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2020年梅雨季提早結束，夏季沒有侵臺颱風，秋冬季雨量亦明顯偏少，2021年春雨也是寥寥可數，就在水庫快要見底之際，望眼欲穿的梅雨終於在5月底到來，臺灣旱象才得以逐漸緩解。此次旱災除在經濟上有許多損失外，亦對民眾生活造成諸多不便，值得深入了解形成旱象的物理機制。 統計2020年6月至2021年5月的臺灣雨量，達到1910年有紀錄以來的最少，堪稱為百年大旱。本報告分析此段期間的大尺度環流，推測造成臺灣百年大旱的可能原因，並歸納主要發現如下：①2020年6月至9月的少雨，主要是極端偏強的副熱帶高壓造成，當時的副高不僅在強度上達到最強，持續時間亦為1949年之後的最持久；副高偏強可能與熱帶各洋面同時出現海溫異常有關，包含反聖嬰在中東太平洋的偏冷、印度洋及大西洋的偏暖。②臺灣2020年秋冬季雨量偏少，可能與反聖嬰及菲律賓海偏暖有關。③2021年臺灣春雨偏少，主因應該是菲律賓海溫偏暖，其次為逐漸減弱的反聖嬰，負相位的太平洋年代際震盪亦有少許的貢獻；當菲律賓海偏暖時，會在其西側產生氣旋式環流，為臺灣及東亞沿岸帶來水氣較少的東北風距平，進一步造成臺灣春雨較少；反聖嬰有利上述偶合系統的維持。④2021年3月中旬至5月期間的熱帶季內振盪較為活躍，季內振盪可能使臺灣4月中下旬的西南水氣源減少，5月季內振盪乾區逐漸接近臺灣，進而造成臺灣少雨。簡而言之，2020-2021年的臺灣百年大旱不是單一因素造成的極端事件，而是許多因素同時出現的複合現象。 During 2020, an earlier-ended Mei-Yu season combined with a typhoon-absent summer, followed by notably low rainfall from following autumn to spring in 2021, Taiwan’s accumulated rainfall from June 2020 to May 2021 broke the lowest record since 1910, we report the unique characteristics and physical mechanism of this extreme event. The possible causes of the drought event are presented as follows. ①The duration and strength of subtropical high over the Western North Pacific from Jun to September were the longest and strongest since 1949. The abnormal subtropical high maybe caused by the compounding effects from cool sea surface temperature (SST) over the central to eastern equatorial Pacific associated with La Niña, and warm SST in the northern Indian Ocean and the tropical Atlantic. ②The warmest SST appeared in the Philippine Sea through October 2020 to Marth 2021, concurrent with La Niña, generated the dry condition near Taiwan. ③ The less spring rainfall in Taiwan in 2021 could be directly attributed to the warmest SST in the Philippine Sea and indirectly to the weakening La Niña , whereas negative phase of the Pacific Decadal Oscillation seemed to have little effect. An anomalous cyclone usually appeared in the western side of the warm Philippine Sea and brought dry northeasterly anomaly to the East Asian coast, resulting in less spring rainfall in Taiwan, and the La Niña would favor and maintain this atmosphere-ocean coupled system. ④ In April-May 2021, active tropical intra-seasonal oscillation caused weaker moist southeasterly in middle to late April, and also resulted in dry condition before the end of May. In conclusion, the most serious drought event in 2020-2021 since 1910 was caused by the compounding effect from various influencing factors that occurred concurrently and sequentially. How much of these abnormal conditions were caused by the warming trend in recent decades, which is not investigated in this study, warrants further studies. &nbsp

Nutrition is very important for premature infants. Our recent research showed that the accuracy of recognition related to tube feeding was 74.8%, and the completeness of tube feeding was 74.3%. After analyzing this situation, the reasons found to be significantly associated with the low rates of tube-feeding recognition accuracy and completion included: inconsistent treatment of gastric residual by nurses in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), lack of sufficient assessment tools in the NICU, out-of-date specialist care guidelines, and lack of a regular inspection system.Our aim was to improve tube-feeding-related recognition accuracy and completion to reduce the incidence of feeding intolerance.The intervention included developing a guideline manual for feeding procedures and making a gastric residual color card as a clinical-care reference. Holding on-the-job training and monitoring the quality of nursing care can reduce the incidence of feeding intolerance in preterm.The accuracy of tube-feeding recognition increased from 74.8% to 93.7%. The completion of tube feeding increased from 74.3% to 95.5%. The incidence of feeding intolerance in premature infants decreased from 71.8% to 39.0%.The results and process of this project provides a reference for improving the clinical care model for preterm infants in the NICU and for improving the enteral nutrition of preterm infants. The implementation of this project may improve the quality of nursing care and enable preterm infants to receive safer and more-complete care.降低新生兒加護病房早產兒餵食不耐受之發生率.營養對於早產兒至關重要，經現況調查發現單位護理人員對灌食照護認知正確率為74.8%，執行灌食照護流程完整率為74.3%，對胃殘餘量處理方式不一致，缺乏客觀評估胃殘餘量相關工具，專科照護指引未修定，以及無定期查核制度。.提升護理人員灌食照護認知正確率及照護流程完整率，以及降低早產兒餵食不耐受發生率。.制作「灌食標準作業流程手冊」及「胃殘餘色卡」以利護理人員在照護過程有所依循。舉辦灌食照護教育訓練，並透過臨床專科評核，以減少早產兒餵食不耐受發生率。.新生兒加護病房護理人員灌食照護認知正確率由74.8%提升至93.7%，執行灌食照護流程完整率由74.3%提升至95.5%，以及早產兒餵食不耐受發生率從71.8%下降至39.0%。.藉由此專案結果作為新生兒加護病房現行早產兒餵食照護模式之參考，改善了早產兒腸道營養的建立，提升照護品質，也使早產兒能獲得更完善及安全的照護。.

Background:Few studies have investigated the association between epidural analgesia (EA) and oncologic outcomes in patients following hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) resection.Methods:This retrospective study was conducted at a single medical center using electronic medical records. Patients with non

Peripheral intravenous catheters (PVCs) are common treatment modalities for pediatric patients, and may cause infection, infiltration, occlusion, and phlebitis. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of a clinically indicated peripheral intravenous replacement (CIPIR) on PVC indwelling time and complication rates in pediatric patients. This study used a randomized, pre- and post-repeated measures design. A total of 283 participants were randomly assigned to an experimental group (n = 140) and a control group (n = 143). The experimental group received CIPIR and the control group received usual care with routine PVC replacement every three days. The insert sites of PVC were assessed every day until the signs of infiltration, occlusion, or phlebitis were presented. Patients in the experimental group had significantly longer PVC indwelling times compared to those in the control group (t = −18.447, p &lt, 0.001). No significant differences were noted between groups in infiltration (χ2 = 2.193, p = 0.139), occlusion (χ2 = 0.498, p = 0.481), or phlebitis (χ2 = 3.865, p = 0.050). CIPIR can prolong the PVC indwelling time in pediatric patients with no increase in the rate of adverse events.

The most effective treatment currently available for perinatal asphyxia-induced hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy is therapeutic hypothermia, which reduces the mortality rate and neurological disorders in newborns. The earlier this therapy is performed, the better the protective effects on the nerves of the patient. In our neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), we discovered that nurses lack experience caring for patients undergoing hypothermia therapy due to the limited number of cases. In addition, outdated guidelines, the disorganized placement of equipment, and the paucity of hands-on simulations exacerbate the unfamiliarity of the nurses with this therapy.To expand the knowledge of nurses regarding therapeutic hypothermia in the NICU and to increase the rate of completion of the therapeutic hypothermia procedure.1. Regular care training programs and scenario-based simulations were conducted to help nurses obtain related knowledge and become more familiar with therapeutic hypothermia. 2. In order to reduce the preparation time, a specific preparation kit and an instruction folder for therapeutic hypothermia was developed that included a material placement checklist. 3. The procedure guidance booklet for therapeutic hypothermia was revised and a monitoring system was established.The accuracy of nurses' knowledge regarding therapeutic hypothermia in the NICU improved from 82.0% to 94.5%. The completion rate for the therapeutic hypothermia procedure rose from 75.6% to 100.0%.This project successfully enhanced the accuracy of nurses' knowledge regarding therapeutic hypothermia and increased the rate of completion for this care procedure, resulting in a safer and more-standardized procedure for neonates undergoing therapeutic hypothermia.提升新生兒加護病房護理人員執行低溫療法照護流程完整率.對於周產期窒息造成的新生兒缺氧缺血性腦病變目前最具療效的是低溫療法，它可以降低新生兒死亡率及神經障礙，越早開始對神經保護效果越好。現況調查發現由於個案數不多以致單位護理人員照護經驗不足及對照護流程不熟悉，相關照護指引未更新及用物放置分散致用物準備不完整，無定期在職教育致護理人員對低溫療法照護認知不足。.提升新生兒加護病房護理人員對低溫療法照護認知及提升執行低溫療法照護流程完整率。.1.定期舉辦低溫療法照護課程及情境模擬課程，以提升護理人員低溫療法照護認知及熟悉度。2.規劃低溫療法專用準備包及文件盒、制訂低溫療法放置用品確認表，以減少用物準備時間。3.修定低溫療法照護流程指引手冊及建立監測機制。.新生兒加護病房護理人員對低溫療法照護認知正確率由改善前82.0%提升至94.5%；護理人員對低溫療法照護流程完整率由改善前75.6%提升至100.0%。.專案實施後能有效的提升護理人員對於低溫療法照護認知正確率，使低溫療法照護流程更順暢，並提升照護流程之完整率，完善新生兒低溫治療照護品質。.

This study reports the different effects of tropical and subtropical sea surface temperature anomalies (SSTAs) on the mean tropical cyclone (TC) genesis location in the western North Pacific (WNP), a TC–SSTA relationship that has been largely ignored. In the Pacific, the interannual variability of the tropical SSTA in the boreal summer is characterized by an El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO)-like pattern, whereas the subtropical SSTA exhibits a Pacific meridional mode (PMM)-like structure. Partial correlation analysis reveals that the ENSO-like and PMM-like SSTAs dominate the south–north and east–west shift of mean TC genesis location, respectively. The 2015/16 El Niño was a strong event comparable with the 1997/98 event in terms of Niño-3.4 SSTA. However, the mean TC genesis location in the WNP during the summer of 2015 exhibited an unprecedented eastward shift by approximately 10 longitudinal degrees relative to that in 1997. Whereas the ENSO-like SSTAs in 1997 and 2015 were approximately equal, the amplitude of the PMM-like SSTA in 2015 was approximately twice as large as that in 1997. Numerical experiments forced by the ENSO-like and PMM-like SSTAs in June–August 2015 reveal that the positive PMM-like SSTA forces an east–west overturning circulation anomaly in the subtropical North Pacific with anomalously ascending (descending) motion in the subtropical central (western) Pacific. The mean TC genesis location in the WNP therefore shifts eastward when warmer SST occurs in the subtropical eastern Pacific. This finding supports the hypothesis that the extremely positive PMM-like SSTA in the summer of 2015 caused the unprecedented eastward shift of the TC genesis location in the WNP.

The western North Pacific (WNP) is a region where tropical cyclones (TCs) occur most frequently. However, no TCs occurred in August, climatologically the month of most frequent TC-genesis, in 2014. Such absence of TC activity in August was approximately 3σ below the climatological mean (5.1) and occurred for the first time during 1945–2014. This study investigates the large-scale factors responsible for the absence. While July-August 2014 was a period of weak El Nino condition, rainfall in the eastern North Pacific was unusually high, exceeding the 95th percentile for the period 1979–2014. We demonstrate that the unusually positive sea surface temperature anomaly in the eastern North Pacific (ENP) resulted in such high rainfall amount. Diabatic heating associated with the unusual rainfall resulted in a Walker circulation anomaly in the Pacific, which in turn led to anomalous downward motion in the West Pacific and suppressed TC genesis in the WNP. Moreover, an eastward propagating intraseasonal oscillation (ISO) was identified in the Indo-Pacific in August. The dry-phase ISO induced subsidence anomaly in the WNP. The combination of the dry ISO phase in the WNP and a west-west overturning circulation anomaly triggered by the warm SST in the ENP led to extremely dry and warm conditions and the absence of TCs in the WNP. Both empirical diagnostics and numerical simulations confirm this result.

Aims To: (a) explore the prevalence of the symptoms perceived by patients with childhood-onset systemic lupus erythematosus; (b) identify the symptom clusters occurring in patients with childhood-onset Systemic lupus erythematosus; and (c) examine the association of the burden of each symptom cluster with sleep quality and depression. Background Systemic lupus erythematosus is an inflammatory autoimmune disease that may result in patients' perception of various symptoms, with possible negative effects on their quality of life. Understanding the prevalence of symptoms perceived by childhood-onset Systemic lupus erythematosus patients and the disease's symptom clusters may be helpful in managing such burdensome symptoms. Design A correlational study design was used for this study in 2016. Methods Self-reported data from the Systemic lupus erythematosus symptom checklist were used to assess the symptoms perceived by patients. Symptom clusters were analysed using cluster analysis. Results Seventy-five patients were included in this study. The most prevalent and burdensome symptom perceived by patients was fatigue. Five clusters were derived, including symptoms related to pain and itching; bruises and stomach complaints; weight gain; body image and circulatory problems; and fatigue. A poor sleeper may perceive a greater symptom burden in all five of the symptom clusters, except for cluster #3, which refers to symptoms related to weight gain. Conclusion Five symptom clusters were identified. It is hoped that this study will give useful knowledge for understanding the symptom clusters for patients with Systemic lupus erythematosus and for improving nursing care quality.

We propose a unified model combining the strength of extractive and abstractive summarization. On the one hand, a simple extractive model can obtain sentence-level attention with high ROUGE scores but less readable. On the other hand, a more complicated abstractive model can obtain word-level dynamic attention to generate a more readable paragraph. In our model, sentence-level attention is used to modulate the word-level attention such that words in less attended sentences are less likely to be generated. Moreover, a novel inconsistency loss function is introduced to penalize the inconsistency between two levels of attentions. By end-to-end training our model with the inconsistency loss and original losses of extractive and abstractive models, we achieve state-of-the-art ROUGE scores while being the most informative and readable summarization on the CNN/Daily Mail dataset in a solid human evaluation., 9 pages, ACL 2018 oral. Project page: https://hsuwanting.github.io/unified_summ/. Code: https://github.com/HsuWanTing/unified-summarization

Unprecedented atmospheric circulations with extreme weather were observed in the extratropical Northern Hemisphere during the winter of 2013–2014. The anomalous circulations were the manifestation of the Pacific pattern or the North Pacific Oscillation/Western Pacific pattern but with extremely large amplitude. Simulation results suggest that the anomalous atmospheric circulations were constructively induced by anomalous sea surface temperature in the tropical Pacific and extratropical North Pacific, as well as the low sea ice concentration in the Arctic. Natural variability played a major role in inducing the anomaly pattern, whereas the anomalously warm sea surface temperature and low Arctic sea ice concentration in the Bering Sea contributed to the intensity. If the anthropogenic warming has a significant impact on causing the synchronization of the aforementioned anomalies in sea surface temperature and sea ice concentration and this trend continues, severe winters similar to that in 2013–2014 may occur more frequently in the future.

Gene detection has an important role in diagnosing several serious diseases and genetic defects in modern clinical medicine. Herein, we report a fast and convenient gene detection method based on the modulation of the interaction between a heat-resistant double-stranded DNA (dsDNA)-binding protein (Sso7d) and gold nanoparticles (Au NPs). We prepared a recombinant Cys-Sso7d, which is Sso7d with an extra cysteine (Cys) residue in the N-terminus, through protein engineering to control the interaction between Sso7d and Au NPs. Cys-Sso7d exhibited a stronger affinity for Au NPs and more easily induced the aggregation of Au NPs than Sso7d. In addition, Cys-Sso7d retained its ability to bind with dsDNA. The aggregation of Au NPs induced by Cys-Sso7d was diminished in the presence of dsDNA, which could be utilized as a transduction mechanism for the detection of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products of human papillomavirus (HPV) gene fragments (HPV types 16 and 18). The Cys-Sso7d/Au NP probe could detect as few as 1 copy of the HPV gene. The sensitivity and specificity of the Cys-Sso7d/Au NP probe for Pap smear clinical specimens (n = 52) for HPV 16 and HPV 18 detection were 85.7%/100.0% and 85.7%/91.7%, respectively. Our results demonstrate that the Cys-Sso7d/Au NP probe can be used to diagnose high-risk HPV types in Pap smear samples with high sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy.

In January 2016, a robust reversal of the Arctic Oscillation took place associated with a rapid tropospheric warming in the Arctic region; this was followed by the occurrence of a classic sudden stratospheric warming in March. The succession of these two distinct Arctic warming events provides a stimulating opportunity to examine their characteristics in terms of similarities and differences. Historical cases of these two types of Arctic warming were identified and validated based upon tropical linkages with the Madden-Julian Oscillation and El Nino as documented in previous studies. The analysis indicates a recent and seemingly accelerated increase in the tropospheric warming type versus a flat trend in stratospheric warming type. The shorter duration and more rapid transition of tropospheric warming events may connect to the documented increase in midlatitude weather extremes, more so than the route of stratospheric warming type. Forced simulations with an atmospheric general circulation model suggest that the reduced Arctic sea ice contributes to the observed increase in the tropospheric warming events and associated remarkable strengthening of the cold Siberian high manifest in 2016.

In summer of 2010, the western North Pacific subtropical high (WNPSH) was extremely strong and exhibited unusual westward extension, which resulted in record-breaking warmth in Japan and considerably below-normal and westward-shifted tropical cyclone activity in the western North Pacific (WNP). Although a moderate La Nina occurred, the sea surface temperature (SST) in the northern Indian Ocean (NIO) and tropical Atlantic (TA) was considerably high. In this study, we argued that the La Nina cold SST alone was not sufficient to maintain the strong WNPSH of 2010, and that the unusually warm SSTs in the NIO and TA markedly contributed to the enhancement and westward shift of the WNPSH in the boreal summer of that year. We focused on the effects of sea surface temperature anomalies in the tropical Atlantic (TA-SSTAs), which have been seldom explored and are poorly understood compared with the effects of SSTAs in the tropical Pacific and NIO. The warm TA-SST forced a westward-extending overturning circulation, with a sinking branch over the central Pacific Ocean, which produced a remote response similar to the La Nina condition and enhanced the WNPSH. The warm TA-SST also induced the cyclonic anomaly in the tropical eastern North Pacific, a distinct phenomenon not observed in a canonical La Nina event. Furthermore, we demonstrated that the anomalous near-surface circulation associated with the negative North Atlantic Oscillation might play a more dominant role than that of the 2009 El Nino in inducing the record-high SST in the TA in 2010.

In this paper, we report the triggering effect of extratropical perturbation on the onset of an atypical Madden–Julian Oscillation (MJO) and onset of the 2015–16 El Niño in March 2015. The MJO exhibited several unique characteristics: the effect of extratropical forcing, atypical genesis location and timing in the equatorial western Pacific, and the extremity of amplitudes in many aspects. The southward-penetrating northerly associated with the extratropical disturbances in the extratropical western North Pacific contributed to triggering the deep convection and westerly wind burst (WWB) and onset of the MJO over the anomalously warm tropical western Pacific in early March. The persisting strong WWB forced downwelling Kelvin wave-like oceanic perturbation that propagated eastward and led to the onset of the 2015–16 El Niño. The proposed novel extratropical forcing mechanism explaining the unique extratropics–MJO–El Niño association, based on both data diagnostics and numerical experiments, warrants further attention for a more detailed understanding of the onset of the MJO and its potential effect on El Niño.

This study investigates the relationship between deep convection (and heating anomaly) in the Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO) and the tropical topography. The eastward propagation of the deep heating anomalies is confined to two regions: the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific warm pool. Superimposed on the eastward propagation is a series of quasi-stationary deep heating anomalies that occur sequentially and discretely downstream in a leapfrog manner in the central Indian Ocean, the Maritime Continent, tropical South America, and tropical Africa. The deep heating anomaly, usually preceded by near-surface moisture convergence and shallow heating anomalies, tends to occur on the windward side of the tropical topography in these regions (except the central Indian Ocean) under the prevailing surface easterly anomaly of the MJO. It is suggested that the lifting and frictional effects of the tropical topography and landmass induce the near-surface moisture convergence anomaly, which in turn triggers the deep heating anomaly. Subsequently, the old heating anomaly located to the west of the tropical topography weakens and the new heating anomaly east of the topography develops because of the eastward shift in the major moisture convergence center to the east of the mountains. Therefore, the deep heating anomaly shifts eastward from one region to another. The equatorial Kelvin wave, which is forced by the tropical heating anomaly and propagates quickly across the ocean basins in the lower troposphere, plays an important role by helping to strengthen the easterly anomaly and lowering the surface pressure. This process is proposed to further our understanding of the shift in the deep convection from the Indian Ocean to the western Pacific, the reappearance of the deep convection in tropical South America, and the initiation of the MJO in the western Indian Ocean. It is suggested that the fast eastward propagation and the slow development of quasi-stationary convection together determine the quasi-periodicity of the MJO.

This paper first reports DNA aptamers and a fluorescent enzyme-linked aptamer assay (ELAA) targeting alpha-methylacyl-CoA racemase (AMACR), an emerging prostate cancer biomarker. The aptamers were in vitro selected using a new single-bead SELEX approach, which was rapid and consumed only ca. 45 ng AMACR. Before SELEX, silane chemistry was used to prepare epoxide-functionalized glass microbeads (EGBs, 500 μm in size and manipulated by tweezers) for AMACR coating. Recombinant AMACR was also prepared. During SELEX, the ligand evolution was assured by a differential real-time quantitative PCR assay. After SELEX, the aptamers were identified by the alignment analysis and 2nd structure prediction from the selected, cloned sequences. The circular dichroism (CD) analysis revealed that the aptamers formed stable B-form, stem-loop conformations. The fluorescent ELAA method confirmed the nM-level affinity and high specificity of the aptamers against AMACR. Finally, an aptamer-based fluorescent AMACR assay was demonstrated. The assay featured a wide dynamic range (from 10(-1) to 10(3) nM of AMACR), a low detection limit of 0.44 nM (19.5 ng/mL), and high AMACR specificity and is promising for clinical AMACR diagnostics.

We show that scattering from a single gold nanoparticle is saturable for the first time. Wavelength-dependent study reveals that the saturation behavior is governed by depletion of surface plasmon resonance, not the thermal effect. We observed interesting flattening of the point spread function of scattering from a single nanoparticle due to saturation. By extracting the saturated part of scattering via temporal modulation, we achieve λ/8 point spread function in far-field imaging with unambiguous separation of adjacent particles.

Recently, several superresolution methods have been demonstrated to revolutionize the way we access the nano-world. However, these techniques are based on switching or saturation of fluorescence, and consequently are limited by switching reversibility and photobleaching. Here we show first superresolution far-field imaging based on scattering, which is a universal phenomenon without bleaching. Our principal finding is that scattering from plasmonics particles is saturable. By extracting the saturated part, sub-80-nm resolution is achieved. This work not only expands the horizon of superresolution imaging from fluorescence to scattering, but also points out the possibility of resolution enhancement for all imaging modalities that utilize plasmon properties.

Conventionally, super-resolution imaging is achieved by manipulating the on/off switching of fluorophores, or by saturation of fluorescence emission. To prevent the photobleaching of fluorophores, we demonstrate novel superresolution imaging based on saturation of scattering from plasmonic particles, for the first time. With spectral studies, we have confirmed the saturation is directly linked to surface plasmon resonance effect. With the aid of saturation excitation microscopy, plus field concentration due to nonlinear plasmon resonance, we have achieved optical resolution below 80-nm based on scattering. Our study will open up a completely new paradigm for super-resolution microscopy.

In this work, we investigated, both theoretically and experimentally, the saturable scattering in a single gold nanoparticle for the first time. In theoretical part, we used different models of the nonlinear properties to explain the nonlinear responses in gold material. In experimental part, multi-color confocal microscopy was used to observe the scattering of a single gold nanoparticle. As a result, by a resonant excitation, saturable scattering was observed with moderate excitation intensity (~10 7 W/cm 2 ); with even higher excitation intensity (>10 9 W/cm 2 ), reverse saturable scattering was observed, indicating the existence of higher order nonlinear properties. To completely comprehend the mechanism of this saturable scattering, we applied three kinds of excitation wavelengths (405nm, 532nm and 671nm) and four kinds of gold nanoparticle with different diameters (40nm, 50nm, 80nm and 100nm) to demonstrate the wavelength dependence and size dependence. Since the scattering of gold nanoparticles is significantly enhanced by localized surface plasmon resonance, we compared these dependencies with the spectral properties induced by LSPR and found that they match the spectra, revealing that the saturation is dominated by plasmon resonance. Besides, by fitting the dependencies, linear and nonlinear hyperpolarizability of a single gold nanoparticle were also deduced.

The mechanism responsible for the efficiency droop in AlGaInP based vertically-structured red light-emitting diodes (LEDs) is investigated using dynamic measurement techniques. Short electrical pulses (~100ps) are pumped into this device and the output optical pulses probed using high-speed photo-receiver circuits. From this, the internal carrier dynamic inside the device can be investigated by use of the measured electrical-to-optical (E-O) impulse responses. Results show that the E-O responses measured under different bias currents are all invariant from room temperature to ~100°. This is contrary to most results reported for AlGaInP based red LEDs, which usually exhibit a shortening in the response time and degradation in output power with the increase of ambient temperature. According to these measurement results and the extracted fall-time constants of the E-O impulse responses, the origin of the efficiency droop in our vertical LED structure, which has good heat-sinking, is not due to thermally induced carrier leakage, but rather should be attributed to defect recombination and the saturation of spontaneous recombination processes.

[1] This study examines the different impacts of two types of El Ninos, the eastern Pacific El Nino (EP-EN) and the central Pacific El Nino (CP-EN), on tropical cyclone (TC) tracks over the western North Pacific (WNP) based on observational data. Whereas TC tracks between CP-EN and EP-EN show a small difference in boreal summer (JJA), they do exhibit a great difference in boreal autumn (SON), that is, TCs recurve northward at a further westward location near the coastline of East Asia during CP-EN. As a consequence, more TCs make landfall to Taiwan and South China during CP-EN. A further observational analysis indicates that the westward shift of the subtropical high and associated steering flow during CP-EN is a key factor that causes the difference in the TC tracks in autumn. Numerical experiments further suggest that the difference of local SST in the WNP between CP-EN and EP-EN accounts for the distinctive differences in the local Hadley circulation, the subtropical high and the TC steering flow.

[1] Typhoon Morakot that made landfall on Taiwan during 7–9 August 2009 caused record-breaking rainfall in Southern Taiwan and nearly 700 deaths from mudslides. It was the most severe natural disaster in Southern Taiwan caused by a typhoon in 50 years. Different from typical typhoon cases, characterized by an isolated vortex, Typhoon Morakot was embedded in a large-scale convection region with monsoon circulation of different time scales in the tropical western North Pacific. Morakot's landing on Taiwan occurred concurrently with the arrival of a large-scale cyclonic circulation in a submonthly wave pattern (10–30-day) during the cyclonic phase of the 40–50-day intraseasonal oscillation. It is suggested that the abundant moisture supply from the southwesterly embedded in the multiscale large-scale circulation and the topographic lifting effect of steep terrain resulted in the record-breaking rainfall in Southern Taiwan.