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Successive commutation failure of UHVDC transmission system leads to a serious temporary overvoltage in sending-side grid, and may cause cascading tripping of renewable energy generators (REGs) nearby. The low-voltage stage before overvoltage stage forces REGs into the LVRT. Both the decrement of active power and the redundancy of reactive power during LVRT contribute to the later overvoltage. As a flexible tool to control active and reactive power within four quadrants, the electrochemical energy storage is utilized to mitigate the temporary overvoltage issue in this paper. The characteristics of bus voltage and power output of renewable energy during UHVDC commutation failure are analyzed. Based on these characteristics, the control strategies for active and reactive power of energy storage system (ESS) are proposed. Application results of a practical power system in Northwest China show that the ESS-based approach can effectively mitigate temporary overvoltage and prevent cascading tripping failures of renewable energy generators.

Source-gated transistors (SGTs) with Schottky barriers have emerged as extraordinary candidates for constructing low-power electronics by virtue of device simplicity, high gain, and low operation voltages. In this work, we demonstrate flexible low-power SGTs with solution processed In2O3 channels and Al2O3 gate dielectrics on ultrathin polymer substrates, exhibiting light area density (0.56 mg cm−2), low subthreshold swing (102 mV dec−1), low operation voltage (

Simple Summary YAP and TAZ are cancer-causing genes that encode proteins with similar, but not identical functions. YAP and TAZ function in diverse biological processes including cell proliferation and organ size control. Because of the high similarity in functions between YAP and TAZ, they have often been described as one entity: YAP/TAZ. However, new lines of evidence started to suggest that YAP and TAZ have unique functions as well. To understand the YAP- and TAZ-specific functions, we identified genes that are regulated solely by YAP or by TAZ. Our study revealed that YAP plays a distinct role in cell-substrate junctions, which are critical for tumour cell growth, migration, and metastasis, and both YAP and TAZ are involved in regulating blood platelets and lipid metabolism in gastric cancer cells. Abstract YAP and its paralog TAZ are the nuclear effectors of the Hippo tumour-suppressor pathway, and function as transcriptional co-activators to control gene expression in response to mechanical cues. To identify both common and unique transcriptional targets of YAP and TAZ in gastric cancer cells, we carried out RNA-sequencing analysis of overexpressed YAP or TAZ in the corresponding paralogous gene-knockouts (KOs), TAZ KO or YAP KO, respectively. Gene Ontology (GO) analysis of the YAP/TAZ-transcriptional targets revealed activation of genes involved in platelet biology and lipoprotein particle formation as targets that are common for both YAP and TAZ. However, the GO terms for cell-substrate junction were a unique function of YAP. Further, we found that YAP was indispensable for the gastric cancer cells to re-establish cell-substrate junctions on a rigid surface following prolonged culture on a soft substrate. Collectively, our study not only identifies common and unique transcriptional signatures of YAP and TAZ in gastric cancer cells but also reveals a dominant role for YAP over TAZ in the control of cell-substrate adhesion.

In this study, we use the Community Land Model Version 5 (CLM5) to investigate how irrigation modulates hydrologic and biogeochemical dynamics in the Upper Columbia‐Priest Rapids (UCPR) watershed, a typical semiarid watershed located in the northwestern United States dominated by cropland. To our knowledge, this constitutes the first application of CLM5 with landscape heterogeneity fully resolved over a watershed. The model is calibrated and evaluated against flux measurements from an AmeriFlux site and the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) products. Two numerical experiments (i.e., irrigated and rainfed) are performed at hyperresolution (~1 km) over the period of 2010–2018, accounting for realistic crop types and management practices. Our results show that irrigation fundamentally alters hydrologic and biogeochemical dynamics of the watershed. By adding 79.6 mm year−1 water in addition to the mean annual precipitation of 204.0 mm year−1, irrigation leads to increases in evapotranspiration and runoff, accompanied by shallower groundwater table depths. Increases in crop productivity in response to irrigation result in more carbon storage in the watershed, and drastically large seasonal fluctuations in soil organic carbon in response to changes in soil temperature and moisture. Irrigation also intensifies the rate of denitrification and mineralization during the growing season, enhancing the interactions between soil mineral nitrogen, the atmosphere, and freshwater systems. Our study demonstrates the potential of CLM5 as an effective tool for understanding hydrological and biogeochemical dynamics in highly managed semiarid watersheds.

Satellite remote sensing is a practical technique to estimate global precipitation with adequate spatiotemporal resolution in ungauged regions. However, the performance of satellite-based precipitation products is variable and uncertain for the Tibetan Plateau (TP) because of its complex terrain and climate conditions. In this study, we evaluated the abilities of nine widely used satellite-based precipitation products over the Eastern Tibetan Plateau (ETP) and quantified precipitation dynamics over the entire TP. The evaluation was carried out from three aspects, i.e., magnitude agreement, occurrence consistency, and elevation dependency, from grid-cell to regional scales. The results show that the nine satellite-based products exhibited different agreement with gauge-based reference data with median correlation coefficients ranging from 0.15 to 0.95. Three products (climate hazards group infrared precipitation with stations (CHIRPS), multi-source weighted-ensemble precipitation (MSWEP), and tropical rainfall measuring mission multi-satellite precipitation analysis (TMPA)) generally presented the best performance with the reference data, even in complex terrain regions, given their root mean square errors (RMSE) of less than 25 mm/mon. The climate prediction center merged analysis of precipitation (CMAP) product has relatively coarse spatial resolution, but it also exhibited good performance with a bias of less than 20% in watershed scale. Two other products (precipitation estimation from remotely sensed information using artificial neural networks-cloud classification system (PER-CCS) and climate prediction center morphing technique-raw (CMORPH-RAW)) overestimated precipitation with median RMSEs of 87 mm/mon and 45 mm/mon, respectively. All the precipitation products generally exhibited better agreement with the reference data for rainy season and lower-elevation regions. All of the products captured precipitation occurrence well, with hit event over 60%, and similar percentages of missed and false event. According to the evaluation, the four products (CHIRPS, MSWEP, TMPA, and CMAP) revealed that the annual precipitation over the TP fluctuated between 333 mm/yr and 488 mm/yr during the period 2003 to 2015. The study indicates the importance of integration of multiple data sources and post-processing (e.g., gauge data fusion and elevation correction) for satellite-based products and have implications for selection of suitable precipitation products for hydrological modeling and water resources assessment for the TP.

In light of the importance of and challenges inherent in realizing a wearable healthcare platform for simultaneously recognizing, preventing, and treating diseases while tracking vital signs, the development of simple and customized functional devices has been required. Here, we suggest a new approach to make a stretchable light waveguide which can be combined with integrated functional devices, such as organic photodetectors and nanowire-based heaters, for multifunctional healthcare monitoring. Controlling the reflection condition of the medium gave us a solid design rule for strong light emission in our stretchable waveguides. Based on this rule, the stretchable light waveguide (up to 50% strain) made of polydimethylsiloxane was successfully demonstrated with strong emissions. We also incorporated highly sensitive organic photodetectors and silver nanowire-based heaters with the stretchable waveguide for the detection of vital signs, including heart rate, deep breathing, coughs, and blood oxygen saturation. Through these multifunctional performances, we have successfully demonstrated that our stretchable light waveguide has a strong potential for multifunctional healthcare monitoring.

Background Variation in the relationship between education and health has been studied intensely over the past few decades. Although there is research on gender disparity and cohort variations in educational effect on health using samples from the U.S. and Europe, research about China’s is limited. Given the specific social changes in China, our study is designed to analyze the gender and cohort patterns in the education-health gradient. Method The latent growth-curve modeling was used to analyze the gender and cohort variations in the education gradient in self-rated health among Chinese respondents. The study employed longitudinal and nationally representative data from the Chinese Family Panel Studies from the years 2010 to 2016. Each cohort is specified according to their distinct periods of social change in China. Following the analysis, we used latent growth-curve model to illustrate gender and cohort differences in the age-graded education and health trajectories. Results Although Chinese men have reported to have better health than women in general, women reported 1.6 percentage points higher in self-reported health for each additional year of schooling compared to that of men (P P P P P P Conclusion Our study suggests that the education-health gradient varies across cohorts for women, but the size of education effect remains consistent for men across cohorts. The findings support the resource-substitution hypothesis and not the rising-importance hypothesis in China. We discussed the potential influences of the unique, social transformation and educational expansion in China.

Aim. Neonatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) is a significant cause of perinatal morbidity and mortality. Chinese Tuina is an effective treatment for HIE, but the molecular mechanisms are yet unknown. This study investigated the effect and mechanisms of Chinese Tuina on the inflammatory response in neonatal HIE rats. Main Methods. 30 male neonatal rats were divided randomly into 3 groups: sham, HIE, and HIE with Chinese Tuina (CHT) groups. The HIE and CHT groups were subjected to left common carotid occlusion and hypoxia at 3 days postnatal (P3). The pups in the CHT group received Chinese Tuina treatment on the next day for 28 days. The weight was measured at P4, P9, P13, P21, and P31. The behavioral functions were determined at P21. The protein expression and the methylation level in promoter regions of TNF-α and IL-10 were determined by Western blotting, immunohistochemistry, and pyrosequencing, respectively, at P33. Key Findings. The weight gain in the HIE group was slow compared with that of the CHT group. The rats in the CHT group performed better both in the balance beam and hang plate experiment. Chinese Tuina inhibited the expression of TNF-α and upregulated the expression of IL-10. Neonatal hypoxic-ischemic injury downregulated the methylation level in promoter regions of TNF-α at all CpG points but not IL-10. However, Chinese Tuina did not change the methylation level in promoter regions of TNF-α and IL-10. Significance. Chinese Tuina protected against HIE through inhibiting the neuroinflammatory reaction. While HIE markedly downregulated the methylation level of TNF-α, the protective effects of Chinese Tuina were independent of the regulation of the methylation level of TNF-α and IL-10.

In this paper, a novel scheme to employ one external polarization division multiplexing Mach–Zehnder Modulator (PDM-MZM) and one polarizer to generate millimeter-wave four-level pulse amplitude modulation (PAM4) signal is proposed without the usage of expensive and power hungry digital-to-analog converter (DAC). Firstly, we theoretically derive the generation conditions for the mm-wave PAM4 signal scheme. Based on this cost-effective scheme, 6 Gbaud PAM4 signal carried by 84 GHz millimeter-wave transmission over 15 km single-mode fiber (SMF-28) with only 0.5 dB power penalty without any CD compensation is experimentally demonstrated. Furthermore, VPI simulation software is employed to numerically simulate the mm-wave PAM4 signal generation and explore the influences of polarization rotation of the polarizer and direct current (DC)-Bias on the performance of generated W-band signals. In a word, it would be a promising scheme for future 5G short-reach intensity modulation and direct detection (IM/DD) system.

380 Background: LAUNCH is a multicenter, randomized, open-label, parallel-group phase 3 trial, aiming to assess the efficacy and safety of lenvatinib plus TACE compared with lenvatinib alone as first-line therapy in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods: Patients with advanced HCC were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to receive either lenvatinib plus TACE (LEN-TACE group) or lenvatinib alone (LEN group). Randomized stratification factors include: Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status score (0 vs. 1), tumor thrombus (presence vs. absence), body weight (

One of the key efficient strategies to optimize the silicon micro-structure and to improve the lithium-storage electrochemical performance is to introduce the metallic phase into silicon matrix to realize the silicon-metal recombination as well as the nanocrystallization of silicon structure. The present research introduced metallic titanium to synthesis TiSi2/Si nanocomposites by the aid of electrolyzing SiO2/TiO2 in molten salt. The reduced nanocomposites exhibited excellent lithiation stability with the initial discharging specific capacity of 2107 mA h/g and the first columbic efficiency of 89.96%. Particularly benefiting from the compositional TiSi2 phase and the structural superiority of silicon nanowires surrounded by the alloyed nanoparticles, the as-obtained anode also delivered a high rate capacity. The major objective of this study is to establish the technology for molten salt electrolytic preparation of TiSi2/Si nanocomposites for lithium-ion batteries and further to offer solutions for modifying the silicon anode materials.

In high temperature annealing of carbon nanotube (CNTs) bundles for structure and thermal conductivity (κ) improvement, the statistical errors from sample-wide structure variation and sample transfer/preparation significantly overshadows the understanding of structure-κ correlation and change. In this work, the sequential process of current-induced thermal annealing (CITA) on improving the structure, electrical and thermal conductivities of chemical vapor deposition grown CNT bundles is studied for the first time. Our in-situ κ measurement using the transient electro-thermal technique uncovers the conjugated dynamic electrical, thermal, and structural properties. The electrical resistance and thermal diffusivity evolution of CNT bundles during CITA is studied. The thermal diffusivity and κ before and after CITA are measured from room temperature down to 10 K to uncover the reduction of defect density and enhancement of inter-tube connection strength after CITA. Our micro-Raman spectroscopy study from the most annealed region to the non-annealed region reveals significantly improved order in sp2 bonding carbon structure and reduced defects along the sample length. The resulting κ has 5–19 times increase at the most annealed region of CNT bundles. The intrinsic κ of CNT walls against the annealing temperature is also determined, which reaches a level as high as 754 W/m·K after CITA.

Transistor sensing in salt solutions Molecular binding to receptors on the surface of field-effect transistors (FETs) can be sensed through changes in transconductance. However, the saline solutions typically used with biomolecules create an electrical double layer that masks any events that occur within about 1 nanometer from the surface. Nakatsuka et al. overcame this limitation by using binding to large, negatively charged DNA stem loop structures that, upon ligand binding, cause conformational changes that can be sensed with an FET, even in solutions with high ionic strength. The authors demonstrate the sensing of charged molecules such as dopamine in artificial cerebrospinal fluid as well as neutral molecules such as glucose and zwitterion molecules like sphingosine-1-phosphate. Science , this issue p. 319

Frequent volcanic activity has occurred in the Okinawa Trough (OT) during the late Quaternary, which attracted much attention to the origin of volcanic rocks. Pumice collected from the seafloor has been extensively investigated, whereas few studies paid attention to the pumice in the sediment. The geochemical compositions of pumice preserved in sediments generally provide insight into past volcanic activity and regional magmatism. Here, we present major and trace element compositions and Sr-Nd-Pb isotope data, together with the established age framework for pumice samples recovered from sediment core S9 in the middle OT (MOT) to investigate their possible formation. Compositionally, the S9 pumice samples are dacite and are characterized by relatively higher Sr (87Sr/86Sr = 0.70480–0.70502) and Pb (206Pb/204Pb = 18.321-18.436, 207Pb/204Pb = 15.622–15.624, and 208Pb/204Pb = 38.52–38.63) and lower Nd (143Nd/144Nd = 0.51272–0.51274) isotope compositions than basalts from the MOT. The geochemical compositions of pumice clasts from different layers of core S9 display no temporal variation trends and vary within narrow ranges. On the basis of the geochemical characteristics of S9 pumice samples, we infer that the parent magma of these samples might generate from hybrid magma through an extensive fractional crystallization process. The Indian Ocean MORB-type mantle was first metasomatized by the subducted Philippine Sea sediments to form the primitive magma, then, followed by assimilation of a small amount of lower crustal component occurred in the lower crust. The long-term magmatism and relatively consistent isotopic compositions indicate that a magma chamber might have existed in the lower crust of the MOT between 11.22 and 12.96 cal. ka BP.

The study on breakdown characteristics at microscale is very vital to the plasma physics community and micro/nanoelectronic industries. However, the dynamic development processes including the electron avalanche and discharge channel during the breakdown event are still unclear experimentally so far due to the restriction of the in-situ diagnostic technique. In this paper, an optical diagnostic technique is put forward to achieve an in-situ observation of the dynamic breakdown process across microgaps at atmospheric pressure. By using the nanosecond temporally and micron spatially resolved optical measurement method, the light emission appearances of microgap breakdown under nanosecond pulse have been captured and imaged directly. The initial and propagation mechanisms for electrical breakdown across the very small air gap are discussed based on the light emission properties. Results show that the light emission initiates from the cathode as the initial electron avalanche, then the avalanche transits to the streamer due to the space charge effect and photoionization, and propagates towards the anode with a velocity of 4.40×10 3 m/s, demonstrating a cathode-directed streamer in the pulsed breakdown. The space charge induced field enhancement and photoionization are proved to play a significant role in the pulsed breakdown across microgaps. In addition, the time to breakdown is estimated to be about 20ns while the formative time lag is about 9ns through the temporal sequence of the optical images. The in-situ optical measurement technique presented in this paper would be of a great help for better understanding the physical mechanism of microgap breakdown.

Genetically encoded protein scaffolds often serve as templates for the mineralization of biocomposite materials with complex yet highly controlled structural features that span from nanometres to the macroscopic scale1-4. Methods developed to mimic these fabrication capabilities can produce synthetic materials with well defined micro- and macro-sized features, but extending control to the nanoscale remains challenging5,6. DNA nanotechnology can deliver a wide range of customized nanoscale two- and three-dimensional assemblies with controlled sizes and shapes7-11. But although DNA has been used to modulate the morphology of inorganic materials12,13 and DNA nanostructures have served as moulds14,15 and templates16,17, it remains challenging to exploit the potential of DNA nanostructures fully because they require high-ionic-strength solutions to maintain their structure, and this in turn gives rise to surface charging that suppresses the material deposition. Here we report that the Stober method, widely used for producing silica (silicon dioxide) nanostructures, can be adjusted to overcome this difficulty: when synthesis conditions are such that mineral precursor molecules do not deposit directly but first form clusters, DNA-silica hybrid materials that faithfully replicate the complex geometric information of a wide range of different DNA origami scaffolds are readily obtained. We illustrate this approach using frame-like, curved and porous DNA nanostructures, with one-, two- and three-dimensional complex hierarchical architectures that range in size from 10 to 1,000 nanometres. We also show that after coating with an amorphous silica layer, the thickness of which can be tuned by adjusting the growth time, hybrid structures can be up to ten times tougher than the DNA template while maintaining flexibility. These findings establish our approach as a general method for creating biomimetic silica nanostructures.

A comparative study of structure and thermal properties is reported for three 3C crystalline silicon carbide (SiC) microwires, including Sylramic, Hi-Nicalon S and a sample fabricated by laser chemical vapor deposition (LCVD). Structural characterization by Raman spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction (XRD) finds that the LCVD-based sample contains excessive silicon and smallest grains of SiC but detectable free carbon. Thermal characterization from room temperature down to 20 K uncovers the effect of nanosized grain on thermal properties. The thermal properties are correlated with the structure via structural thermal domain (STD) size, defined as the grain boundary-induced phonon mean free path at the 0 K limit. The STD size of the three samples is found as 9.35, 1.42 and 1.03 nm for the Sylramic, Hi-Nicalon S and LCVD SiC fibers, proportional to and nearly one order of magnification smaller than the corresponding crystalline size determined by XRD: 67–113, 14.6–18.4, and 5.85–7.84 nm.

Strain effects on vacancies, electronic states and stability have been disclosed for perovskite structured materials (ABX3) including metal oxides and organic-inorganic hybrids critical for energy storage and generation. Ion substitution has been pursued as an attractive solution to alter the crystallization or induced electronic of organic-inorganic hybrid halide lead perovskite. However, the disorganized structure of perovskite result from inappropriate substitution may cause unwanted phase transition and photo-stability. Herein, we introduce crystallization of restriction ABX3 composition with moderate zinc (Zn) substitution to obtain the ordered and stable CH3NH3(Zn:Pb)I3-xClx crystal, which is achieved via releasing lattice strain during an appropriate lattice constriction within BX6 octahedron. We obtained an unprecedented efficiency of 20.06% under simulated sunlight with facilitating binary metal perovskite of CH3NH3(1Zn:100Pb)I3-xClx. Our results are important to realize scale up and practical applications of efficient planar perovskite solar cells.

Introduction The Joint United Nations Programme on human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immune deficiency syndrome has proposed the 90-90-90 targets by 2020. Human immunodeficiency virus epidemic is spreading rapidly among men who have sex with men (MSM) in China. This study investigates how the scale-up of HIV testing and treatment in achieving the targets and its cost-effectiveness. Methods We constructed a compartmental model to forecast the HIV epidemic in Chinese MSM based on various "test-and-treat" scale-up scenarios. We assessed their cost effectiveness based on the cost for each HIV infection, death, and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) prevented by the scale-up. Results If the current epidemic continued, HIV prevalence among Chinese MSM would increase from 9.2% in 2016 to 12.6% (9.2-15.6%) in 2020 and 16.2% (11.3-20.0%) in 2025. By 2020, 49.2% of infected MSM would be diagnosed and 40.1% of whom on treatment, falling short of the 90-90-90 targets, so would be even by 2025. To achieve these targets by 2020, additional 850,000 HIV screening tests and 112,500 person-years of antiretroviral treatment (ART) annually are necessary. This spending is US $478 million during 2016 to 2020, which almost tripled the status quo. However, by delaying to 2025, an investment of US $1210 million over 2016 to 2025 corresponding to 52% increase to the status quo, will enable extra 340,000 HIV screening tests and 60,000 person-year on ART annually. In both scenarios, the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio was US $733 to 960 for each DALY prevented, indicating highly cost-effective scenarios. Conclusions Achieving the 90-90-90 targets by 2020 requires steep increase in investment, but delaying the targets to 2025 is practical and cost-effective.

Drought frequently occurs in North China and is one of the most damaging disasters in this region, and drought also brings considerable challenges the world-famous South-to-North Water Diversion (SNWD) project. However, it is difficult to identify the drought-induced water deficit at a regional scale. Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellites monitor temporal variations in the Earth's gravitational potential and provide quality data sets for water storage analysis. In this study, we quantify the water deficit over North China by focusing on a recent drought event, the 2009/10 drought, and identifying its onset, persistence, and recovery. The results indicate that GRACE can successfully capture temporal variations in total water storage (TWS). TWS shows a declining trend, reaching a low point during the 2009/10 drought with a water storage deficit of up to 25 km3 (∼22 mm). Groundwater storage shows a similar pattern, with a trend of −6.97 mm/yr. Together with the water deficit, vegetation growth is substantially restricted, as indicated by a reduction in the leaf area index. The amount of water transferred by the SNWD project may ease the water crises in North China.

To understand the relation between different nanostructures and thermal properties, a simple yet effective model is in demand for characterizing the underlying phonons and electrons scattering mechanisms. Herein, we make a systematic review on the newly developed thermal reffusivity theory. Like electrical resistivity which has been historically used as a theory for analyzing structural domain size and defect levels of metals, the thermal reffusivity can also uncover phonon behavior, structure defects and domain size of materials. We highlight that this new theory can be used for not only metals, but also nonmetals, even for amorphous materials. From the thermal reffusivity against temperature curves, the Debye temperature of the material and the ideal thermal diffusivity of single perfect crystal can be evaluated. From the residual thermal reffusivity at the 0 K limit, the structural thermal domain (STD) size of crystalline and amorphous materials can be obtained. The difference of white hair and normal black hair from heat conduction perspective is reported for the first time. Loss of melanin results in a worse thermal protection and a larger STD size in the white hair. By reviewing the different variation of thermal reffusivity against decreasing temperature profiles, we conclude that they reflected the structural connection in the materials. Ultimately, the future application of thermal reffusivity theory in studying 2D materials and amorphous materials is discussed.

Studies on the concentrations of arsenic (As) and antimony (Sb) in seawater columns are very important for tracing hydrothermal plumes and understanding fluid characteristics of seafloor hydrothermal systems. The total As, Sb, Mn, and Cl− concentrations of three hydrothermal plume seawater column samples have been studied at Stations 18G, 18K, and 18B in the eastern Manus back-arc basin, Bismarck Sea, Papua New Guinea. At Stations 18G and 18K, the plumes above North Su and near the Suzette site in the SuSu Knolls hydrothermal field are both enriched in As, Sb, and Mn and depleted in Cl, as a result of contribution of As-Sb-Mn-enriched and Cl-depleted vent fluid outputs to the hydrothermal plume, which is most likely generated in the subseafloor by fluid-rock interaction, magma degassing, or phase separation (boiling of hydrothermal fluid). The plume at Station 18B is enriched in As, Sb, Mn, and Cl, suggesting that As-Sb-Mn-Cl-enriched fluid discharges from vents, which have been generated by fluid-rock interaction. The concentrations of As and Sb anomalous layers, like manganese (Mn), are higher than those of the other layers in the three hydrothermal plume seawater columns. As and Sb with Mn showed a positive correlation (R2>0.8, p<0.05), and the distributions of As and Sb within the hydrothermal plume are not controlled by particle adsorption or biogeochemical cycles, suggesting that As and Sb, like Mn, can be used to detect and describe the characteristics of hydrothermal plumes in seawater environment. In addition, anomalous layer with As/Sb ratio lower than those of ambient seawater at the same temperature is found in the eastern Manus basin, suggesting that the As/Sb ratio may also act as an effective tracer reflecting the effect of hydrothermal activity on As and Sb in the seawater column.

MoS3 is in situ grown on sulfur carbon composite (S/C-MoS3) surface by chemical oxidative reaction of (NH4)2MoS4. Based on the synergistic role of porous carbon and polar MoS3 with sulfur-like characteristic, polysulfides are effectively anchored and shuttle effect is greatly reduced. In particular, 10 wt% MoS3 bridged S/C composite exhibits the best electrochemical performance. After 100 cycles at 0.2C, the discharge specific capacity remains 727.6 mA h g−1, and the capacity retention rate is 59.0%. When cycling 300 times at 1C, the capacity is still maintained at 546.9 mA h g−1, and the coulomb efficiency is around 97.0%. The results show that MoS3 effectively improves the cyclic property of S/C composite for lithium‑sulfur battery.

SnS, out of high theoretical capacity, is lifted as one of the promising candidates for Li-ion battery anodes. However, restrictions stemming from unsatisfying Li+/electron transferring, serious polarization, huge volume expansion/shrinkage and irreversible capacity loss during the first cycle prevent it from ideal cycling performance and rate property. Herein, a new-building three-nested SnS/TiO2/C (SSTC) hollow box is established, in which TiO2/C double protective hulls well enfold SnS-nanosphere-formed hierarchy-hollow box to form a sandwich-shaped complex wall. By combining heterogeneous interface and hollow cube structure, the SSTC with small amount of TiO2 (SSTC1) can deliver a discharge capacity of 638 mAh g−1 after 200 cycles at 0.2 A g−1. Moreover, it exhibits better rate performance of 1162, 617, 488, 387, 287 mAh g−1 at 0.1, 0.2, 0.5, 1 and 2 A g−1, respectively, and restores to 524 mAh g−1 when the current density decreases to 0.1 A g−1 again. The better electrochemical performance for SSTC is mainly ascribed to the strengthened structural stability and the improved electrical conductivity, which come from three nested SnS/TiO2/C hollow box structure with sandwich-shaped complex wall.

Evapotranspiration (ET) is a key variable coupled with water and energy availability and vegetation coverage. Since the year around 2000, several ecological restoration programs have been enacted within the Loess Plateau, China. The restoration programs have promoted vegetation greening and air cleaning, which has changed land surface albedo and solar radiation and consequently altered the land surface radiative forcing. Evidence has showed that ET is impacted by climate change and land use/cover change, but little is known about the effect of the radiative forcing on ET. This study reports the contribution of the surface radiative forcing during the growing season associated with ecological restoration to changes in potential ET (PET) and actual ET (AET) in the Loess Plateau. A differential attribution method based on the Penman-Monteith equation is proposed to isolate the contribution of radiative forcing. Accurate estimates of PET and AET are obtained from a sophisticated land surface hydrological model driven by long-term dynamic albedo, solar radiation, vegetation index, and meteorological forcings. We find that during 2003-2018, the surface albedo significantly decreased with increased solar radiation, which increased radiative forcing by 3.68 W m−2. These changes in radiative forcing increased PET and AET by 1.02 mm yr−1 and 0.12 mm yr−1, respectively. Despite spatial variabilities in radiative forcing, PET and AET intensified in approximately 50% (3.03 × 105 km2) and 60% (3.63 × 105 km2) of the area of the Loess Plateau, respectively. However, the PET and AET intensified by radiative forcing accounted for 8% and 5% of the total change in PET and AET, respectively. Although the average contribution of radiative forcing to the Loess Plateau is relatively small, the accumulated impact is non-negligible; it may mediate hydrological cycle and result in substantial water resource stress, particularly in areas implementing intensive ecological restoration.

The present work reports an effective approach to fabricate highly ordered arrays of ZnO/Si heterostructures decorated with metal sulfides (i.e. ZnS and Ag2S). These metal-sulfide-coated ZnO/Si heterostructure arrays are then used as a photoanode in the photoelectrochemical water splitting system. The significant enhancement of ZnO/Si heterostructure arrays in photo-current density and on/off ratio is demonstrated after they are coated with metal sulfides. These metal-sulfide-coated ZnO/Si heterostructure arrays are a promising building block for the fabrication of optoelectronic devices such as photoelectrochemical cells. MOE (Min. of Education, S’pore)

Concentrated growth factor (CGF) is 100% blood-derived, cross-linked fibrin glue with platelets and growth factors. Human CGF clot is transformed into membrane by a compression device, which has been widely used clinically. However, the mechanical properties of the CGF membranes have not been well characterized. The aims of this study were to measure the tensile strength of human CGF membrane and observe its behavior as a scaffold of BMP-2 in ectopic site over the skull. The tensile test of the full length was performed at the speed of 2mm/min. The CGF membrane (5 × 5 × 2 mm3) or the CGF/BMP-2 (1.0 μg) membrane was grafted onto the skull periosteum of nude mice (5-week-old, male), and harvested at 14 days after the graft. The appearance and size of the CGF membranes were almost same for 7 days by soaking at 4 °C in saline. The average values of the tensile strength at 0 day and 7 days were 0.24 MPa and 0.26 MPa, respectively. No significant differences of both the tensile strength and the elastic modulus were found among 0, 1, 3, and 7 days. Supra-periosteal bone induction was found at 14 days in the CGF/BMP-2, while the CGF alone did not induce bone. These results demonstrated that human CGF membrane could become a short-term, sticky fibrin scaffold for BMP-2, and might be preserved as auto-membranes for wound protection after the surgery.

Background HIV infection and normal aging share immune and inflammatory changes that result in premature aging and non-communicable diseases (NCDs), but the exact pathophysiology is not yet uncovered. We identified the common metabolic pathways underlying various NCDs in treated HIV infection. Methods We performed untargeted metabolomics including 87 HIV-negative (–) normal controls (NCs), 87 HIV-positive (+) NCs, and 148 HIV+ subjects with only one type of NCDs, namely, subclinical carotid atherosclerosis, neurocognitive impairment (NCI), liver fibrosis (LF) and renal impairment. All HIV+ subjects were virally suppressed. Results HIV+ patients presented widespread alterations in cellular metabolism compared to HIV– NCs. Glycerophospholipid (GPL) metabolism was the only one disturbed pathway presented in comparisons including HIV– NCs across age groups, HIV+ NCs across age groups, HIV+ NCs vs HIV– NCs and each of HIV+ NCDs vs HIV+ NCs. D-glutamine and D-glutamate metabolism and alanine-aspartate-glutamate metabolism were presented in comparisons between HIV+ NCs vs HIV– NCs, HIV+ LF or HIV+ NCI vs HIV+ NCs. Consistently, subsequent analysis identified a metabolomic fingerprint specific for HIV+ NCDs, containing 42 metabolites whose relative abundance showed either an upward (mainly GPL-derived lipid mediators) or a downward trend (mainly plasmalogen phosphatidylcholines, plasmalogen phosphatidylethanolamines, and glutamine) from HIV– NCs to HIV+ NCs and then HIV+ NCDs, reflecting a trend of increased oxidative stress. Interpretation GPL metabolism emerges as the common metabolic disturbance linking HIV to NCDs, followed by glutamine and glutamate metabolism. Together, our data point to the aforementioned metabolisms and related metabolites as potential key targets in studying pathophysiology of NCDs in HIV infection and developing therapeutic interventions. Funding China National Science and Technology Major Projects on Infectious Diseases, National Natural Science Foundation of China, Yi-wu Institute of Fudan University, and Shanghai Municipal Health and Family Planning Commission.

The increasing incompatibility for LIBs between high-rate capability and high specific capacity, except for its energy density, stimulates the research of new electrode materials. In order to obtain the superior power properties of LIBs, seeking new anode materials with the above merits is vital. Herein, a new 1D Ti-based H2Ti12O25 nanorod @2D RGO (reduced graphene oxide) sheet (H2Ti12O25/RGO) composite structure is designed as high-power anode for long-life li-ion battery, which can achieve high-capacity, and high-rate property at the same time. H2Ti12O25 nanorods, bonded on RGO flakes, is synthesized by mean of in-situ structure transformation during solvothermal/hydrothermal reaction processes. To be specific, except for the safety performance, the H2Ti12O25/RGO electrode unfolds an exceptionally better rate-capacity performance, namely, high reversible capacity up to 260 mA h g−1 at 0.5 C and 123, 114 and 101 mA h g−1 at high rate of 20 C, 30 C and 50 C, respectively. Importantly, the 750th discharge capacity still could be maintained at 105.3 mA h g−1 at 30 C. The outstanding properties can be ascribed to the synergistic interaction between H2Ti12O25 nanorod and RGO sheets and its multi-dimensional composite structure which makes the faster electronic and ionic conductivity of 1D-H2Ti12O25@2D-RGO achieved.

This work reports on systematic investigation of the structure and thermal conductivity of lignin-based carbon fibers (CF) at the microscale. The lignin-based CF is produced by melt-spinning pyrolytic lignin derived from red oak. The 0 K-limit phonon scattering mean free path uncovers a characteristic structure size of ∼1.2 nm, which agrees well with the crystallite size by X-ray scattering (0.9 and 1.3 nm) and the cluster size by Raman spectroscopy (2.31 nm). The thermal conductivity of as-prepared CFs is determined at ∼1.83 W/m·K at room temperature. The thermal reffusivity of CFs shows little change from room temperature down to 10 K, uncovering the existence of extensive defects and grain boundaries which dominate phonon scattering. The localized thermal conductivity of CFs is increased by more than ten-fold after being annealed at ∼2800 K, to a level of 24 W/m·K. Our microscale Raman scanning from less annealed to highly annealed regions shows one-fold increase of the cluster size: from 1.83 nm to 4 nm. This directly confirms structure improvement by annealing. The inverse of the thermal conductivity is found linearly proportional to the annealing temperature in the range of 1000–2800 K.

High-thermal-conductivity polymers are very sought after for applications in various thermal management systems. Although improving crystallinity is a common way for increasing the thermal conductivity (k) of polymers, it has very limited capacity when the crystallinity is already high. In this work, by heat-stretching a highly crystalline microfiber, a significant k enhancement is observed. More interestingly, it coincides with a reduction in crystallinity. The sample is a Spectra S-900 ultrahigh-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMW-PE) microfiber of 92% crystallinity and high degree of orientation. The optimum stretching condition is 131.5 °C, with a strain rate of 0.0129 s–1 to a low strain ratio (∼6.6) followed by air quenching. The k enhancement is from 21 to 51 W/(m·K), the highest value for UHMW-PE microfibers reported to date. X-ray diffraction study finds that the crystallinity reduces to 83% after stretching, whereas the crystallite size and crystallite orientation are not changed. Cryogenic thermal characterization shows a reduced level of phonon-defect scattering near 30 K. Polarization Raman spectroscopy finds enhanced alignment of amorphous chains, which could be the main reason for the k enhancement. A possible relocation of amorphous phase is also discussed and indirectly supported by a bending test.

The last 15 years have witnessed a dramatic change in HIV-related epidemiology amidst improvements in treatment and care in China. With proper treatment, HIV is now considered a chronic disease. As a consequence, many people living with HIV (PLWH) now present age-related comorbidities. We reviewed 13 topical issues concerning the epidemiology of aging with HIV in mainland China. Many of aging-related issues associated with the biological and physical aspects of living with HIV addressed in mainland China are consistent with the global literature. Greater prevalence of age-related comorbidities among PLWH was observed. Beyond biological mechanisms associated with HIV infection and traditional risk factors, other factors play a vital role in the aging process among PLWH. A stronger focus on screening, prevention, and management of non-HIV co-morbidities among PLWH is now warranted. Macro-social factors need to be integrated into next generation of clinical and/or behavioral HIV research to inform disease progression and management as well as prevention.

Background: Variation in the relationship between education and health has been studied intensely over the past few decades. Although there is abundant research on gender disparity and cohort variations in the relationship between education and health, based on samples from the U.S. and Europe, research about China is limited. Giventhe specificsocial changes in China, the study is designed to analyze the gender difference and cohort variations in the education-health relationship.Method: Longitudinal, nationwide data from the Chinese Family Panel Studies from the years 2010 to 2016 are statistically analyzed. Self-reported health is measured by respondents’ subjective assessment of their health. The highest level of education earned operationalizes the education measure. Each cohort is defined by a distinct period of social change in China. The age-vector model is used to analyze gender and cohort variations in the association between education and self-rated health. Results: Men report better health than women, but the relationship between education and health for women is stronger than for men. Educational gaps in self-rated health do not change significantly for cohorts before 1955 and cohorts after 1977, but the gaps become stronger for cohorts between 1956 and 1976. There is gender disparity within the cohort variations in the education-health relationship. For women, the education-health relationship in the 1956-1960, 1967-1976 and 1977-1983 cohorts is significantly stronger than for the 1908-1938 cohort. While not as strong, the education-health relationship remains consistent across all cohorts for men. Conclusions: The study findings support the resource substitution hypothesis and not the rising importance hypothesis in China. Considering the findings on gender disparity and difference in cohort effects, we discuss the potential influences of the unique social transformation and educational expansion in China.

Detrital apatite is a promising accessory mineral for reliable fingerprinting of the protolith composition of detrital sediment. Here, we present the geochemical compositions of detrital apatites from four sections of a high-resolution (~140 cm/kyr) sedimentary archive from the southern Okinawa Trough (SOT) for constraining sediment source rock types and establishing changes in provenance. A series of diagrams based on the geochemical data show that apatites in Section 1 derived mainly from mafic/intermediate rocks, while apatites in the three younger sections largely originated from mafic/intermediate rocks and acid rocks. Further, the four sections included a few contributions of apatites from alkaline rocks and metamorphic rocks. Through a comprehensive analysis of controlling factors and regional stratigraphy in the study area, we concluded that sediments in the SOT are the weathering/erosion products of sedimentary and meta-sedimentary rocks in the western and northeastern Taiwan Island, with ultimate sources containing a wide variety of rock types. The sediment from rivers in eastern Taiwan did not significantly contribute to deposition in the SOT. Apatites in Sections 2&ndash, 4 showed strong geochemical similarity but differed from those in Section 1, indicating that the types of weathered/eroded sedimentary rocks in the weathering profile of river drainage basins of Taiwan Island changed in Section 2 (2010&ndash, 1940 cal. yr BP) and have remained stable since then.

Soil moisture (SM) is a key variable in the climate system as it regulates the latent and sensible heat partition and influences eco-hydrological processes. A few studies have highlighted the increasing frequency of SM droughts at the river basin scale in China, however, little is known about the SM response to precipitation (P) and near-surface temperature (T) at national and regional scales. In this study, the long-term SM dynamics based on a sophisticated land surface hydrological model (i.e., the Variable Infiltration Capacity, VIC) were identified after model evaluation. A simple but effective sensitivity-based approach was developed to quantify the elasticity (e) and sensitivity (S) of SM to P and T, and the SM was projected for the near future at the regional scale. The results indicate that China has experienced slightly wetter soil conditions during the past five decades and the SM has increased in the arid and semi-arid regions of China, i.e., the North East (0.11 mm/yr) and the North West (0.047 mm/yr). The elasticity and the sensitivity of SM are the highest in the humid region (i.e., South East China), indicating that small increases of P and T are likely to induce considerable changes in the SM relative to other regions. The sensitivity-based approach could perform SM estimation similar to the complex VIC modeling. This approach projected that North China (−5.05 ± 2.31%) and South West China (−5.95 ± 2.04%) are likely to experience drying with a considerable decline in SM due to reduction in P and rise in T in the near future period from 2020 to 2050. The slightly wet soil conditions in the past and a drying future scenario may imply a contrasting consequence for the regional-scale hydrological cycles.

We have recently demonstrated that vertically aligned gold nanowires (v-AuNWs) are outstanding material candidates for wearable biomedical sensors toward real-time and noninvasive health monitoring because of their excellent tunable electrical conductivity, biocompatibility, chemical inertness, and wide electrochemical window. Here, we show that v-AuNWs could also be used to design a high-performance wearable pressure sensor when combined with rational structural engineering such as pyramid microarray-based hierarchical structures. The as-fabricated pressure sensor featured a low operation voltage of 0.1 V, high sensitivity in a low-pressure regime, a fast response time of

We investigated second-harmonic wave patterns induced by the tightly focused radially polarized beam loaded with off-axis vortices. The expression of the electric field of tightly focused radially polarized beam loaded with off-axis vortices through ZnSe crystal was derived, based on which the expression of the polarization distributions of near-field second-harmonic and the intensity distributions of far-field second-harmonic at different incident crystal planes were obtained. Numerical simulations indicated the distinctive polarization distributions of near-field second-harmonic and the intensity distributions of far-field second-harmonic when the incident crystal planes were (110) and (001). The results showed that second-harmonic wave patterns could be regulated flexibly by changing the distance and number of off-axis vortices.

Introduction Oral poliovirus vaccine (OPV) and diphtheria-tetanus-acellular pertussis vaccine (DTaP) are widely used in China while Haemophilus influenzae type b vaccines (Hib) and a DTaP, inactivated poliovirus (IPV) and Hib polysaccharide conjugated to tetanus protein (PRP ~ T) combined vaccine (DTaP–IPV//PRP ~ T) have lower coverage. There are limited safety data on these vaccines in Chinese pediatric populations. Methods: To estimate incidence rates (IRs) of health outcomes of interest (HOIs) among children exposed to OPV, DTaP, Hib, and DTaP–IPV//PRP ~ T, we conducted a retrospective cohort study using a population-based electronic health record (EHR) database in Yinzhou district, Ningbo City. Children 0–2 years of age receiving at least one dose of these vaccines between January 1, 2012 and March 31, 2017 were included in the study. Yinzhou EHR database consisted of immunization records and healthcare data of children from hospitals and community health centers in the district. Eight HOIs (i.e., anaphylaxis, febrile seizures, all seizures, asthma, apnea, Kawasaki disease [KD], urticaria/angioedema, Guillain–Barre syndrome [GBS]) were identified using ICD-10 codes. Results: A total of 220,422 eligible children was identified. No cases of apnea, KD, and GBS were observed within 7 days post-vaccination. During 0–7 days post-vaccination for OPV, DTaP, Hib, and DTaP–IPV//PRP ~ T, the IRs of anaphylaxis, febrile seizures, all seizures, urticaria/angioedema and asthma ranged from 0.0 to 50.0, 0.0 to 99.9, 29.1 to 249.8, 297.8 to 949.1, and 992.7 to 2298.2 per 100,000 person-years, respectively, and 0.0 to 0.9, 0.0 to 1.9, 0.6 to 4.6, 5.6 to 17.5, and 18.7 to 42.3 per 100,000 doses, respectively. Conclusion: IRs of some HOIs in our study were comparable with those in the literature while IRs of other HOIs were not due to differences in study design, post-vaccination risk periods assessed, and vaccine types. Future studies should consider medical chart review for validating HOIs obtained in the EHR.

Sensitive, specific, yet multifunctional tattoo-like electronics are ideal wearable systems for "any time, any where" health monitoring because they can virtually become parts of the human skin, offering a burdenless "unfeelable" wearing experience. A skin-like, multifunctional electronic tattoo made entirely from gold using a standing enokitake-mushroom-like vertically aligned nanowire membrane in conjunction with a programmable local cracking technology is reported. Unlike previous multifunctional systems, only a single material type is needed for the integrated gold circuits involved in interconnects and multiplexed specific sensors, thereby avoiding the use of complex multimaterials interfaces. This is possiblebecause the programmable local cracking technology allows for the arbitrary fine-tuning of the properties of elastic gold conductors from strain-insensitive to highly strain-sensitive simply by adjusting localized crack size, shape, and orientations-a capability impossible to achieve with previous bulk cracking technology. Furthermore, in-plane integration of strain/pressure sensors, anisotropic orientation-specific sensors, strain-insensitive stretchable interconnects, temperature sensors, glucose sensors, and lactate sensors without the need of soldering or gluing are demonstrated. This strategy opens a new general route for the design of next-generation wearable electronic tattoos.

Thiol-polystyrene (SH-PS)-capped plasmonic nanoparticles can be fabricated into free-standing, one-nanoparticle-thick superlattice sheets (termed plasmene) based on physical entanglement between ligands, which, however, suffer from irreversible dissociation in organic solvents. To address this issue, we introduce coumarin-based photo-cross-linkable moieties to the SH-PS ligands to stabilize gold nanoparticles. Once cross-linked, the obtained plasmene nanosheets consisting of chemically locked nanoparticles can well maintain structural integrity in organic solvents. Particularly, arising from ligand-swelling-induced enlargement of the interparticle spacing, these plasmene nanosheets show significant optical responses to various solvents in a specific as well as reversible manner, which may offer an excellent material for solvent sensing and dynamic plasmonic display.