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Some policies implemented during the pandemic extended the time that students spend on electronic devices, increasing the risk of physical and eye strain. However, the role of different environments on eye strain recovery has not been determined. We recruited 20 undergraduate students (10 males and 10 females) from a university in eastern China and explored the restoration effects of their eye strain in different types of spaces (wayside greenspace, a playground, a square, and woodland) on campus through scale measurements. The results showed that the eye strain of the students accumulated by 15 min of e-learning was significantly relieved after 10 min of greenspace exposure compared to the indoor environment, and the recovery effect varied depending on the type of landscape. The effect of eye strain relief was found to be positively correlated with temperature, wind speed, visible sky ratio, canopy density, tree density, and solar radiation intensity, while it was negatively correlated with relative humidity. These findings enrich the research on the restoration benefits of greenspaces and provide a basis for predicting the effect of different environments on the relief of eye strain.

Abiotic stress, such as drought and salinity stress, seriously inhibit the growth and development of plants. Therefore, it is vital to understand the drought and salinity resistance mechanisms to enable cotton to provide more production under drought and salt conditions. In this study, we identified 8806 and 9108 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) through a comprehensive analysis of transcriptomic data related to the PEG-induced osmotic and salt stress in cotton. By performing weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), we identified four co-expression modules in PEG treatment and five co-expression modules in salinity stress, which included 346 and 324 predicted transcription factors (TFs) in these modules, respectively. Correspondingly, whole genome duplication (WGD) events mainly contribute to the expansion of those TFs. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) and gene ontology (GO) analyses revealed those different modules were associated with stress resistance, including regulating macromolecule metabolic process, peptidase activity, transporter activity, lipid metabolic process, and responses to stimulus. Quantitative RT-PCR analysis was used to confirm the expression levels of 15 hub TFs in PEG6000 and salinity treatments. We found that the hub gene GhWRKY46 could alter salt and PEG-induced drought resistance in cotton through the virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) method. Our results provide a preliminary framework for further investigation of the cotton response to salt and drought stress, which is significant to breeding salt- and drought-tolerant cotton varieties.

A series of novel bi-heterocyclic disperse dyes containing N-ethyl-3-cyano-4-methyl-6-hydroxy-2-pyridine group were synthesized. The structures of the bi-heterocyclic dyes were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-NMR), UV-vis spectrophotometry, and elemental analysis. The distinct spectral behavior and solvatochromic effect of the dyes were discussed. The dyeing properties of the dyes for polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fabric were investigated. Novel bi-heterocyclic disperse dyes had higher molar absorption coefficient, good color strength, and excellent fastness properties, especially light fastness. The bi-heterocyclic disperse dyes have potential research value in the development of high light resistant dyes and functional dyes.

As one of the most important factors in alternative splicing (AS) events, serine/arginine-rich (SR) proteins not only participate in the growth and development of plants but also play pivotal roles in abiotic stresses. However, the research about SR proteins in cotton is still lacking. In this study, we performed an extensive comparative analysis of SR proteins and determined their phylogeny in the plant lineage. A total of 169 SR family members were identified from four Gossypium species, and these genes could be divided into eight distinct subfamilies. The domain, motif distribution and gene structure of cotton SR proteins are conserved within each subfamily. The expansion of SR genes is mainly contributed by WGD and allopolyploidization events in cotton. The selection pressure analysis showed that all the paralogous gene pairs were under purifying selection pressure. Many cis-elements responding to abiotic stress and phytohormones were identified in the upstream sequences of the GhSR genes. Expression profiling suggested that some GhSR genes may involve in the pathways of plant resistance to abiotic stresses. The WGCNA analysis showed that GhSCL-8 co-expressed with many abiotic responding related genes in a salt-responding network. The Y2H assays showed that GhSCL-8 could interact with GhSRs in other subfamilies. The subcellular location analysis showed that GhSCL-8 is expressed in the nucleus. The further VIGS assays showed that the silencing of GhSCL-8 could decrease salt tolerance in cotton. These results expand our knowledge of the evolution of the SR gene family in plants, and they will also contribute to the elucidation of the biological functions of SR genes in the future.

Abstract Asiatic shrews of the genus Chodsigoa (Soricidae, Eulipotyphla) currently comprise nine species, mostly occurring in southwest China. From May 2017 to August 2020, 11 specimens of Chodsigoa were collected from the Dabie Mountains in Anhui Province, eastern China. Their morphology was compared with other species within the genus and one mitochondrial (cytochrome b) and two nuclear (apolipoprotein B and breast cancer 1) genes were sequenced to estimate the phylogenetic relationships of these specimens. Based on morphological and molecular evidence, these specimens are recognized as a distinct species, Chodsigoadabieshanensissp. nov., which is formally described here. Morphologically, the new species is most similar to Chodsigoahypsibia, but it is distinguishable from all known congeners by the combination of dark brownish pelage, small size, and relatively short tail. Phylogenetic analyses revealed that C.dabieshanensissp. nov. forms a phylogenetic lineage sister to the clade containing C.parva + C.hypsibia. The-Kimura 2-parameter genetic distances of the cytochrome b (CYT B) gene between the new species and other nominal Chodsigoa species ranged between 8.6 and 17.6%. The new species is distributed at elevations from 750 to 1250 m in the Dabie Mountains and is geographically distant from other species in the genus.

Background Shedding light on the neuroscientific mechanisms of human upper limb motor control, in both healthy and disease conditions (e.g., after a stroke), can help to devise effective tools for a quantitative evaluation of the impaired conditions, and to properly inform the rehabilitative process. Furthermore, the design and control of mechatronic devices can also benefit from such neuroscientific outcomes, with important implications for assistive and rehabilitation robotics and advanced human-machine interaction. To reach these goals, we believe that an exhaustive data collection on human behavior is a mandatory step. For this reason, we release U-Limb, a large, multi-modal, multi-center data collection on human upper limb movements, with the aim of fostering trans-disciplinary cross-fertilization. Contribution This collection of signals consists of data from 91 able-bodied and 65 post-stroke participants and is organized at 3 levels: (i) upper limb daily living activities, during which kinematic and physiological signals (electromyography, electro-encephalography, and electrocardiography) were recorded; (ii) force-kinematic behavior during precise manipulation tasks with a haptic device; and (iii) brain activity during hand control using functional magnetic resonance imaging., GigaScience, 10 (6), ISSN:2047-217X

In this work, we extend the modeling techniques of human shoulder-arm musculoskeletal dynamics by 1) proposing an extended model with 12 joint degrees of freedom and 27 muscles (modeled as 42 musculotendinous actuators) that is capable of most physiologically and anatomically possible movements, 2) proposing a forward dynamics model driven by muscle activation, where the scapulothoracic constraint is formulated as an anatomically consistent force field, and 3) applying the state-of-the-art inverse dynamics solution on this model. We experimentally validate it against electromyograms for 10 activities of daily living. This validated shoulder-arm musculoskeletal model may e.g., serve as a reference plant model in studying human motor control or as part of a human simulator in the future.

We studied eight carboxylates as potential catalysts for the cellulose cross-linking with 1,2,3,4-butanetetracarboxylic acid (BTCA) and compared them with sodium hypophosphite (SHP). The results showed that the fabrics treated with sodium formate (SF) exhibited the highest wrinkle recovery angle (WRA) among the selected carboxylates, nearly equivalent to the WRA of the fabrics treated with SHP. We compared the radii and relative concentration ratios of different carboxylates anions, and found that SF had a particular amount of anions in the optimum pH range of the BTCA finishing bath, and had the smallest anion radius, both of which accounted for the higher WRA. The SF anions were present throughout the curing process. Based on the thermogravimetric analysis curves of SF and SHP, SF significantly decreased the temperature of the anhydride formation. In addition, the FTIR spectra displayed a stronger ester absorbance of the fabrics treated with BTCA/SF than those treated only with BTCA, which confirmed that SF accelerated the esterification between BTCA and cellulose.

Neuromusculoskeletal models provide a mathematical tool for understanding and simulating human motor control and neuromechanics. In this work, we propose a combined computational model for the musculotendon paths and muscle-joint kinematics for the human hand, including all extrinsic and intrinsic muscles. This model is implemented based on the anatomical descriptions and a human hand dissection study. The model takes joint angles as input and estimates the musculotendon lengths, length change rates, and excursion moment arms. The proposed model is simulated to generate according moment arms, which are compared with cadaver measurements available from literature in terms of similarity coefficient s. For most muscles compared, high similarity with s≥0.70 for 92% of cases is achieved between the modeled and the measured moment arms. These results suggest the correctness of modeled moment arms and imply the feasibility of modeled musculotendon paths, lengths, and length change rates.

Identification of marginal generation units is essential to the development of effective demand response (DR) programs and quantification of locational marginal emissions (LMEs). The real-time marginal units, however, are not revealed by the ISOs/RTOs. This paper develops a framework to identify marginal units from the perspective of a market participant. Through the analysis of the relationship between marginal units and locational marginal prices (LMPs), it is impossible to determine the marginal generators based solely on knowledge of the LMPs. In the proposed framework, a simple data driven approach of exclusion is developed using LMPs, masked bid prices with a 4-month delay, and annual data on power generation and fuel consumption; all are publicly available. Using the link between load profiles and marginal units, the identification results based on historical data can be used for marginal unit predictions assuming the dispatch merit order in the prediction case is the same as in the historical case. A simulation study shows that the proposed framework is effective in detecting marginal units when system load levels are relatively high. Two applications, one to trace load changes back to marginal units and the other to calculate locational marginal emissions, are provided to show the practical value of marginal unit identification in power systems.

Understanding the inherent synergistic nature of human neuromuscular control has already successfully contributed to the development of human-centered robotic systems. To further extend this line of research, a thorough understanding of the synergy spaces in which human movements are planed and executed is necessary. In this paper, the shoulder-arm kinematic and muscular synergies for typical 30 daily-life tasks are identified. For this, an experimental dataset of multi-joint motion trajectories and surface electromyograms of 6 healthy male subjects was created. Based on this, the synergies are identified by applying state-of-the-art machine learning techniques. The identification results suggest 1) synergy space dimensionality correlates with task complexity, 2) 3-D synergy spaces are sufficient to explain $\gtrapprox 95{\%}$ variance, 3) presumably, each task is mainly executed in its own kinematic and muscular synergy space, and 4) the similarity in synergy coordinates is indicated to correlate to similarity in joint space. Subsequently, these synergy spaces shall be integrated into human-inspired controller design of robotic systems for improved rehabilitation, assistance, and more human-like prosthetic devices.

A highly accurate human hand kinematics model and identification are proposed. The model includes the five digits and the palm arc based on mapping function between surface landmarks and estimated joint centres of rotation. Model identification was experimentally performed using a motion tracking system. The evaluation of the marker position estimation error, which is on sub-millimetre level across all digits, underlines model quality and accuracy. Noticeably, with the development of this model, we were able to improve various modelling assumptions from literature and found a basic linear relationship between surface and skeleton rotational angles. EU/Horizon 2020/SoftPro 688857/EU

The frequency components of an induction machine due to different types of internal faults and their combinations are studied in this paper. Instead of taking a look at the current and control signals directly, this paper studies the impact caused by the basic inner structure on the inductances and their frequency components. Modified winding function and equivalent air-gap length are computed such that the combinations of internal faults can be accommodated. Static and dynamic eccentricity reshape the air-gap in a direct manner, while saturation brings third order harmonics, which instead can be equivalently considered as the effect caused by the fluctuation of air-gap length. Thus eccentricity faults and saturation have combined impacts on the equivalent air-gap length. Modified winding function accounting for all space harmonics simplifies the computation of inductances, and is also adequate for the case with rotor asymmetry. By extracting frequency components, different internal fault features are revealed. ANSYS/Maxwell is employed to simulate different cases to verify the theoretical analysis.

This paper introduces a more complete and complex dynamics simulation tool for an exoskeletal human upper limb assistant system. This heterogeneous simulation model couples the articulated dynamics of a 6 degree-of-freedom (DoF) wearable exoskeleton with an upper-limb human neu-romechanics model of 12 skeletal and 42 muscular DoFs with corresponding controls. Furthermore, the process forces of toolmediated manipulation tasks can be fed into the overall system. This simulation tool can be used for various purposes such as 1) design and evaluation of human-centered exoskeleton controllers 2) evaluating human motor control hypotheses during exoskeleton use and 3) investigating various properties and the performance on exoskeleton systems and manipulation tasks. This framework is used exemplary in designing and implementing a human kinematic latent-space controller for a power drilling manipulation task under exoskeletal assistance. European Commission/H2020/688857 SoftPro/EU Alfred Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation BMBF/16SV6175