crop model is calibrated and parametrised using O3 fumigation data from Xiaoji, China for the year 2008 and for an O3 tolerant and sensitive cultivar. The calibrated model can simulate key physiological variables, crop development, and yield with a good level of accuracy compared to experimental observations. DO3SE-crop accurately depicted the difference in yield reductions under ambient and elevated O3 treatments for wheat cultivars Y16 (tolerant) and Y2 (sensitive) with regressions of modelled and observed absolute yields resulting in an R² of 0.99 and an RMSE of 9.27 g/m². Further, when evaluated for 2007 and 2009 for all cultivars, the DO3SE-crop model simulated O3-induced yield losses of 4–25 % compared to observed yield losses of 12–34 %, with an R² of 0.73 and an RMSE of 58.41 g/m². Additionally, our results indicate that the variance in yield reduction is primarily attributed to the premature decrease in carbon assimilation to the grains under elevated O3 exposure. This is linked to accelerated leaf senescence, which brings leaf senescence forward by 7–9 days under elevated O3 treatments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Change and persistence are often richly entangled facets of landscapes. While many studies use land use/land cover (depicted as polygons) to illustrate landscape evolution, this paper draws on approaches from landscape archaeology to investigate how lines and points can also be used to examine landscape morphologies. The study uses three distinct spatial elements: points (graves), lines (field boundaries), and polygons (land use) to represent landscape transformations and reflect time depth in the landscape. The paper aims to identify the most enduring landscape elements within the region and uncover the underlying mechanisms of persistence. It is suggested that the time depth exhibited in field boundaries surpasses that of land use in this case. Field boundaries provide a useful way to examine agricultural intensification, whereas land use is more sensitive to agricultural commercialization and urbanization. In addition, the Chinese Feng Shui funeral culture emerges as a stabilizing force that encourages landscape persistence. This cultural driver ensures the persistence of field patterns surrounding graves, making these fields the most ancient plots within the study area. In conclusion, representing the time depth of landscapes through linear features and points can serve as an important supplement to the study of landscape change based on land use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The central hypothesis of Semantic Network Model of Creativity is that creative people, who are exposed to more information that are both novel and useful, will have more interconnections between event schemas in their associations. The networks of event schemas in creative people's minds were expected to be wider and denser than those in less creative people's minds. Based on this theory, data from Chinese online social media, also known as "Weibo microblogging," were analyzed. Each user's score consisted of the metric of coverage, which represented the spread of the network, as well as the metric of density, which represented the interconnections among nodes in the network. The results showed that occupations had a significant effect on people's creativity score. Academic scholars and writers in general had higher scores compared to other groups, such as entertainment celebrities and sport stars. The implications and limitations of this method of quantifying people's creativity were discussed.

This article argues that the historic tasks of removing foreign domination and landlord-capitalist rule in the colonies are one task and have to be carried out by the proletariat, in alliance with the peasant masses. For its part, dependent on imperialism, the landlord-bourgeoisie are fearful of a shake-up of property relations in any form. The article first explains the intensification of uneven and combined development in the final, monopoly stage of capitalism before turning to China's struggles for national independence. It is contended that the People's Republic of China is a transitional economy where the law of primitive socialist accumulation and the law of value are in competition. This is the driver of its social formation, a "unity of opposites" between capitalist and non-capitalist elements. Capitalism in China remains under the control of the Communist Party of China and its social-economic base. The flourishing of private enterprises leads to inequality and capitalist accumulation but has been restrained by state policies and the law of primitive socialist accumulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Reliable classification of ischemic stroke (IS) etiological subtypes is required in research and clinical practice, but the predictive properties of these subtypes in population studies with incomplete investigations are poorly understood. Aims: To compare the prognosis of etiologically classified IS subtypes and use machine learning (ML) to classify incompletely investigated IS cases. Methods: In a 9-year follow-up of a prospective study of 512,726 Chinese adults, 22,216 incident IS cases, confirmed by clinical adjudication of medical records, were assigned subtypes using a modified Causative Classification System for Ischemic Stroke (CCS) (large artery atherosclerosis (LAA), small artery occlusion (SAO), cardioaortic embolism (CE), or undetermined etiology) and classified by CCS as "evident," "probable," or "possible" IS cases. For incompletely investigated IS cases where CCS yielded an undetermined etiology, an ML model was developed to predict IS subtypes from baseline risk factors and screening for cardioaortic sources of embolism. The 5-year risks of subsequent stroke and all-cause mortality (measured using cumulative incidence functions and 1 minus Kaplan–Meier estimates, respectively) for the ML-predicted IS subtypes were compared with etiologically classified IS subtypes. Results: Among 7443 IS subtypes with evident or probable etiology, 66% had SAO, 32% had LAA, and 2% had CE, but proportions of SAO-to-LAA cases varied by regions in China. CE had the highest rates of subsequent stroke and mortality (43.5% and 40.7%), followed by LAA (43.2% and 17.4%) and SAO (38.1% and 11.1%), respectively. ML provided classifications for cases with undetermined etiology and incomplete clinical data (24% of all IS cases; n = 5276), with area under the curves (AUC) of 0.99 (0.99–1.00) for CE, 0.67 (0.64–0.70) for LAA, and 0.70 (0.67–0.73) for SAO for unseen cases. ML-predicted IS subtypes yielded comparable subsequent stroke and all-cause mortality rates to the etiologically classified IS subtypes. Conclusion: This study highlighted substantial heterogeneity in prognosis of IS subtypes and utility of ML approaches for classification of IS cases with incomplete clinical investigations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Aphids are common crop pests. These insects reproduce by facultative parthenogenesis involving several rounds of clonal reproduction interspersed with an occasional sexual cycle. Furthermore, clonal aphids give birth to live young that are already pregnant. These qualities enable rapid population growth and have facilitated the colonisation of crops globally. In several cases, so-called "super clones" have come to dominate agricultural systems. However, the extent to which the sexual stage of the aphid life cycle has shaped global pest populations has remained unclear, as have the origins of successful lineages. Here, we used chromosome-scale genome assemblies to disentangle the evolution of two global pests of cereals—the English (Sitobion avenae) and Indian (Sitobion miscanthi) grain aphids. Results: Genome-wide divergence between S. avenae and S. miscanthi is low. Moreover, comparison of haplotype-resolved assemblies revealed that the S. miscanthi isolate used for genome sequencing is likely a hybrid, with one of its diploid genome copies closely related to S. avenae (~ 0.5% divergence) and the other substantially more divergent (> 1%). Population genomics analyses of UK and China grain aphids showed that S. avenae and S. miscanthi are part of a cryptic species complex with many highly differentiated lineages that predate the origins of agriculture. The complex consists of hybrid lineages that display a tangled history of hybridisation and genetic introgression. Conclusions: Our analyses reveal that hybridisation has substantially contributed to grain aphid diversity, and hence, to the evolutionary potential of this important pest species. Furthermore, we propose that aphids are particularly well placed to exploit hybridisation events via the rapid propagation of live-born "frozen hybrids" via asexual reproduction, increasing the likelihood of hybrid lineage formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Air pollution is a significant concern in this fast-growing world. In this era of urbanization, the level of pollution in the atmosphere increases gradually, and it is essential to find the required solution to the rising atmospheric pollution problems. Pollution in developing countries' households is a booming issue that affects people's health and economic value. Using VOSviewer, a scientometric analysis is done to portray the trends and issues in the "household air pollution" (HAP) field by accurate pictures. Over 14,703 documents have been discovered from the Web of Science web portal in the field of HAP between 2019 and 2023. In this study, mapping analysis is employed to understand the study better. The mapping analysis's subjects are co-authorship, co-occurrence, keyword analysis, and bibliographic coupling. An upper trend timeline is used over data from the published articles collected. By keeping citation and publication data in the view, USA and China are dominant in the research of HAP. This study roams around four research domains and covers three major themes for the given timeline. The case studies of HAP and its health and environmental effects, the exposure of pollutants, indoor air pollution, organic aerosol exposure and its effects, PM2.5 emission and its effects, organic aerosol sources and risk of HAP in urban, rural, developing, and developed country between the timeline of past 5 years. HAP is caused mainly by cooking and burning organic and inorganic sources, which have substantial health risks and negatively affect human lives' social and economic value. The following study aims to highlight the gaps in the research field that need to be filled to give academics and the healthcare department knowledge of existing trends on HAP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The December 2008 release of China's new "Guidelines for health education in primary and secondary schools" by the Ministry of Education addressed many of the concerns arising from the academic and popular discourse on Chinese adolescent sexuality and sexuality education. The focus of this reform, common with similar reforms elsewhere in Asia and the West, aims at promoting adolescent sexual health and countering the associated social and public health problems. However, unlike adolescents in other countries, Chinese adolescents are constructing their sexuality in a unique socio-economic context with strong influences from deeply rooted puritan Confucian norms and values. Situating adolescent sexuality construction and the new guidelines within such multiple discourses, this article examines the changes in the new guidelines, with particular attention to the distinctive Chinese characteristics of sexuality construction. Based on a large sample empirical study, the paper concurrently explores how Chinese adolescents negotiate the development of their sexuality by investigating sexuality-related attitudes, behaviours, and sources of sexuality-related information. It reveals that though the incidence of Chinese adolescents engaging in sexual behaviours is low compared to their Western counterparts, their attitudes toward sexuality are becoming increasingly liberal. It also indicates that this abstinence-based policy may be deemed justifiable according to the low incidence of sexual intercourse at the moment, but may be viewed as problematic if it has the potential to disempower adolescents from protecting themselves from other health-compromising risks. Thus, for future policy development, the authorities should consider ways they could empower adolescents to address these challenges. (Contains 4 tables.)

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to focus on Confucius Institutes and assess the applicability of theories of leadership and knowledge sharing to multinational organizations and worldwide networks. Growth of multinational trade and decrease in international tension have facilitated the globalization of both profit-seeking and non-profit organizations. Changes in economic and political environment have also blurred the divide in management practices between these organizations. Design/methodology/approach: The research applies recent theoretical developments to analyze leadership and knowledge sharing of the highly successful Confucius Institutes. Operational similarities and differences between this global learning organization and multinational businesses are evaluated. Findings: Many similarities exist between the operations of the Confucius Institutes and multinational businesses. For both, strategic goals are achieved through the promotion of global expansion and the management practices of distributed leadership and knowledge sharing. The study makes clear the successful application of distributed leadership to a worldwide network. The Confucius Institutes reflect the cultural and social changes in China, combined with influences of global cultures. Findings suggest that distributed leadership is a suitable management style for coping with variant cultural and socio-political conditions globally. This leadership style, combined with a knowledge-sharing network, is also suitable for the situational variables encountered in making thousands of decisions across hundreds of global locations by both learning institutions and business organizations. Originality/value: The paper explores a relatively new area of the similarities and differences between global non-profit and business networks as learning organizations. The study is of value to both those managing and those studying such organizations.

The present study investigated verbal recall of semantically preserved and degraded words and nonwords by taking into consideration the status of one's semantic short-term memory (STM). Two experiments were conducted on 2 Chinese individuals with aphasia. The first experiment showed that they had largely preserved phonological processing abilities accompanied by mild but comparable semantic processing deficits; however, their performance on STM tasks revealed a double dissociation. The second experiment found that the participant with more preserved semantic STM had better recall of known words and nonwords than of their unknown counterparts, whereas such effects were absent in the patient with severe semantic STM deficit. The results are compatible with models that assume separate phonological and semantic STM components, such as that of R. C. Martin, M. Lesch, and M. Bartha (1999). In addition, the distribution of error types was different from previous studies. This is discussed in terms of the methodology of the authors' experiments and current views regarding the nature of semantic STM and representations in the Chinese mental lexicon. (Contains 8 tables and 8 footnotes.)

Describes conditions observed when North American technical communicators visited China, discovering the technical-communications field at its earliest stages. Asserts that the windows of opportunity are open in China for technical communicators and technical communication teachers to establish ongoing business, cultural, and professional exchanges. (CR)

Sentinel plasticine prey has been increasingly used to estimate predation pressure. The use of plasticine prey may, however, bias the results, as this method was originally designed to account for predation by organisms that can visually recognize the shapes and colors of their prey. To evaluate the limitations of using sentinel plasticine prey, we compared predator attack rates between real prey – dead and live mealworms, Tenebrio molitor L. (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) – and plasticine models in a monsoonal tropical rainforest of southeastern China. The attack rates by invertebrates were highest on dead prey followed by live prey and plasticine models, whereas the attack rates by vertebrates were lowest on dead prey, and did not differ between live prey and plasticine models. These results confirm that bias imposed by using the plasticine models is affected by the type of predators. In addition, we tested the validity and generality of the premise that predators can distinguish the shapes of plasticine model prey and preferentially attack a caterpillar‐like shape over other shapes. To test this hypothesis, we conducted three independent experiments in China, Papua New Guinea, and Finland. In the two latter localities, predation rates on plasticine caterpillars were higher than on models of other shapes, whereas in China, these differences were not significant. Taken together, our study suggests that plasticine models may underestimate the predation by invertebrates to a greater extent than predation by vertebrates, and the preference of model shape by predators may be locality‐specific, presumably due to differences in the composition of the predator community. We propose that predation be estimated on both live and plasticine prey in future studies to measure the potential bias imposed by using plasticine models and its variation among various habitats and predator groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Epidemiological evidence on the relation between fish consumption and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is limited, especially among Chinese. Objectives The aim was to explore the prospective association between fish consumption and COPD among a large population-based Chinese cohort. Methods The China Kadoorie Biobank recruited over 0.5 million participants from 10 geographically diverse regions across China from 2004 to 2008. Consumption frequency of fish at baseline was assessed by a validated food-frequency questionnaire. A total of 169,188 men and 252,238 women who had no prior COPD or other major chronic diseases at baseline were included in our analyses. Cox proportional hazard models were used to estimate HRs and 95% CIs for fish consumption categories in relation to incident COPD. Results During a median follow-up of 11.1 y, 11,292 incident COPD cases were documented. Fish consumption was inversely associated with COPD risk among women, with a 17% reduction in risk for participants who consumed fish ≥4 d/wk compared with nonconsumption (HR: 0.83; 95% CI: 0.70, 0.99; P -trend = 0.017), whereas we did not observe such a dose–response relation among men (HR: 0.89; 95% CI: 0.76, 1.05; P -trend = 0.373). The joint analysis showed that COPD risk was 38% and 48% lower in men and women who consumed fish ≥4 d/wk and had a healthy lifestyle [having ≥4 of the following healthy lifestyle factors: not smoking currently; never or rarely drinking alcohol; adequate physical activity; BMI (kg/m2): 18.5–23.9; normal waist circumference; reasonable diet], compared with participants with fish consumption <4 d/wk and an unhealthy lifestyle (≤1 factors). Conclusions Higher fish consumption was associated with lower COPD risk among Chinese women but not men. This association was independent of lifestyle factors. Eating adequate fish with an overall healthy lifestyle might help lower the risk of COPD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Studies have identified an association between Internet use frequency and users' attitudes toward homosexuality. According to the uses and gratifications perspective, users are diverse in their needs and expectations for using mass media and communication technologies and such diversity might also be involved in their attitudes toward sexual minority people. However, limited research has been conducted to examine this association. This study aimed to develop a typology to illustrate distinct patterns of Internet use patterns and to examine the variation in attitudes towards homosexuality as a function of Internet use patterns. Methods: By using a subsample (n = 1021) aged 18–37 years from the Chinese General Social Survey collected in 2017, we performed latent class analysis to identify distinct subgroups of online activity engagement. Multiple ordered logistic regression was used to explore the relationships between the profiles of Internet use and attitudes toward homosexuality. Results: The latent class analysis yielded a typology which classified the Internet users into active participators, pragmatic users, entertainment users, and idle users. Controlling for demographic, socioeconomic, and confounding factors as well as weekly hours spent on the Internet, the multivariate analyses indicated that idle users were less likely to accept homosexuality than active participators and pragmatic users were. Conclusions: This study suggests that Internet users' attitudes toward homosexuality is associated with not only their frequency of Internet use but also their patterns of engagement in online activities. These findings add to the knowledge about the drivers of societal attitudes toward homosexuality and can inform policies to promote inclusion and diversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bovine herpesvirus type 1 (BHV-1) causes bovine respiratory disease that poses a significant threat to the cattle industry. The prevalence of BHV-1 has recently increased in China. However, the lack of information about the prevalent isolates limits the control of the disease. In this study, a novel strain of BHV-1 was isolated from nasal swabs of Holstein cows in 2020 in China, designated as BHV SHJS. The genome of BHV strain SHJS is 135, 102 bp in length and highly similar to strain SP1777 (KM258883.1) with an identity of 99.64%. Mutations, insertions, or deletions mainly occur in UL27, UL44, and US8, etc., relative to the different genomic coordinates. Phylogenetic tree of UL44 (gC) showed that BHV strain SHJS belongs to BHV-1.2b cluster. The result showed that the strain had a different evolutionary origin from those prevalent in China. This study will enrich our knowledge regarding BHV outbreak strains in China and contribute to the prevention and pathogenic studies of BHV-1.2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How do hotel employees react when they become aware that customers harbor stereotypes towards them? Building on the theory of social identity threat, this research investigates the threat that negative meta-stereotypes (NMSs) pose to hotel employees. Two cross-sectional surveys and two experimental studies were conducted and an easy-to-apply scale for NMSs is proposed. The results indicated that the activation of NMSs triggered intense intergroup anxiety among hotel employees, with adverse effects on work-related outcomes. Furthermore, these effects were moderated by power distance belief (PDB). NMSs intensified intergroup anxiety amongst hotel employees with high PDB, while this effect was attenuated for those with low PDB. The research proposes a fresh theoretical framework for the study of stigmatization which is widespread across the hotel industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An analysis of the writings of Kuang Qizhao, a Qing official who spent time in the U.S. from 1874 through 1882, indicates that the initial stimulus for China's educational reforms began much earlier than 1895. Based on his observations of schools and his interactions with the intelligentsia of Connecticut, Kuang came to the radical conclusion that universal education for both males and females would be the key to China's wealth and power. He also believed that religion and tradition were crucial for inculcating the morality he saw as necessary for an effective modern society. Kuang played a role in establishing some of China's first colleges; he promoted his educational reform ideas through his textbooks and newspapers; and he influenced some of China's most important educational reformers, with Qing official Zhang Zhidong initiating significant educational and military reforms based on Kuang's ideas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Defamilisation research is increasingly seen as an important component of studies of welfare and social work. It is concerned with people's vulnerability to defamilisation risks, which are caused by insufficient opportunities for people to choose whether and how they participate in the family. Despite an increasing emphasis on defamilisation research, there has been insufficient attention given to how studies of transnational contacts contribute to defamilisation research. This article argues for the need to expand the scope of defamilisation research to incorporate the concept of 'transnational contact-led strategies' using evidence from focus groups with Chinese older people in the United Kingdom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coronavirus (COVID‐19) lockdown in China is thought to have reduced air pollution emissions due to reduced human mobility and economic activities. Few studies have assessed the impacts of COVID‐19 on community and indoor air quality in environments with diverse socioeconomic and household energy use patterns. The main goal of this study was to evaluate whether indoor and community air pollution differed before, during, and after the COVID‐19 lockdown in homes with different energy use patterns. Using calibrated real‐time PM2.5 sensors, we measured indoor and community air quality in 147 homes from 30 villages in Beijing over 4 months including periods before, during, and after the COVID‐19 lockdown. Community pollution was higher during the lockdown (61 ± 47 μg/m3) compared with before (45 ± 35 μg/m3, p < 0.001) and after (47 ± 37 μg/m3, p < 0.001) the lockdown. However, we did not observe significantly increased indoor PM2.5 during the COVID‐19 lockdown. Indoor‐generated PM2.5 in homes using clean energy for heating without smokers was the lowest compared with those using solid fuel with/without smokers, implying air pollutant emissions are reduced in homes using clean energy. Indoor air quality may not have been impacted by the COVID‐19 lockdown in rural settings in China and appeared to be more impacted by the household energy choice and indoor smoking than the COVID‐19 lockdown. As clean energy transitions occurred in rural households in northern China, our work highlights the importance of understanding multiple possible indoor sources to interpret the impacts of interventions, intended or otherwise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diversity analysis is a de facto standard procedure for most existing microbiome studies. Nevertheless, diversity metrics can be insensitive to changes in community composition (identities). For example, if species A (e.g., a beneficial microbe) is replaced by equal number of species B (e.g., an opportunistic pathogen), the diversity metric may not change, but the community composition has changed. The shared species analysis (SSA) is a computational technique that can discern changes of community composition by detecting the increase/decrease of shared species between two sets of microbiome samples, and it should be more sensitive than standard diversity analysis in discerning changes in microbiome structures. Here, we investigated the effects of ethnicity and lifestyles in China on the structure of Chinese gut microbiomes by reanalyzing the datasets of a large Chinese cohort with 300+ individuals covering 7 biggest Chinese ethnic groups (>95% Chinese population). We found: (i) Regarding lifestyles, SSA revealed significant differences between 100% of pair-wise comparisons in community compositions across all but phylum taxon levels (phylum level = 29%), but diversity analysis only revealed 14--29% pair-wise differences in community diversity across all four taxon levels. (ii) Regarding ethnicities, SSA revealed 100% pair-wise differences in community compositions across all but phylum (phylum level = 48--62%) levels, but diversity analysis only revealed 5--57% differences in community diversity across all four taxon levels. (iii) Ethnicity seems to have more prevalent effects on community structures than lifestyle does (iv) Community structures of the gut microbiomes are more stable at the phylum level than at the other three levels. (v) SSA is more powerful than diversity analysis in detecting the changes of community structures; furthermore, SSA can produce lists of unique and shared OTUs. (vi) Finally, we performed stochasticity analysis to mechanistically interpret the observed differences revealed by the SSA and diversity analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite universal vaccination of newborns, the prevalence of chronic hepatitis virus B (HBV) infection and the associated disease burden remain high among adults in China. We investigated risk factors for chronic HBV infection in a community-based study of 512,726 individuals aged 30–79 years recruited from ten diverse areas during 2004–2008. Multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) positivity recorded at baseline by sociodemographic and lifestyle factors, and medical history. In a random subset (n = 69,898) we further assessed the association of 18 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) previously shown to be associated with HBsAg positivity and development of chronic liver disease (CLD) (1600 cases). Several factors showed strong associations with HBsAg positivity, particularly younger age (< 40 vs. ≥ 60 years: OR 1.48, 95% CI 1.32–1.66), male sex (1.40, 1.34–1.46) and urban residency (1.55, 1.47–1.62). Of the 18 SNPs selected, 17 were associated with HBsAg positivity, and 14 with CLD, with SNPs near HLA-DPB1 were most strongly associated with both outcomes. In Chinese adults a range of genetic and non-genetic factors were associated with chronic HBV infection and CLD, which can inform targeted screening to help prevent disease progression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a comparative cross-nation study of the transition to more sustainable stormwater management (SSWM) in the United States and China. Multi-level perspective and multiphase models are used to examine the transition dynamics and reflect on how transition theory explains the change within federal and socialist context. Instead of simply differentiating the two countries' transition patterns by using terms such as bottom-up or top-down, we consider the importance of changes at all three levels of the system. The main difference between the transition process in the United States and China is the extent to which niche level innovations are developed, especially in the type of actors and activities investigated. The analysis suggests that the Chinese transition is less radical, while the U.S. pathway exhibits signs of reconfiguration, dealignment and realignment. Developing learning networks across sectors and actors to spread knowledge and experience appears to be the next major challenge for the Chinese Sponge City initiative. Despite the feasibility of transition theory for transition comparison, the author suggests its usage with caution and critical reflection to avoid the risk of embedding the mindset of 'catch-up' and convergence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction and hypothesis: Urinary incontinence (UI) is prevalent in antenatal and postnatal women. Pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) is the first-line treatment for UI. Group-based PFMT provides a way for professionals to deliver this intervention to more women who need to prevent and/or treat UI. This review aims to (1) assess the effectiveness of group-based PFMT in preventing and treating UI in antenatal and postnatal women and (2) explore the characteristics of group-based intervention and factors which had an impact on the success of group-based PFMT. Methods: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included in this review. A comprehensive search was conducted in PubMed, Embase, Medline, PsycINFO, Maternity and Infant Care Database, CINAHL, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, VIP Database and Wanfang Database. The overall quality was assessed using Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluations (GRADE). RCTs which included pregnant and/or postnatal women with or without UI investigating the effectiveness of group-based PFMT were included. Results: Five RCTs were included in this review. The overall quality of the results of the included studies was low. Delivering group-based PFMT during pregnancy significantly reduced the prevalence of UI in both the pregnant period [risk ratio (RR) = 0.67, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.57 to 0.80, P < 0.00001] and the postnatal period [RR = 0.66, 95% CI 0.52 to 0.84, P = 0.0008]. Only one RCT delivered group-based PFMT during the postnatal period. Conclusion: Evidence of weak quality supports the effectiveness of undertaking group-based PFMT in pregnancy to prevent UI during pregnancy and the postnatal period. No evidence showed the effectiveness of undertaking group-based PFMT in the postnatal period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent literature has been debating the performance of high-technology zones (HTZs) in developing countries. This paper contributes to this debate by examining how national HTZs in China affect allocative efficiency of resources among Chinese cities as well as China's total factor productivity (TFP) growth. This paper finds that resource misallocation among cities reduces China's TFP growth by 4.5% of which capital misallocation accounts for 2.4% and labour misallocation accounts for 2.1%. Moreover, we find that the establishment of national HTZs in China increases aggregate TFP by improving the allocative efficiency of capital among cities: that is, redistributing more capital from lower to higher productivity cities. In contrast, we find little evidence of TFP gain driven by technical efficiency following the establishment of HTZs. This paper thus reveals a potential positive effect of establishing HTZs in developing countries: although establishing HTZs may not improve the technical efficiency of these countries, it may nevertheless mitigate these countries' resource misallocation and enhance their aggregate TFP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have found that non-optimal temperature influences the development of gout, but the results have been inconsistent. The present study aimed to explore the effects of high temperature and high temperature variation on hospitalizations for gout in Anqing, China. We collected daily data on air pollutants, meteorological factors, and hospitalizations for gout between 1January 2016 and 31 December 2020 in Anqing City, China. We used Poisson generalized linear regression model and a distributed lag non-linear model (DLNM) to explore the relationship of high temperature, diurnal temperature range (DTR), and temperature change between neighboring days (TCN) with hospitalizations for gout. Stratified analysis by gender (male, female) and age (<65 years, ≥65 years) was conducted. Hospitalizations for gout attributed to high temperature, high DTR, and high TCN were also quantified. A total of 8675 hospitalized patients with gout were reported during the study period. We observed that exposure to high temperature was linked with an increased risk of hospitalizations for gout (lag 0, RR: 1.081, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.011, 1.155). Exposure to high DTR was also associated with increased risk of hospitalizations for gout (lag9, RR: 1.017, 95% CI: 1.001,1.035). A large drop in temperature between neighboring days was associated an increased risk of hospitalizations for gout (lag 0–2 days, RR: 1.234, 95% CI: 1.017, 1.493). Stratified analysis results revealed that older adults and men were more sensitive to high-level DTR exposure than their counterparts. Nearly 15% of hospitalizations for gout could be attributable to high temperature (attributable fraction: 14.93%, 95% CI: 5.99%, 22.11%). This study suggests that high temperature and high temperature variation may trigger hospitalizations for gout, indicating that patients with gout need to take proactive actions in the face of days with non-optimal temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the world grapples with the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, all eyes are now on the People's Republic of China: when did the national government know the atypical pneumonia cases indicated a novel coronavirus? How long did the national government delay the reporting of those cases to the World Health Organization and the rest of the international community? While these are key questions, they overlook the structure of China's legal relationship with the world's most important infectious disease control treaty, the International Health Regulations (2005). Under that treaty, China delegated information gathering and reporting to its provinces which were in turn supposed to notify China's National Focal Point--the body responsible for communicating potentially emergency infectious disease events to the World Health Organization and the rest of the international community. This was not the first time that National Focal Points failed: they also did so with MERS-CoV, Ebola, and H1N1. While National Focal Points are the backbone of the International Health Regulations, little is actually known about them. This Article situates the most important empirical study of National Focal Points to date--funded by the World Health Organization and conducted by the authors, a clinician and a legal scholar--to understand why they fail. The answer is that they are not independent--they must communicate information that can be economically damaging, they coordinate with other ministries that do not understand their purpose, and they almost never have an independent budget. If the International Health Regulations are to protect the world from future pandemics, reform must start with the independence of these crucial points of information gathering and communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]