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As promising candidates for widespread application, advanced ceramic fiber mats with robust mechanical properties are urgently needed. However, the brittleness, fatigue failure, and large density of ceramic fiber pose significant obstacles to its practical application. Herein, a novel SiO2 aerogel/ZrO2 composite nanofibrous membrane (SZCNFM) with excellent flexibility was prepared by introducing SiO2 aerogel nanoparticles into ZrO2 nanofiber via simple co‐electrospinning. The developed tetragonal zirconia phase without changing up to 1200°C endows SZCNFM material with excellent thermal stability. Furthermore, the as‐prepared membranes exhibit fatigue resistance ability which can maintain 98% of the original stress after 100 buckling cycle tests. The addition of mesoporous structure aerogel reduces the heat transfer of the nanofibrous membrane, giving its low thermal conductivity (30 mW/m/K) and low‐frequency sound absorption (noise reduction coefficient of 0.52). Combined with the high‐temperature resistance, low thermal conductivity and excellent sound‐absorption ability make it a promising material for heat insulation and acoustic absorption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eu2+‐doped phosphors have attracted the great attention of researchers in the past decade. However, Eu2+ dopant in inorganic hosts often suffers from the self‐oxidation effect, therefore causing the attenuated emission intensity and quantum efficiency. In this regard, developing Eu2+ doped phosphors with the prohibited self‐oxidation effect of Eu2+ and increased thermal stability is urgently required. Herein, an innovative cyan‐light emitting Li2CaSiO4:Eu2+/Eu3+, Lu3+ (LCSO) phosphor is designed. Both experimental results and theoretical calculations demonstrate that adding Lu3+ restricts the self‐oxidation of Eu2+ into Eu3+, thus improving the emission of Eu2+. Meanwhile, the Lu3+ introduction brings out excellent thermal stability. Finally, an efficient WLED with a color temperature (CCT) of 4573 K and a high color rendering index (Ra) of 84.2 is obtained using the as‐prepared phosphor due to the perfect compensation of the cyan light. As the introduction of Lu3+ improves the stability of Eu2+, a much greater difference in PL decay rate between Eu2+ and Eu3+ in LCSO is reached, thereby improving their sensitivity in temperature sensing. The strategy of Lu3+ introduction for prohibiting the self‐oxidation of Eu2+ for efficient and stable Eu2+ emission may stimulate some new ideas in designing high‐performance phosphors for more diverse applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fe3+‐doped MgGa2O4 (MGO: Fe3+) spinel‐type near‐infrared (NIR) phosphor with non‐toxicity, outstanding thermal stability, and tunable emission has recently gained great concern owing to its wide applications. Nevertheless, the existence of detrimental O defects in the MgGa2O4 host and the forbidden d‐d transitions of Fe3+ lead to unsatisfactory luminescence efficiency, limiting the commercial application. In this study, a vacancy repairing engineering has been innovatively developed via F− substitution in MGO: Fe3+ (MGOF: Fe3+) for significantly enhancing NIR emission and maintaining outstanding thermal stability. Specifically, F− substitution with a similar radius effectively repairs the intrinsic O vacancy defects of MGO, thereby prohibiting the detrimental electron‐capturing effect. Meanwhile, F− incorporation can make the lattice of MGO distort and break the forbidden transition of Fe3+. Significantly, the obtained MGOF: Fe3+ presents a 16‐fold higher emission intensity than that of MGO: Fe3+. More important, the MGOF: Fe3+ can remain at 91.17% (363 K) and 85.10% (423 K). Finally, the NIR emission of MGOF: Fe3+ can be used for night vision, non‐destructive biological tissue detection, and food analysis. The proposed vacancy repairing strategy can certainly stimulate some new thoughts and concepts in designing high‐performance phosphors for wider applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Sodium ion batteries (SIBs) are considered reliable supplies for next-generation energy devices. However, there is a limited understanding of strategies to prevent the performance deterioration of SIBs under extreme temperature conditions. This study aimed to address this challenge by developing modified electrolyte chemistry to achieve stable wide-temperature SIBs. Weakly Na+-solvating solvent 2-methyltetrahydrofuran (MeTHF) was used to promote the kinetics of Na+ de-solvation. Moreover, 1,2-dimethoxyethane (DME) was introduced as a co-solvent because of the high solubility for Na salts and the coupling reaction mechanism with the Bi electrode. The formulated electrolyte not only endows an anion-dominated NaF-rich solid electrolyte interface (SEI) layer, but also reduces the energy required for the Na+ across the SEI layer (from 291.2 to 89.6 meV). Consequently, Na||Bi half batteries achieve stable cycles at 400 mA g−1 at −20, 20 and 60 °C, respectively. Meanwhile, the extreme operating temperature of the batteries can be extended to −40 and 80 °C, which exceeds those of most current lithium/sodium-based batteries. Furthermore, full batteries employing Na 3 V 2 (PO 4) 3 as the cathode material exhibit stable operation over a wide temperature range of −20 to 60 °C. This electrolyte design strategy presented in this study shows significant promise for enabling wide-temperature SIBs with improved performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignancies with a high lethality rate. ZMIZ2 is a transcriptional co-activator implicated in various human diseases. However, the role and molecular mechanism of ZMIZ2 in HCC remains to be elucidated. Methods: The expression and prognostic value of ZMIZ2 in HCC was excavated from public databases and explored by bioinformatic analysis. Then the expression of ZMIZ2 and related genes was further validated by quantitative RT-PCR, western blotting, and immunohistochemistry. Loss and gain-of-function experiments were performed in vitro and in vivo to investigate the function of ZMIZ2 in HCC. In addition, transcriptome sequencing and immunoprecipitation was conducted to explore the potential molecular mechanisms of ZMIZ2. Results: ZMIZ2 was highly expressed in HCC and associated with poor prognosis. Silencing ZMIZ2 significantly inhibited HCC cell proliferation, cell cycle process, migration, and invasion in vitro, and also inhibited the progression of HCC in vivo. Additionally, ZMIZ2 expression was correlated with immune cell infiltration in HCC samples. Somatic mutation analysis showed that ZMIZ2 and TP53 mutations jointly affected the progression of HCC. Mechanistically, ZMIZ2 interacted with LEF1 to regulate malignant progression of HCC by activating the Wnt/β-catenin pathway. Conclusion: ZMIZ2 was overexpressed in HCC and associated with poor prognosis. The overexpression of ZMIZ2 was corelated with malignant phenotype, and it facilitated HCC progression via LEF1-mediated activation of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway. Furthermore, ZMIZ2 could be served as a prognostic biomarker and a new therapeutic target for HCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study is to propose an interactive training method based on the Unity 3D platform and to evaluate its effectiveness in comparison to a video-based training method in curbing speeding behavior and promoting road safety. Based on the attributes unique to drivers with Type A behavior patterns, this study selected 36 drivers with Type A personality and assigned them to one of two groups (the Unity-based training group, UTG; and the video-based training group, VTG). Moreover, a test questionnaire consisting of 20 items was designed to reveal the drivers’ mastery of knowledge related to speeding behavior through training. The research preliminarily analyzes the effectiveness of the interactive training method based on Unity 3D platform to improve speed management behavior by assessing the effects of the groups (the UTG and the VTG), test sessions (baseline, 30 min post-training, and three days post-training), and the interactive effects of the two factors on the test questionnaire score, the frequency of speeding and (FS), the percentage of time speeding (PTS), and the mean speed based on the two-way repeated-measures ANOVA. The results demonstrated that the Unity-based training method was, to some extent, more effective than the passive video training method at mastering knowledge related to speeding behavior and improving speed management behavior. Specifically, FS and PTS were significantly lower for the UTG than the VTG at the 30 min post-training sessions (p < 0.01) and the three-day post-training sessions (p < 0.01). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The low cycle fatigue properties of Q355B structural steel subjected to different levels of corrosion were investigated in the present study. The corroded Q355B steel coupons were obtained by means of cyclic wet–dry immersion corrosion, and the low cycle fatigue tests of coupons with different corrosion degrees, featuring both constant and variable strain amplitudes, were carried out. The cyclic stress response, cyclic skeleton curve, and hysteretic curve of the corroded steel were analyzed. The low cycle fatigue life of the corroded steel was predicted, and a constitutive model of the corroded steel was proposed. The results show that corrosion reduced the low cycle fatigue life of Q355B structural steel. Finite-element (FE) models were developed, and the FE results were in good agreement with the experimental curves, indicating the accuracy of the constitutive model proposed in this paper. The findings from the present research provide a valuable reference for the accurate assessment of the low cycle fatigue properties of steel structures with varying degrees of corrosion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The subgenus Loxocera (Loxocera Meigen, 1803) (Diptera, Brachycera, Psilidae) in China is reviewed. Six species are recognized, including four new species: L. (L.) chikuni sp. nov., L. (L.) lonsdalei sp. nov., L. (L.) maculithorax sp. nov., and L. (L.) obscura sp. nov. Two species originally placed in the subgenus Loxocera, L. anulata Wang & Yang, 1998 and L. tianmuensis Wang & Yang, 1998, are transferred to the subgenus Loxocera (Imantimyia Frey, 1925). A key to the species of the subgenus Loxocera occurring in China is provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nanofibrous aerogel composites have emerged as most promising materials for their high-temperature insulation in complex environments due to their ultra lightweight, high elasticity, and superior thermal performance. However, the release of particles caused by weak bond strength between nanofibers and aerogel, lead to insulation failure which presents serious challenge. This research presents, a novel approach to mitigate the particle release and significantly improve the overall performance of nanofibrous aerogel composites. The proposed method involves the preparation of particle-free nanofibrous aerogel composites through unique combination of sol-aerogel blending, electrospinning, and freeze-casting processes. The effect of particle release has been successfully eliminated by embedding TiO 2 aerogel within SiO 2 nanofibers even under rigorous conditions (weight loss rate less than 0.57%). Furthermore, the resulting nanofibrous aerogel composite exhibits exceptional thermal insulation properties, with a low thermal conductivity of 0.0251 W/mK at room temperature. Additionally, the proposed composite material configuration demonstrates superior infrared radiation suppression performance resulting in an infrared transmittance of 39.52%. The lamellar structure of the nanofibers aerogel is tailored to provide high compressive strength (2.2 kPa at 40% strain), exceptional cyclic fatigue resistance after 50 cycles, and temperature (−196 to 500 °C) conditions. The outstanding combination of thermal and mechanical properties exhibited by these nanofibrous aerogel composites makes them highly promising for stable thermal protection in extreme environmental conditions. These novel materials promise great potential for application in various engineering industries where reliable thermal insulation is critical. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Effective management of pediatric craniofacial tumors requires coordinated input from medical, oncologic, and surgical specialties. Reconstructive algorithms must consider limitations in pediatric donor tissue and account for future growth and development. Immediate reconstruction is often focused on filling dead space, protecting underlying structures, and ensuring skeletal symmetry. Staged reconstruction occurs after the patient has reached skeletal maturity and is focused on restoring permanent dentition. Reconstructive options vary depending on the location, size, and composition of resected tissue. Virtual surgical planning (VSP) reduces the complexity of pediatric craniofacial reconstruction and ensures more predictable outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Documentary podcasts are attracting people's attention as a form of podcast. These non-fictional aural texts require substantial effort and time to produce, presenting true stories to the audience through the utilization of recording technology and sound design, resulting a distinct aesthetic. Taking Page Seven as a case study, the objective of this article is to examine the process of auditory scene interaction between the audience and the aural text in documentary podcasts. Page Seven was founded in 2012 and is recognized as the first audio documentary podcast in Mainland China. This article posits that documentary podcasts engage the audience's visual perception in addition to their auditory perception. The realistic soundscape and the listener's imagination merge to form the auditory scene. By applying the uses and gratification theory and narrative transportation, this study reveals that Page Seven allowed the audience to fulfil multiple needs, including affective needs. This study attempts to explain the communication process of documentary podcasts from three aspects: sensory, imagination and emotion, thereby enriching the cultural landscape within the realm of documentary podcasts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wuyishan National Park is well known for its rich biodiversity. Previously, only five species of Hybos Meigen, 1803 were known to occur in this region. In this study, 27 species of the genus Hybos from Wuyishan National Park are reviewed based on comparative morphological characteristics. Among these, nine species are described as new to science: Hybos brevidigitatus sp. nov., Hybos constractus sp. nov., Hybos curvitibia sp. nov., Hybos dazhulanus sp. nov., Hybos fujianensis sp. nov., Hybos leucopogus sp. nov., Hybos longidigitatus sp. nov., Hybos modificatus sp. nov., and Hybos wuyishanus sp. nov. Diagnoses, detailed descriptions, remarks, colored illustrations, distributions, and some of the female terminalia characteristics are provided for nine new species. In addition, 13 species of this genus are reported for the first time in Wuyishan National Park. A key to Hybos species from Wuyishan National Park is also given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cytoplasmic mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) can trigger the interferon response to promote disease progression, but mtDNA sensing mechanisms remain elusive. Lei et al. have shown that Z-DNA binding protein1 (ZBP1) cooperates with cyclic GMP-AMP synthase (cGAS) to sense Z-form mtDNA and transmit mtDNA stress signals to promote diseases such as cardiotoxicity, providing an important piece of the mtDNA stress landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The targeted and differentiated optimization method of risky driving behavior education and training (TDOM-RDBET) is developed. • High-risk drivers are selected as targeting drivers for education and training. • Drivers are classified into different types based on value and goal orientations. • The TDOM-RDBET is, to some extent, more effective than the general training method at reducing the risky driving behavior. Introduction : To promote the safety level of ride-hailing services, this study develops the Targeted and Differentiated Optimization Method of Risky Driving Behavior Education and Training (TDOM-RDBET) founded on driver type classification of high-risk drivers. Method: Based on value and goal orientations, 689 drivers were classified into four driver types and were assigned to three groups, including an experimental group, a blank control group, and a general control group. This research preliminarily analyzes the effectiveness of the TDOM-RDBET to reduce mobile phone use while driving by assessing the main effects of the group and test session on the risk value ranking of mobile phone use while driving (AR), the frequency per 100 km of mobile phone use while driving (AF), and the frequency per 100 km of risky driving behaviors (AFR), as well as the interactive effects of the two factors on AR, AF, and AFR, based on a two-way analysis of variance (two-way ANOVA). Results: The results demonstrate an overall significant reduction in AR (F = 8.653, p = 0.003), AF (F = 11.027, p = 0.001), and AFR (F = 8.072, p = 0.005) for the experimental group after training. Moreover, significant interactive effects of the driver group × test session on AR (F = 7.481, p = 0.001) and AF (F = 15.217, p < 0.001) were found. AR was significantly lower for the experimental group than for the blank control group (p < 0.05) in the post-training condition. Moreover, AF was also significantly lower for the experimental group than for the blank control group (p < 0.05) and general control group (p < 0.05) in the post-training condition. Practical Applications: On the whole, it was preliminarily verified that the TDOM-RDBET is more effective than the general training method at modifying the risky driving behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In congested street or highway scenarios, such as lane-change in dynamically changing traffic flow situations, the planning and tracking of trajectories for connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) represent some of the most challenging tasks. As an introduction to automated lane-change in CAVs, this paper presents a control Lyapunov function (CLF) approach that follows an optimal desired trajectory while observing the constraints imposed by the control barrier function (CBF) in order to avoid collision with surrounding vehicles. By combining CLF and CBF within the framework of quadratic programs (QP), it allows the implementation to simultaneously track the control objective (represented by the CLF) and satisfy the constraints of the desired state of the system (represented by the CBF). Therefore, it provides the possibility of tracking simultaneously the path of the unmanned vehicle, within the constraints of the surrounding vehicles as well as the surrounding environment. From simulations and comparison results, the controller presented here can perform collision avoidance well and can be used on a real traffic system, which has the advantage of providing faster and more precise lane-change results than another work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a rapid strengthening method for severely earthquake-damaged RC piers. In this strengthening method, high-strength steel bars (HSSB) HTRB600 were used as vertical and horizontal planting rebars anchored into pier footing and pier shaft, and ultra-high-strength concrete (UHPC) was used as grout material. Meanwhile, the UHPC was used to strengthen the damaged plastic hinge region to form the enlarged section to realize the mechanical integrity of the strengthening piers. Utilizing the early strength property of UHPC, the proposed rapid strengthening method can realize the rapid recovery of vertical bearing capacity of severely damaged RC piers, thus ensuring the rapid passage and emergency rescue of bridges after earthquakes. Four severely damaged RC piers under cyclic tests were strengthened and reloaded, and the seismic performance of strengthening and original RC piers was compared, including lateral bearing capacity, lateral stiffness, deformability and hysteretic dissipated energy. Research results show that, for RC piers with only bar buckling but no bar fracture in original specimen, the UHPC enlarged section over strengthens the damaged plastic hinge region, resulting in the plastic hinge of the strengthening piers being relocated to the upper part of enlarged strengthening section. The strengthening pier presents better seismic performance, including lateral bearing capacity, deformability and energy dissipation capacity than original piers. For RC piers with partial longitudinal reinforcement facture, two kinds of strengthening methods, with or without using horizontal planting rebars, were adopted. When using horizontal planting rebars, in spite of presenting asymmetric failure due to the asymmetric damage of original piers, the strengthening RC piers still present comparable seismic performance with original piers. However, the strengthening pier without using horizontal planting rebars presents more distinct pinching effect, lower deformability and hysteretic dissipated energy than original pier. Therefore, the horizontal planting rebars can enhance the force integrity between UHPC enlarged section and pier shaft, and then ensure the seismic performance of strengthening RC piers. Overall, the proposed rapid strengthening method with horizontal planting rebars can not only fulfill the post-earthquake rapid passage demand in short time for the severely earthquake-damaged RC piers, but also ensure the long-term service of strengthening bridge piers by restoring their seismic performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For the wind speed prediction, many researchers have established prediction models based on machine learning methods, statistical methods, and theoretical methods, that is, direct methods. However, the direct method cannot be widely used in the wind direction prediction because the wind direction has strong randomness and uncertainty. In order to solve this problem, this paper proposed a wind direction prediction method, that is, indirect method. Specifically, the wind speed is decomposed into crosswind speed and alongwind speed considering the correlation between wind speed and wind direction. The crosswind speed and alongwind speed are predicted based on long short-term memory (LSTM) model with empirical mode decomposition (EMD), and then, the wind direction prediction value can be calculated, that is, the wind direction prediction is realized. One-month wind monitoring data collected by the structural health monitoring (SHM) system installed on investigated bridge are employed to demonstrate the effectiveness of direct and indirect prediction for forecasting the wind speed and wind direction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Engineering crystal structure of Cs3BiBr6 and Cs3Bi2Br9 is theoretically and experimentally demonstrated to modulate their photocatalytic performance. This work offers insights into the structure-photoactivity relationships of metal halide perovskites (MHPs) and provides a guideline for exploiting MHPs toward efficient photocatalytic organic synthesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number of people suffering from diabetes in Taiwan has continued to rise in recent years. According to the statistics of the International Diabetes Federation, about 537 million people worldwide (10.5% of the global population) suffer from diabetes, and it is estimated that 643 million people will develop the condition (11.3% of the total population) by 2030. If this trend continues, the number will jump to 783 million (12.2%) by 2045. At present, the number of people with diabetes in Taiwan has reached 2.18 million, with an average of one in ten people suffering from the disease. In addition, according to the Bureau of National Health Insurance in Taiwan, the prevalence rate of diabetes among adults in Taiwan has reached 5% and is increasing each year. Diabetes can cause acute and chronic complications that can be fatal. Meanwhile, chronic complications can result in a variety of disabilities or organ decline. If holistic treatments and preventions are not provided to diabetic patients, it will lead to the consumption of more medical resources and a rapid decline in the quality of life of society as a whole. In this study, based on the outpatient examination data of a Taipei Municipal medical center, 15,000 women aged between 20 and 80 were selected as the subjects. These women were patients who had gone to the medical center during 2018–2020 and 2021–2022 with or without the diagnosis of diabetes. This study investigated eight different characteristics of the subjects, including the number of pregnancies, plasma glucose level, diastolic blood pressure, sebum thickness, insulin level, body mass index, diabetes pedigree function, and age. After sorting out the complete data of the patients, this study used Microsoft Machine Learning Studio to train the models of various kinds of neural networks, and the prediction results were used to compare the predictive ability of the various parameters for diabetes. Finally, this study found that after comparing the models using two-class logistic regression as well as the two-class neural network, two-class decision jungle, or two-class boosted decision tree for prediction, the best model was the two-class boosted decision tree, as its area under the curve could reach a score of 0.991, which was better than other models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we propose a randomized Bayesian optimal phase II (RBOP2) design with a binary endpoint (e.g., response rate). A beta-binomial distribution is used to model the binary endpoint for a two-arm phase II trial. Posterior probabilities of the endpoint of interest are evaluated at each interim look and used in the decision to stop the trial due to futility. Compared with other Bayesian designs, the proposed RBOP2 design has the following merits: (i) strongly controls the type I error rate at a pre-defined level; (ii) optimizes the stopping boundaries, thus maximizing the power to detect treatment effects and minimizing the expected sample size for futile treatment; (iii) does not limit the number of interim looks, thus enabling frequent trial monitoring; and (iv) allows the stopping boundaries to be pre-defined in the protocol and is easy to implement. We conduct simulation studies to compare the proposed design with a group sequential design and other Bayesian randomized designs and evaluate its operating characteristics under different scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hindlimb ischemia (HLI) is an arterial occlusive disease that exposes the patients to the risk of limb gangrene and loss. Polarization of macrophages is related to HLI-induced inflammation. Period circadian regulator 1 (PER1) is a core component of the circadian clock. We first showed, based upon bioinformatics analysis of microarray data, that PER1 expression was reduced in monocytes from patients with critical limb ischemia. The proximal femoral artery in the left hindlimb of male mice was ligated and then the femoral artery and its collateral branches were removed to establish the HLI mouse model. After modeling, a single intramuscular injection of 1 × 109 pfu Ad-PER1 was performed at the adductor and gastrocnemius muscles. The gastrocnemius muscle tissues were collected at day 0, 3, 7, 14, 21 post-HLI. There was obvious pathological necrosis, accompanied with reduced expression of PER1 in the muscle tissues of HLI mice. Expression of CD68 and CD31 seemed to be corresponded to PER1 in gastrocnemius muscle, implying the potential of PER1 in regulating macrophage-related inflammation and angiogenesis. PER1 overexpression diminished myocyte damage, promoted blood flow restoration and improved behavioral scores of HLI mice. Immunostaining of CD31 and α-SMA revealed that PER1 upregulation reversed HLI-induced decreases in capillary and arteriole density. In vitro, RAW264.7 cells were cultured in hypoxia (1% O 2) for 24 h. The percentage of pro-inflammatory CD86+ macrophages (M1 type) was decreased and that of anti-inflammatory CD206+ macrophages (M2 type) was increased when PER1 was overexpressed. Moreover, the expression levels of TNF-α, IL-6 and M1-type marker iNOS were decreased, and levels of IL-10 and M2-type marker Arg-1 were increased by PER1 in gastrocnemius muscle of HLI mice and hypoxia-treated RAW264.7 cells. PER1 might reduce M1 macrophage polarization and promote M2 macrophage polarization, and thus exert anti-inflammatory and pro-angiogenic actions. Our findings suggest that PER1 overexpression promotes functional recovery of mice with HLI through regulating macrophage polarization. • PER1 expression was reduced in gastrocnemius muscles of mice with hindlimb ischemia. • PER1 overexpression promoted blood flow recovery of mice with hindlimb ischemia. • PER1 overexpression attenuated hindlimb ischemia-induced inflammation. • PER1 reduced M1 macrophage polarization and promoted M2 macrophage polarization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Driving habit is a key determinant of speeding behaviour. • Type A personality trait has a significant effect on attitude and risk perception. • The indirect effect of attitude on speeding behavior mediated by speeding intention is significant. • The indirect effect of risk perception on speeding behavior mediated by speeding intention is significant. • Attitude, driving habit, and risk perception play a mediating role in the relation between Type A personality trait and speeding behavior. Speeding, the most frequent traffic offense, is a key contributor to road crashes. This study explores the psychological factors affecting drivers' speeding behavior (exceeding the posted speed limit by more than 10%) based on the extended theory of planned behavior (TPB). The scale incorporating TPB constructs and additional variables (Type A personality, risk perception, and driving habit) was developed to collect empirical data, and 945 valid samples were obtained. The reliability and validity of the developed scales were verified, and a structural equation model of drivers' speeding behavior was established to explore the causal relationship between speeding behavior and psychological characteristics and the interrelationships between TPB variables (speeding intention, attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control), explicit cognition predictors (risk perception and Type A personality) and implicit habitual factors (driving habit). The results showed that speeding intention and driving habit positively correlated with self-reported speeding behavior. In addition, attitude and risk perception positively correlated with speeding intention. Although Type A personality trait had no significant effects on speeding behaviors, it had significant effects on attitude and risk perception. In addition, the results of the mediation analysis demonstrated that speeding intention, driving habit, and attitude toward speeding are the most influential factors. Attitude and risk perception have a significant indirect effect on speeding behavior mediated by speeding intention. Drivers' attitudes, driving habits, and risk perception played a mediating role in the relationships between Type A personality traits and speeding behavior. The findings yield insights into useful information and directions for designing road safety interventions, developing driver education and training programs, and strengthening social messaging aimed at the general public. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the extraction and usage of liquefied natural gas (LNG) cold energy, the heat transfer research of cryogenic fluid in spiral coil is mostly under the simplified condition of constant boundary temperature or constant heat flux density. This paper focuses on the actual situation of fluid–fluid coupling heat transfer in spiral coil. Under the condition of variable physical parameters, computational fluid dynamics numerical analysis is carried out on the non-customized numerical model through the Realizable k-ε turbulence model, and the influence of LNG flow and evaporation heat transfer characteristics in spiral coil is studied by changing the heat transfer structure. The results show that the heat transfer under non-constant boundary conditions is more in line with the actual heat transfer, and the spiral radius has the greatest influence on the heat transfer coefficient. When the spiral radius increases from 40 to 100 mm, the heat transfer coefficient decreases by 60.14%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the effect of the swirler scheme on combustion instability is studied. Through the proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) of flame images, Abel inverse transform and other methods, the influence of swirl intensity on the characteristic frequency of combustion instability was emphatically studied. Based on the low order thermoacoustic network (LOTAN) of the combustor, the flame transfer function (FTF) under different swirl schemes was obtained by the optimization method. The experimental results show that the stable combustion equivalence ratio boundary of the system decreases monotonously with the decrease in swirl intensity, while the characteristic frequency of unstable combustion is not monotonous with the swirl intensity (the oscillating frequency of swirler A with the largest swirl intensity is approximately 319 Hz, swirler B is approximately 280 Hz, swirler C with the smallest swirl intensity is approximately 290 Hz). The optimization results of FTF can easily introduce this non monotonic phenomenon. The swirl intensity mainly affects the hysteresis time of the system (the lag time of swirlers A, B and C are 5.98 ms, 6.82 ms and 6.20 ms, respectively), which is mainly caused by affecting the flame structure and convection velocity. At the same time, the FTF obtained by optimization reflects the same trend with the experimental results, and there is no significant difference in value, which proves the rationality of the optimization method. This work emphasizes the importance of FTF for combustion instability analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 20-feet latent cold energy storage device integrated with a novel fin-plate unit was used to cool a 400 m2 building space, in which the cold energy could be generated from renewable energy, industrial waste cold, or off-peak electricity. Due to the low thermal conductivity of n-pentadecane, a novel fin-plate unit was designed to improve the heat transfer rate of PCMs especially for the restricted charging process. Meanwhile, energy storage efficiency of the device under different operating parameters was analyzed. The results showed that the introduction of straight fin significantly accelerated the solidification process of encapsulated PCMs. Compared with straight fin, the branch fin (l Branch = 30 mm, α = 120°) that had the same volume was found to shorten 27.7% of the charging time. While such branch fin could only shorten 2.8% of the discharging time, which might be attributed to the balance between the contribution and the restrictiveness for heat transfer caused by the fin. The small inlet velocity of 0.03 m/s was shown to contribute to a high energy storage efficiency of 86.83% and a long output time of 12.08 h. The results of this work were expected to provide the foundation for building the low-carbon architecture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The thermal radiation phenomenon is more crucial than other thermal transportation phenomena at elevated temperatures (>300 °C). Therefore, infrared radiation resistance and its performance on thermal conduction of nanofibrous aerogel with Titanium oxide (TiO2) filler have been investigated compared to control groups (silica nanofibrous aerogels with and without filler). Nanofibrous aerogel has been produced by electrospun silica nanofibers. Later, TiO2 opacifier and a non-opacifier filled materials were prepared by a solution homogenization method and then freeze-dried to obtain particle-filled nanofibrous aerogel. Moreover, the thermal radiation conductivity of the composite was calculated by numerical simulation, and the effect of the anti-infrared radiation of the TiO2 opacifier was obtained. The fascinating inhibited infrared radiation transmission performance (infrared transmittance ~67% at 3 μm) and excellent thermal insulation effect (thermal conductivity of 0.019 Wm−1K−1 at room temperature) and maximum compressive strengths (3.22 kPa) of silica nanofibrous aerogel with TiO2 opacifier were verified. Excellent thermal insulation, compression and thermal stability properties show its potential for practical application in industrial production. The successful synthesis of this material may shed light on the development of other insulative ceramic aerogels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • A hydrogel with interpenetrated network is prepared by PVA, starch and CNT. • It shows a wide adsorption in solar spectrum and excellent light-to-heat conversion. • It exhibits a very high evaporation rate of 2.44 kg m−2h−1 under 1 Sun irradiation. • Evaporator can precisely adjust the water state and reduce the evaporation enthalpy. • It removes heavy metal ions, organic dyes and kill bacterial in the wastewater. Solar evaporation which ultilizes the sustainable solar energy for freshwater production from waste or saline water is one of the most attractive technologies to simultaneously address energy and freshwater crisis. Nevertheless, high energy consumption of water-vapor transformation greatly restricts the practical applications of solar-driven water purification. Herein, we report hybrid hydrogels formed by introducing biomass, starch, and carbon nanotube into hydrophilic polyvinyl alcohol in a cost-effective route, used as multifunctional evaporators. The interpenetrating network has good hydrophilicity, fast water transport and adjustable state of water molecules, which reduces the enthalpy of water vaporization to promote the evaporation process. Thus, the obtained hydrogel evaporator possesses an evaporation rate of 2.44 kg m−2h−1 with 95% efficiency under one-sun, and is capable of producing clean water from various types of wastewater, including salty, acidic, alkaline and organic polluted water, with long-term durability and stability. It also presents excellent antibacterial, salt resistance and self-cleaning capabilities, suitable for practical applications. More notably, with abundant OH groups from starch, the hybrid hydrogel can effectively adsorb heavy metal ions and organic dyes via formation of chelating and hydrogen bonds. Therefore, this work provides a new approach for portable and cost-effective solar-driven wastewater purification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Vitamin D deficiency is common in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Observational studies have reported that it is associated with SLE. In this bidirectional Mendelian randomization (MR) study, we explored the genetic association between serum vitamin D (VD) levels and SLE using two models.Methods: Genetic variants associated with vitamin D (n = 304,181), 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels (n = 401,460), and SLE (n = 213,683) at genome-wide significance (P < 5∗10-8) derived from large-scale publicly available GWAS data were used as instrumental variables. Bidirectional two-sample MR analyses were performed using the inverse variance weighted method (IVW, random, or fixed effect model). Sensitivity analyses including maximum likelihood, MR-Egger method, penalized weighted median method, MR-PRESSO, MR-RAPS, and MR-radial method were conducted.Results: The findings showed that genetically predicted SLE using the IVW method had a negative effect on the vitamin D and 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels in the two models. The results of sensitivity analyses of different analytical approaches were consistent.Conclusions: These findings indicated that genetically determined SLE had a negative effect on the vitamin D and 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels. Future studies, including random controlled clinical trials, should evaluate the association and mechanisms between serum VD levels and SLE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The annual operation data of an F-class gas turbine generator set revealed that the duration of the startup process accounts for about 8.5% of the whole operation process. The three combustion models of a DLN2.0+ combustor demonstrated higher NOx emissions than the premixed mode under normal load during the startup process. In order to evaluate the scale of NOx emissions at this stage, numerical simulation was carried out for the startup process to discern the NOx emission pattern. Typical simulation conditions for each season were established to calculate the total annual NOx emissions at the initial stage based on operating data. On this basis, the characteristics of NOx emissions influenced by changes in the atmospheric environment were studied in depth. The results of this study provide referential data for evaluating the pollution characteristics and combustion adjustment of a ground gas turbine during startup. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Owing to its convenient, sustainable and green process, photocatalysis has become a feasible technique for solving environmental pollution issues. So far, significant achievements have been realized in photocatalytic pollutant elimination. Nevertheless, photocatalytic processes require a continuous external light illumination to drive photoredox reactions, seriously prohibiting their applications in darkness. In this context, exploring a photocatalyst with reliable photocatalytic activity in dark condition is therefore highly meaningful and an ultimate target of photocatalysis technique. Recently, long afterglow phosphor has aroused great attention due to its "light battery" role for driving catalytic reactions in dark conditions. To be specific, long-afterglow phosphor or long-afterglow phosphor/semiconductor composite can be used as a photocatalyst to simultaneously promote the photoredox processes and store extra photoexcited charges in the trapping states upon light irradiation. When the light illumination terminates, a gradual release of the charges from trapping states occurs in long-afterglow phosphor, which can continuously spur photoredox reactions under the dark environment and even maintains the photocatalysis around the clock. In this work, we comprehensively reviewed the recent advances of long afterglow phosphor based round-the-clock photocatalysts in environmental pollutant elimination. Meanwhile, the inherent mechanism of long afterglow photocatalysis was discussed in depth. More importantly, the relationship between the improved long afterglow photocatalytic capability and the engineering of long afterglow system is correlated systematically. Finally, the ongoing challenges and future prospects for the mass production and commercial utilization of round-the-clock photocatalysts are analyzed and outlooked. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The concentrations of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the eastern Pamirs stay at a low level compared with other remote regions. • The eastern Pamirs are more pristine than other parts of the Tibetan Plateau. • Three major geographical distribution patterns were elucidated. • The historical use of pesticides from potential source regions may influence the eastern Pamirs via long-range atmospheric transport. Long-range atmospheric transport (LRAT) plays a crucial role in the occurrence of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in remote regions. When studying the LRAT of POPs on the Tibetan Plateau, westerly-controlled regions have received insufficient attention compared with regions influenced by the Indian monsoon or air flow from East Asia. We investigated the residual levels of POPs in soils from the eastern Pamirs and used air backward trajectory analysis to elucidate the influence of potential source regions via LRAT. Organochlorine pesticides (OCPs, mainly comprising DDTs, HCHs, and HCB), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs, mainly comprising penta- and hexa-CBs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs, mainly comprising three- and four-ring) were detected at low concentrations of 40–1000,

This study aims to improve soil vapor extraction (SVE) to address its shortcomings in treating halogenated hydrocarbon-contaminated soil. Indoor simulation experiments based on SVE were conducted to provide technical guidance for the remediation of 1,2-DCA-contaminated soil, with the overall intention of soil repair and ecological restoration. A thermal oxidation SVE (TOSVE) system was designed on the basis of SVE technology for application in the remediation of low-permeability soil contaminated with halogenated hydrocarbons from a chemical plant in Northeast China. Laboratory simulation experiments were conducted based on TOSVE technology to study the removal of target pollutants under different organic contents, moisture and air speeds. For the first time, a new material, scoria, was added to the oxidant at different proportions, and its effect on the exhaust gas treatment efficiency was examined. Thermal extraction improved the extraction efficiency of pollutants from low-permeability soil. Moreover, the adsorption–oxidation effect of 0.1–0.25 mm scoria prepared by 20% Na2S2O8 on 1,2-dichloroethane (1,2-DCA) in tail gas was higher than that of the oxidant without scoria, indicating that scoria is effective in tail gas treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to improve soil vapor extraction (SVE) to address its shortcomings in treating halogenated hydrocarbon-contaminated soil. Indoor simulation experiments based on SVE were conducted to provide technical guidance for the remediation of 1,2-DCA-contaminated soil, with the overall intention of soil repair and ecological restoration. A thermal oxidation SVE (TOSVE) system was designed on the basis of SVE technology for application in the remediation of low-permeability soil contaminated with halogenated hydrocarbons from a chemical plant in Northeast China. Laboratory simulation experiments were conducted based on TOSVE technology to study the removal of target pollutants under different organic contents, moisture and air speeds. For the first time, a new material, scoria, was added to the oxidant at different proportions, and its effect on the exhaust gas treatment efficiency was examined. Thermal extraction improved the extraction efficiency of pollutants from low-permeability soil. Moreover, the adsorption–oxidation effect of 0.1–0.25 mm scoria prepared by 20% Na2S2O8 on 1,2-dichloroethane (1,2-DCA) in tail gas was higher than that of the oxidant without scoria, indicating that scoria is effective in tail gas treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The traffic order index (TOI) was used to evaluate the road safety risk levels. • The multinomial logit model (MNL) was developed to explore the impact factors in the interchange area of urban expressways. • The results found the factors that significantly influence risky roads. Introduction: Urban expressway interchanges have become accident-prone sites owing to the accelerated increase in motor-vehicle ownership. This study explored the impact of factors, including day of the week, time of day, congestion level, traffic control devices, and road conditions, on road safety risk levels in the interchange area of an urban expressway based on aggregate driving behavior data. Method: A large amount of aggregate driving behavior data were obtained from AutoNavi navigation software. The database was built by matching various types of data and observing their characteristics. Day of the week, time of day, congestion level, road conditions (number of lanes, traffic disturbance, and traffic control devices [the type of advance guide sign system, number of warning signs, and the complexity of the diagrammatic guide sign]) were identified as the explanatory variables. The traffic order index (TOI), based on driving behavior and speed variation, was used to evaluate the road safety risk levels, including risky roads, general roads, and safe roads, which served as the response variables. The multinomial logit model (MNL) was developed to explore the impact of various factors, including traffic control devices and road conditions, on road safety risk levels. Results: The results showed that the factors that significantly influence risky roads include day of the week, number of lanes, congestion level (slow moving), traffic disturbance (with the merge or diverge within 500 m), type of advance guide sign system (three-level advance guide sign system), and complexity of diagrammatic guide signs (low or medium complexity). Practical Applications : This study could offer plausible suggestions for traffic management departments for the rehabilitation of road conditions and traffic control devices in urban expressway interchange areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cardiovascular diseases are a serious threat to human health, especially in the elderly. Vascular aging makes people more susceptible to cardiovascular diseases due to significant dysfunction or senescence of vascular cells and maladaptation of vascular structure and function; moreover, vascular aging is currently viewed as a modifiable cardiovascular risk factor. To emphasize the relationship between senescent cells and vascular aging, we first summarize the roles of senescent vascular cells (endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells and immune cells) in the vascular aging process and inducers that contribute to cellular senescence. Then, we present potential strategies for directly targeting senescent cells (senotherapy) or preventively targeting senescence inducers (senoprevention) to delay vascular aging and the development of age-related vascular diseases. Finally, based on recent research, we note some important questions that still need to be addressed in the future. The relationships among cellular senescence inducers, senescent cells and vascular aging. Telomere-dependent replicative senescence and stress-induced premature senescence have different senescence inducers. These inducers comprise a complicated network and promote cell senescence in aortas. Senescent vascular cells lead to typical pathological changes of vascular aging by abnormal function and molecular expression, which further contribute to related vascular diseases. Cell senescence and other pathological changes induced the abnormalities in vascular structure and function, which are direct manifestations of vascular aging and related diseases. More details are provided in the main text. Abbreviation: ECs: Endothelium cells; ECM: Extracellular matrix; IIS: Impaired immunosurveillance; RAAS: Renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system; SASP: Senescence associated secretory phenotype; VSMCs: Vascular smooth muscle cells. [Display omitted] • Vascular aging is currently viewed as a modifiable cardiovascular risk factor. • Vascular cells senescence contributes to the progression of vascular aging along with age-related disorders. • The clearance of senescent cells by senotherapy or senoprevention is a candidate intervention to decelerate vascular aging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two-dimensional layered crystals have distinct advantages for short channel devices, however, the large contact resistance is a major obstacle to their utilization. Here we present a method to transform two-dimensional layered crystals of MoTe 2 with different thicknesses from the 2H phase to the 1T phase using hydrogen plasma treatment. We analyze the influence of this phase change on the contact resistance by using Raman spectroscopy and the output and transfer characteristics of electrical devices. Results show that the contact resistance is significantly reduced to 1.2 KΩ, and is dependent on the number of layers, with thicker layers having lower contact resistance. AFM characterization has shown that plasma treatment can induce phase transitions in the all layers of MoTe 2 nanosheet, resulting in the total resistance being equivalent to the parallel connection of the resistance of each layer. Our findings suggest that the thickness of MoTe 2 has a strong effect on its electrical properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dissolved organic matter (DOM) is one of the most important ligands governing the geochemical cycling of metals in the environment, but recent studies with Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR-MS) have shown enormous complexity and diversity of DOM composition. How the diverse molecular composition of DOM affects the reactivity of DOM with metals is still largely unknown, which precludes us from developing accurate geochemical models for the fate of metals in the environment. In this study, we combined FT-ICR-MS analysis and theoretical modeling approaches and specifically elucidated the link between molecular composition and the proton and Cu binding ability of DOM, using the Suwannee River fulvic acid (FA) as a model humic substance. Batch adsorption experiments were conducted to generate different extents of molecular fractionation of FA samples by ferrihydrite. FT-ICR-MS analyses were employed to investigate the changes of molecular composition while Cu titration and the Windermere Humic Aqueous Model (WHAM) were used to quantify the variations on the Cu binding capacities of FA samples. We developed a general theoretical modeling approach, which integrated a suite of theoretical modeling methods, including the Vienna Soil-Organic-Matter-Modeler (VSOMM), SPARC Performs Automated Reasoning in Chemistry (SPARC), and the linear free energy relationships (LFER), for molecular modeling based on FT-ICR-MS data. Based on the FT-ICR-MS results, we found that, despite of the complex molecular composition of FA, FA molecules can be divided into three representative groups and each group of molecules had distinct chemical properties. Interestingly, molecules within the same group had similar distributions of molecular properties. Based on the chemical properties of the three groups of FA molecules, we successfully constructed three molecular models of FA using VSOMM, and quantified the distributions of proton and Cu binding constants with SPARC and LFER. Those independently determined binding constants were comparable to the WHAM default proton and Cu binding constants, supporting the validity of our modeling approach. Our modeling results suggested that the molecular complexity of DOM may be simplified with representative groups of molecules based on their binding ability with metals in theoretical modeling. Our modeling approach based on FT-ICR-MS data shed light on developing mechanistical models for metal reactions with DOM based on the molecular data, which is helpful for predicting the geochemical cycling of carbon and metals in the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a neurasthenic disease, which is the second-largest burden of disease globally. Increasing studies have revealed that depression is associated with abnormalities in gut microbiota and metabolites. Several species of bacteria have been classified as psychobiotics, which confer mental health benefits through interactions with commensal gut microbiota. Therefore, it is essential to identify new psychobiotics and elucidate their mechanisms in the treatment of depression. This study aims to evaluate the antidepressant effect of Akkermansia muciniphila (AKK) in a mouse model of depression induced by chronic restraint stress (CRS). C57BL/6 male mice were divided into three groups: mice subjected to CRS, mice not subjected to CRS, and mice treated with AKK for 3 weeks. Behavioral tests were performed, and hormone, neurotransmitter, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels were measured. Cecal microbiota was analyzed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing, and serum metabolites were detected using untargeted metabolomics. In addition, correlations between altered gut microbiota and metabolites with significant variations in serum associated with AKK ameliorating depression were analyzed using Pearson's correlation coefficient. The results revealed that AKK significantly ameliorated depressive-like behavior and restored abnormal variations in depression-related molecular (corticosterone, dopamine, and BDNF). Moreover, AKK altered chronic stress–induced gut microbial abnormalities. Untargeted metabolomics analysis revealed 23 potential biomarkers in serum that could be associated with the mechanisms underlying CRS-induced depression and the therapeutic effects of AKK. Pearson's correlation coefficient analysis revealed that AKK predominantly upregulated β-alanyl-3-methyl-l-histidine and edaravone to relieve depression. Furthermore, β-alanyl-3-methyl-l-histidine and edaravone exhibited the antidepressant phenotype in mice subjected to CRS. In conclusion, the study demonstrated that AKK ameliorates chronic stress–induced depressive symptoms in mice by regulating gut microbiota and metabolites. Key points: • AKK reduces depressive-like behaviors induced by chronic stress. • AKK regulates the gut microbial structure and metabolomics of serum under the chronic stress. • Antidepressant effect of AKK correlates with the increase of β-alanyl-3-methyl-l-histidine and edaravone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The total flavone of Abelmoschus manihot (TFA), a compound extracted from the flowers of Abelmoschus manihot (L.) Medic, has been widely used for the treatment of Crohn's disease, chronic glomerulonephritis and other diseases. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of TFA on the gut microbiota and intestinal barrier in dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced experimental colitis. C57BL/6J mice were treated with 2.5% DSS in drinking water to induce colitis. Mice were orally administered TFA (62.5 mg/kg, 125 mg/kg) or prednisone acetate (PAT, 2.5 mg/kg) once daily for 7 days. Biological samples were collected for analysis of inflammatory cytokines, gut microbiota and intestinal barrier integrity. TFA-H (125 mg/kg) markedly attenuated DSS-induced colon shortening and histological injury in experimental colitis. The therapeutic effect was similar to that of PAT administration. TFA-H notably modulated the dysbiosis of gut microbiota induced by DSS and greatly enriched Akkermansia muciniphila (A. muciniphila). Moreover, TFA-H remarkably ameliorated the colonic inflammatory response and intestinal epithelial barrier dysfunction. Interestingly, TFA directly promotes the growth of A. muciniphila in vitro. Taken together, the results revealed for the first time that TFA, as a prebiotic of A. muciniphila, improved DSS-induced experimental colitis, at least partly by modulating the gut microflora profile to maintain colonic integrity and inhibit the inflammatory response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel polyethylene glycol diacrylate-allylthiourea (ATU-PEGDA) hydrogel was simply synthesized through photo-reaction. Modified thiourea simultaneously employed chelation and electrostatic force to selectively recycle Ag(I) and Pd(II) from electrolytic wastewater. Sorption efficiency was nearly 100% for Ag(I) and Pd(II), which occurred at initial pH of 1 within 300 min. The adsorption characteristics of ATU-PEGDA followed Langmuir isotherm model and the maximum adsorption capacity of Ag(I) and Pd(II) achieved 83.33 and 152.81 mg g−1 sorbent, respectively where Pseudo-first order model demonstrate the adsorption kinetics. In the presence of other heavy metals, ATU-PEGDA performed high selectivity, 0.89 and 1.31 towards Ag(I) and Pd(II). ATU-PEGDA can be completely regenerated within 120 min using 0.5 M thiourea—0.001 M HNO3 and 1 M thiourea—4 M HCl after the adsorption of Ag(I) and Pd(II), respectively. Thiourea-branched structure was created after regeneration, improving the adsorption capacity. Compared to initial hydrogel, the adsorption capacity of Ag(I) and Pd(II) increased 31.83 ± 3.08% and 75.12 ± 11.02%, respectively. Over 10 consecutive adsorption–desorption cycles, ATU-PEGDA performed 111.34 and 263.79 mg g−1 sorbent in adsorption capacity of Ag(I) and Pd(II). Chromism of ATU-PEGDA hydrogel was a benefit to determine adsorption saturation and completely desorption of Ag(I) and Pd(II). Potentially, ATU-PEGDA can be extended to industrial applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a common disease of concrete structure in engineering, cracks mainly lead to durability problems such as steel corrosion, rain erosion, and protection layer peeling, and then the building gets destroyed. In order to detect the cracks of concrete structure in time, the bending test of steel fiber reinforced concrete is carried out, and the pictures of concrete cracks are obtained. Furthermore, the crack database is expanded by the migration learning method and the crack database is shared on the Baidu online disk. Finally, a concrete crack identification model based on YOLOv4 and Mask R-CNN is established. In addition, the improved Mask R-CNN method is proposed in order to improve the prediction accuracy based on the Mask R-CNN. The results show that the average prediction accuracy of concrete crack identification is 82.60% based on the YOLO v4 method. The average prediction accuracy of concrete crack identification is 90.44% based on the Mask R-CNN method. The average prediction accuracy of concrete crack identification is 96.09% based on the improved Mask R-CNN method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to investigate the effects of brassinosteroid (BR) on disease development, disease resistance‐related enzyme activities, gene expression, and proteomic change in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) fruits infected by Alternaria solani. The results showed that BR pretreatment inhibited disease development and increased the activities of disease resistance‐related enzymes. Fruits treated by brassinazole, the biosynthesis inhibitor of BR, are more sensitive to A. solani. BR could promote the gene expression of downstream and upstream in the systematic acquired resistance (SAR) pathways and the catalyzers in the biosynthetic pathways of phenolic and quinone compounds. The proteomic analysis showed that BR upregulated the expression of 2 proteins and downregulated the expression of 13 proteins. Furthermore, one upregulated protein was involved in the phenylpropanoid biosynthetic pathway. These results suggested that BR‐mediated disease resistance in tomato fruits could share some SAR downstream genes and phenylalanine ammonia‐lyase and also have distinct pathways. Practical applications: Brassinosteroid treatment before harvest could be a useful strategy to improve the quality of tomato fruit and reduce postharvest losses caused by fungi disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increase of the long-span bridge, the damage of the long-span bridge hanger has attracted more and more attention. Nowadays, the probability statistics method based on Bayes' theorem is widely used for evaluating the damage of bridge, that is, Bayesian inference. In this study, the damage evaluation model of bridge hanger is established based on Bayesian inference. For the damage evaluation model, the analytical expressions for calculating the weights by finite mixture (FM) method are derived. In order to solve the complex analytical expressions in damage evaluation model, the Metropolis-Hastings (MH) sampling of Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) method was used. Three case studies are adopted to demonstrate the effect of the initial value and the applicability of the proposed model. The result suggests that the proposed model can evaluate the damage of the bridge hanger. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given a graph G of n vertices and an integer k , the Dual Coloring problem determines if G is (n − k) -colorable, i.e., if we can color vertices of G with at most n − k colors so that every vertex obtains exactly one color and every two adjacent vertices have different colors. We derive a kernelization for the Dual Coloring problem with respect to the parameter k. In particular, for any fixed ϵ > 0 , our kernelization yields a kernel of at most (2 + ϵ) k vertices, improving the currently best result 3 k − 3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Subantarctic Mode Water (SAMW) is a thick low‐stratified subsurface water mass located north of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, and it is important for heat uptake. How the SAMW has changed and what drives that change remain to be quantified. By synthesizing observations, eddy‐resolving ocean model hindcasts and climate model simulations, we show that the SAMW has become warmer, fresher, lighter, and weaker in recent decades. As revealed by partially coupled model experiments, the SAMW core has remained at a constant depth since 2004 due to a balance between the enhanced wind stress curl, which deepens the SAMW core, and the buoyancy gain, which shallows the core. The lightening and weakening of the SAMW mainly result from the increased surface buoyancy gain due to climate warming, while the enhanced westerlies play a secondary role in slowing this trend. As greenhouse warming continues, the increased stratification will keep weakening the SAMW. Plain Language Summary: The Subantarctic Mode Water (SAMW) is a thick layer of thermocline water exposed to the atmosphere in winter with nearly vertical homogeneous properties. It plays an important role in heat, carbon, oxygen, and nutrient uptake. We show that the SAMW became weaker, warmer, fresher, and lighter in the Argo period of 2004–2019, and we verify the changes in an eddy‐resolving ocean hindcast simulation forced by observed atmospheric fields. These changes are consistent with climate model simulations under increasing levels of greenhouse gases. The partially coupled climate model experiments show that the surface buoyancy gain due to climate warming is the major cause of the SAMW weakening, while the intensified westerly winds play a secondary role in slowing this trend. As greenhouse warming increases the density stratification of the ocean, the weakening of the SAMW will continue, further reducing its capability to store heat and carbon. Key Points: As a result of the surface buoyancy gain, the Subantarctic Mode Water (SAMW) has become warmer, fresher, lighter, and weaker since 2004The observed SAMW trend is verified by a 63‐year ocean hindcast with realistic atmospheric fields and is linked to greenhouse warmingThe SAMW core remains within a constant depth level due to a counterbalance between the surface buoyancy gain and intensified westerly wind [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a stochastic dynamic analysis method for cable-stayed bridges subjected to multi-dimensional and multi-supported earthquake and waves is established based on the pseudo-excitation method. The Monte Carlo method is used to analyze the influence of excitation nonlinearity on the bridge structure response, and the applicability of this method is verified. Stochastic response characteristic of coastal cable-stayed bridges subjected to multi-dimensional and multi-supported earthquake and waves is studied. The influence of water–structure interaction on the stochastic seismic response of main components of the cable-stayed bridge is described, and the influence of key parameters is analyzed. The results show that the influence of excitation nonlinearity on the response of the cable-stayed bridge can be neglected. A greater energy input caused by the rigid additional mass of the hydrodynamic pressure is the reason for the increasing of the seismic response. The influence of stochastic response of the underwater structure of the tower is changed with the site conditions. For the ground motion acceleration input energy being distributed in the high-frequency domain, the water–structure interaction has a greater effect on stochastic seismic response of the underwater structure of the tower. The influence of water–structure interaction on the stochastic seismic response of the underwater structure of the cable-stayed bridge increases with the increasing of the wave height and water depth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three new ruthenium(II) complexes containing an N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligand (RuNHC) have been successfully synthesized and proved to be efficient near-infrared (NIR) ECL (electrogenerated chemiluminescence) luminophores. In addition to the advantages of the lower-charge main motif (+1), the much lower oxidation potentials, and the longer metal to ligand charge transfer (MLCT) absorption bands, most importantly, these RuNHC complexes show higher, or at least comparable, ECL efficiency compared with Ru(bpy)32+ under the same experimental conditions; this demonstrates their great potential for applications in the NIR ECL imaging field in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

β‐Lactam antibiotics are generally perceived as one of the greatest inventions of the 20th century, and these small molecular compounds have saved millions of lives. However, upon clinical application of antibiotics, the β‐lactamase secreted by pathogenic bacteria can lead to the gradual development of drug resistance. β‐Lactamase is a hydrolase that can efficiently hydrolyze and destroy β‐lactam antibiotics. It develops and spreads rapidly in pathogens, and the drug‐resistant bacteria pose a severe threat to human health and development. As a result, detecting and inhibiting the activities of β‐lactamase are of great value for the rational use of antibiotics and the treatment of infectious diseases. At present, many specific detection methods and inhibitors of β‐lactamase have been developed and applied in clinical practice. In this Minireview, we describe the resistance mechanism of bacteria producing β‐lactamase and further summarize the fluorogenic probes, inhibitors of β‐lactamase, and their applications in the treatment of infectious diseases. It may be valuable to design fluorogenic probes with improved selectivity, sensitivity, and effectiveness to further identify the inhibitors for β‐lactamases and eventually overcome bacterial resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

β‐Lactam antibiotics are generally perceived as one of the greatest inventions of the 20th century, and these small molecular compounds have saved millions of lives. However, upon clinical application of antibiotics, the β‐lactamase secreted by pathogenic bacteria can lead to the gradual development of drug resistance. β‐Lactamase is a hydrolase that can efficiently hydrolyze and destroy β‐lactam antibiotics. It develops and spreads rapidly in pathogens, and the drug‐resistant bacteria pose a severe threat to human health and development. As a result, detecting and inhibiting the activities of β‐lactamase are of great value for the rational use of antibiotics and the treatment of infectious diseases. At present, many specific detection methods and inhibitors of β‐lactamase have been developed and applied in clinical practice. In this Minireview, we describe the resistance mechanism of bacteria producing β‐lactamase and further summarize the fluorogenic probes, inhibitors of β‐lactamase, and their applications in the treatment of infectious diseases. It may be valuable to design fluorogenic probes with improved selectivity, sensitivity, and effectiveness to further identify the inhibitors for β‐lactamases and eventually overcome bacterial resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Wind speed forecasting can serve a wide spectrum of purposes, including scheduling of a power system and dynamic control of structures. A lot of models are widely used to forecast wind speed, consisting of deterministic models (e.g., physical models, statistical models, and artificial intelligence models) and probabilistic models (e.g., Bayesian model). The wind speed has the characteristics of random, nonlinear, and uncertainty, which highlights the importance of using Bayesian model to predict the wind speed. In this study, a Bayesian emulator with Gaussian process prior is adopted for probabilistic forecast of wind speed. The present Bayesian emulator approach not only maintains the data‐driven property which guarantees its high flexibility in modeling the complexity of the target system but also allows for the efficient, probabilistic evaluation of the wind speed in terms of the predictive mean and variance. Nevertheless, the modeling performance of the Bayesian emulator directly depends on the selected covariance function. The influence of different types of covariance functions, which include squared‐exponential (SE) covariance function, Matern (MA) covariance function, periodic (PE) covariance function, and composite covariance function, on forecasting performance of the wind speed is studied. One‐month wind monitoring data collected by structural health monitoring (SHM) system installed on Jiubao bridge are employed to demonstrate the effectiveness of Bayesian emulator for forecasting the wind speed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]