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This study investigates the chemical composition and physical properties of aerosols, which play a crucial role in influencing human health, cloud physics, and local climate. Our focus centers on the hygroscopicity of ambient aerosols, a key property reflecting the ability to take up moisture from the atmosphere and serve as cloud condensation nuclei. Employing home-built air quality box (AQB) systems equipped with low-cost sensors, we assess the ambient variability of particulate matter (PM) concentrations to determine PM hygroscopicity. The AQB systems effectively captured meteorological parameters and most pollutant concentrations, showing high correlations with data from the Taiwan Environmental Protection Administration (TW-EPA). With the application of κ-Köhler equation and certain assumptions, AQB-monitored PM concentrations are converted to dry particle mass concentration, providing optical particle counter sensitivity correction and resulting in improved correlation with TW-EPA data. The derived single hygroscopicity parameters (κ) range from 0.15 to 0.29 for integrated fine particles (PM2.5) and 0.05 to 0.13 for coarse particles (PM2.5−10), consistent with results of ionic chromatography analysis from a previous winter campaign nearby. Moreover, the analysis of PM10 division into PM2.5 and PM2.5−10, considering composition heterogeneity, provided improved dry PM10 concentration as the sensitivity coefficients for PM2.5−10 were notably higher than for PM2.5. Our methodology provides a comprehensive approach to assess ambient aerosol hygroscopicity, with significant implications for atmospheric modeling, particularly in evaluating aerosol efficiency as cloud condensation nuclei and in radiative transfer calculations. Overall, the AQB systems proved to be effective in monitoring air quality and deriving key aerosol properties, contributing valuable insights into atmospheric science.

Abstract Glue laminated bamboo (glubam) is a type of engineered bamboo material developed for applications in building structures and interiors. This paper focuses on the fungal (Aspergillus niger) colonization from 14 to 56 days in thick- and thin-strip glubam board with the investigation of physical, mechanical (compression), and microcosmic properties. Two-degree of carbonization treatment was employed to improve the antifungal property of the thick-strip glubam. After 56 days of infection, the deep-degree carbonized thick-strip glubam presents better anti-mold properties than medium and non-carbonized specimens. For thin-strip glubam, both parallel and perpendicular to the main bamboo fiber direction were considered. The longitudinal thin-strip glubam retains decent compressive properties, while the transverse specimens stay a stable compressive strength along all fungal tests. The paper reports the experimental values of mass loss, color changes, compressive strengths, modulus of elasticity in compression, and microstructure observations from optical and SEM microscopy at different fungal exposure timespans.

The nearby radio galaxy M87 is a very high-energy (VHE) gamma-ray emitter established by observations with ground-based gamma-ray detectors. Here we report the long-term monitoring of M87 from 2021 to 2024 with the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO). M87 has been detected by LHAASO with a statistical significance ∼ 9 σ . The observed energy spectrum extends to 20 TeV, with a possible hardening at ∼20 TeV and then a clear softening at higher energies. Assuming that the intrinsic spectrum is described by a single power law up to 20 TeV, a tight upper bound on the extragalactic background light intensity is obtained. A strong VHE flare lasting 8 days, with a rise time of ${\tau }_{r}^{\mathrm{rise}}=1.05\pm 0.49$ days and decay time of ${\tau }_{d}^{\mathrm{decay}}=2.17\pm 0.58$ days, was found in early 2022. A possible GeV flare is seen also in Fermi Large Area Telescope data during the VHE flare period. The variability time as short as 1 day seen in the LHAASO data suggests a compact emission region with a size of ∼3 × 10 ^15 δ cm ( δ being the Doppler factor of the emitting region), corresponding to a few Schwarzschild radii of the central supermassive black hole in M87. The continuous monitoring of the source reveals a duty cycle of ∼1% for VHE flares with a flux above 10 ^−11 erg cm ^−2 s ^−1 .

The first source catalog of the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO) reported the detection of a very high energy gamma-ray source, 1LHAASO J1219+2915. This Letter presents a further detailed study of the spectral and temporal behavior of this pointlike source. The best-fit position of the TeV source (R.A. = 185.°05 ± 0.°04, decl. = 29.°25 ± 0.°03) is compatible with NGC 4278 within ∼0.°03. Variation analysis shows an indication of variability on a timescale of a few months in the TeV band, which is consistent with low-frequency observations. Based on these observations, we report the detection of TeV γ -ray emissions from this low-luminosity active galactic nucleus. The observation by LHAASO's Water Cherenkov Detector Array during the active period has a significance level of 8.8 σ with a best-fit photon spectral index Γ = 2.56 ± 0.14 and a flux f _1–10 TeV = (7.0 ± 1.1 _sta ± 0.35 _syst ) × 10 ^−13 photons cm ^−2 s ^−1 , or approximately 5% of the Crab Nebula. The discovery of VHE gamma-ray emission from NGC 4278 indicates that compact, weak radio jets can efficiently accelerate particles and emit TeV photons.

A promising accelerator light source mechanism called steady-state microbunching (SSMB) is being actively studied. With the combination of strong coherent radiation from microbunching and high repetition rate of a storage ring, high-average-power narrow-band radiation can be anticipated from an SSMB storage ring, with wavelengths ranging from THz to soft X-ray. Such a novel light source could provide new opportunities for accelerator photon science like high-resolution angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy and industrial applications like extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography. In this paper, a theoretical and numerical study of the average and statistical properties of coherent radiation from SSMB are presented. The results show that 1 kW average-power quasi-continuous-wave EUV radiation can be obtained from an SSMB ring provided that an average current of 1 A and a microbunch train with bunch length of 3 nm can be formed at the radiator which is assumed to be an undulator. Together with the narrow-band feature, the EUV photon flux can reach 6 × 1015 photons s−1 within a 0.1 meV energy bandwidth, which is three orders of magnitude higher than that in a conventional synchrotron source and is appealing for fundamental condensed matter physics and other research. In this theoretical investigation, we have generalized the definition and derivation of the transverse form factor of an electron beam which can quantify the impact of its transverse size on coherent radiation. In particular, it has been shown that the narrow-band feature of SSMB radiation is strongly correlated with the finite transverse electron beam size. Considering the pointlike nature of electrons and quantum nature of radiation, the coherent radiation fluctuates from microbunch to microbunch, or for a single microbunch from turn to turn. Some important results concerning the statistical properties of SSMB radiation are presented, with a brief discussion on its potential applications, for example the beam diagnostics. The presented work is of value for the development of SSMB to better serve potential synchrotron radiation users. In addition, this also sheds light on understanding the radiation characteristics of free-electron lasers, coherent harmonic generation, etc.

We present the first catalog of very-high-energy and ultra-high-energy gamma-ray sources detected by the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory. The catalog was compiled using 508 days of data collected by the Water Cherenkov Detector Array from 2021 March to 2022 September and 933 days of data recorded by the Kilometer Squared Array from 2020 January to 2022 September. This catalog represents the main result from the most sensitive large coverage gamma-ray survey of the sky above 1 TeV, covering decl. from −20° to 80°. In total, the catalog contains 90 sources with an extended size smaller than 2° and a significance of detection at >5 σ . Based on our source association criteria, 32 new TeV sources are proposed in this study. Among the 90 sources, 43 sources are detected with ultra-high energy ( E > 100 TeV) emission at >4 σ significance level. We provide the position, extension, and spectral characteristics of all the sources in this catalog.

We hereby present a simple process, called in situ two-end diffusion (TED), to reach coercivity enhancement with almost unchanged energy product for hot deformed (HD) NdFeB magnets. Coercivity of the HD magnets is increased from 15.1 to 18.7 kOe for the magnet TED with (Nd0.75Pr0.25)70Cu30 (NdPrCu), which is larger than 17.6 kOe for the magnet directly doped with 2 wt. % NdPrCu alloy. Besides, the magnet TED with NdPrCu exhibits good (00L) texture and therefore could support high (BH)max of 43.0 MGOe. In addition, the magnet TED with Ce70Cu30 (CeCu) exhibit superior magnetic properties of Br = 12.8 kG, iHc = 18.0 kOe and (BH)max = 40.7 MGOe to those of traditional doping with CeCu (Br = 11.7 kG, iHc = 16.4 kOe and (BH)max = 34.2 MGOe). For TED process, low-melting CeCu can infiltrate into the center of the magnet, and most Ce distribute at grain boundary. The distribution of Ce and Cu at grain boundary can reduce the magnetization of grain boundary phase, strengthen the decoupling effect between grains and contribute to the coercivity enhancement. This work demonstrates TED with low-melting HRE-free alloys is a simple method to effectively enhance coercivity and keep high Br and (BH)max for HD NdFeB magnets.

Plumes from the boreal spring biomass burning (BB) in northern peninsular Southeast Asia (nPSEA) are lifted into the subtropical jet stream and transported and deposited across nPSEA, South China, Taiwan and even the western North Pacific Ocean. This paper as part of the Seven SouthEast Asian Studies (7-SEAS) project effort attempts to improve the chemical weather prediction capability of the Weather Research and Forecasting coupled with the Community Multiscale for Air Quality (WRF–CMAQ) model over a vast region, from the mountainous near-source burning sites at nPSEA to its downwind region. Several sensitivity analyses of plume rise are compared in the paper, and it is discovered that the initial vertical allocation profile of BB plumes and the plume rise module (PLMRIM) are the main reasons causing the inaccuracies of the WRF–CMAQ simulations. The smoldering emission from the Western Regional Air Partnership (WRAP) empirical algorithm included has improved the accuracies of PM10, O3 and CO at the source. The best performance at the downwind sites is achieved with the inline PLMRIM, which accounts for the atmospheric stratification at the mountainous source region with the FINN burning emission dataset. Such a setup greatly improves not only the BB aerosol concentration prediction over near-source and receptor ground-based measurement sites but also the aerosol vertical distribution and column aerosol optical depth of the BB aerosol along the transport route. The BB aerosols from nPSEA are carried by the subtropical westerlies in the free troposphere to the western North Pacific, while BB aerosol has been found to interact with the local pollutants in the Taiwan region through three conditions: (a) overpassing western Taiwan and entering the central mountain area, (b) mixing down to western Taiwan, (c) transport of local pollutants upwards and mixing with a BB plume on higher ground. The second condition, which involves the prevailing high-pressure system from Asian cold surge, is able to impact most of the population in Taiwan.

Abstract The focal plane camera is the core component of the Wide Field-of-view Cherenkov/fluorescence Telescope Array (WFCTA) of the Large High-Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO). Because of the capability of working under moonlight without aging, silicon photomultipliers (SiPM) have been proven to be not only an alternative but also an improvement to conventional photomultiplier tubes (PMT) in this application. Eighteen SiPM-based cameras with square light funnels have been built for WFCTA. The telescopes have collected more than 100 million cosmic ray events and preliminary results indicate that these cameras are capable of working under moonlight. The characteristics of the light funnels and SiPMs pose challenges (e.g. dynamic range, dark count rate, assembly techniques). In this paper, we present the design features, manufacturing techniques and performances of these cameras. Finally, the test facilities, the test methods and results of SiPMs in the cameras are reported here.

Originating from the stochastic nature of the photon emission process, the longitudinal coordinates of electrons diffuse even if the global phase slippage of a storage ring is zero, as we cannot zero all the local phase slippages simultaneously. This quantum diffusion is viewed as the most fundamental effect limiting the lowest bunch length realizable in an electron storage ring from single-particle dynamics perspective. Energy spread diverges when bunch length is pushed to the limit given by this diffusion. Here we report the first experimental evidence supporting the existence of this effect. The measurements confirm the breakdown of the classical formula of bunch length and energy spread in an electron storage ring with globally small and locally large phase slippage.

The outflow of the East Asian haze (EAH) has attracted much attention in recent years. For downstream areas, it is meaningful to understand the impact of crucial upstream sources and the process analysis during transport. This study evaluated the impact of PM2.5 from the three largest industrial regions on the Asian continent, namely the Bohai Rim industrial region (BRIR), Yangtze River Delta industrial region (YRDIR), and Pearl River Delta industrial region (PRDIR), in Taiwan and discussed the processes during transport with the help of air quality modeling. The simulation results revealed that the contributions of monthly average PM2.5 from BRIR and YRDIR were 0.7–1.1 and 1.2–1.9 µg m−3 (∼ 5 % and 7.5 % of the total concentration) in Taiwan, respectively, in January 2017. When the Asian anticyclone moved from the Asian continent to the western Pacific, e.g., on 9 January 2017, the contributions from BRIR and YRDIR to northern Taiwan could reach daily averages of 8 and 11 µg m−3. The transport of EAH from BRIR and YRDIR to low-latitude regions was horizontal advection (HADV), vertical advection (ZADV), and vertical diffusion (VDIF) over the Bohai Sea and East China Sea. Over the Taiwan Strait and the northern South China Sea, cloud processes (CLDS) were the major contribution to PM2.5 due to a high relative humidity environment. Along the transport from high-latitude regions to low-latitude regions, aerosol chemistry (AERO) and dry deposition (DDEP) were the major removal processes. When the EAH intruded into northern Taiwan, the major processes for the gains of PM2.5 in northern Taiwan were HADV and AERO. The stronger the EAH, the more the EAH could influence central and southern Taiwan. Although PRDIR is located downstream of Taiwan under northeasterly wind, the PM2.5 from PRDIR could be lifted upward above the boundary layer, allowing it to move eastwards. When the PM2.5 plume moved over Taiwan and was blocked by mountains, PM2.5 could be transported downward, via boundary layer mixing (VDIF), as it was further enhanced by the passing cold surge. In contrast, for the simulation of July 2017, the influence from the three industrial regions was almost negligible unless there was a special weather system, such as thermal lows which may have carried pollutants from PRDIR to Taiwan, but this occurrence was rare.

This paper unifies the classical intuitionistic fuzzy additive and multiplicative operations and proposes a generalized intuitionistic fuzzy additive operation and a generalized interval-valued intuitionistic fuzzy additive operation. In particular, it was proved that the classical additive and multiplicative operations on intuitionistic fuzzy sets (IFSs) are two special cases of the newly proposed generalized intuitionistic fuzzy additive operation, while the classical additive and multiplicative operations on interval-valued IFSs (IVIFSs) are two special cases of the generalized interval-valued intuitionistic fuzzy additive one. This paper has three innovation points. First, it introduces two kinds of “intuitionistic preference factors,” which are the key parameters of the generalized intuitionistic fuzzy additive and the generalized interval-valued intuitionistic additive operations. Second, it proposes a generalized intuitionistic fuzzy additive aggregating operator based on an intuitionistic preference factor and a generalized interval-valued intuitionistic fuzzy additive aggregating operator based on the mean value theorem for integrals. Third, two novel multiple attribute decision-making approaches under the intuitionistic fuzzy environment are proposed. In addition, two examples are given to verify the validity of the proposed generalized fuzzy additive operators and decision-making approaches.

Significant enhancement in coercivity for hot deformed (HD) NdFeB magnets is achieved by doping R80Al20 (R= La, Ce, Dy, Tb) alloy powders. All studied samples exhibit fine microstructure with good (00L) texture. By doping R80Al20 powders, the coercivity of HD NdFeB magnets is significantly increased from 16.0 kOe to 19.4 kOe, 20.0 kOe, 21.8 kOe, and 23.8 kOe for R = La, Ce, Dy, and Tb, respectively, while (BH)max is decreased from 41.5 MGOe to 39.3-40.8 MGOe slightly. Microstructure analysis shows that Ce or La prefers to distribute mostly at grain boundary, while Dy or Tb and Al locate at grain boundary and surface. The magnetic isolation due to R-rich phase containing Nd, Ce or La, Al at the grain boundary contributes to coercivity enhancement with the samples with R = La and Ce. In additional to magnetic isolation, the strengthened magnetic anisotropy field of 2:14:1 phase due to Tb or Dy, and slight Al substitutions gives rise to the significant enhancement of coercivity for those with R80Al20 (R = Dy and Tb).

Low longitudinal emittance means small energy spread and short bunch length, which makes high-power short-wavelength coherent radiation possible. In a storage ring, due to quantum excitation, the equilibrium longitudinal emittance is mainly the overall contribution of all bend-related elements, such as bends, undulators and laser modulators. By introducing longitudinal Twiss function and analyzing the 6D one-turn map in 3D Twiss form, the longitudinal emittance contribution of all these elements is theoretically studied in this paper, and a general method for minimizing the storage ring equilibrium longitudinal emittance is proposed. An integrated optimization of longitudinal beta function shows, the longitudinal emittance scales as the third power of bending angle, and can be as low as subpicometer with a beam energy of 400 MeV in an ultimate state.

Originating from the stochastic nature of the photon emission process, the diffusion of the electron longitudinal coordinate exists even if the global phase slippage of a storage ring is zero, as we cannot zero all the local phase slippages simultaneously. This quantum diffusion is viewed as the most fundamental limit of the lowest bunch length realizable in an electron storage ring from the single-particle dynamics perspective. Here, we present an analysis of this effect using the Courant-Snyder parametrization in the longitudinal dimension. Analytical formulas for the longitudinal emittance, energy spread, and bunch length are derived. The same formalism is used to discuss the application of multiple radio frequency systems for longitudinal strong focusing. The presented work is expected to be useful in the development of novel light source mechanisms like steady-state microbunching, where a short bunch length or small longitudinal emittance is needed.

Tooth loss has been found to adversely affect not just masticatory and speech functions, but also psychological health and quality of life. Currently, teeth replacement options include dentures, bridges, and implants. However, these artificial replacement options remain inferior to biological replacements due to their reduced efficiency, the need for replacements, and the risk of immunological rejection. To this end, there has been a heightened interest in the bioengineering of teeth in recent years. While there have been reports of successfully regenerated teeth, controlling the size and shape of bioengineered teeth remains a challenge. In this study, methacrylated hyaluronic acid (MeHA) was synthesized and microstructured in a hydrogel microwell array using soft lithography. The resulting MeHA hydrogel microwell scaffold resembles the shape of a naturally developing human tooth germ. To facilitate the epithelial–mesenchymal interactions, human adult low calcium high temperature (HaCaT) cells were seeded on the surface of the hydrogels and dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) were encapsulated inside the hydrogels. It was found that hydrogel scaffolds were able to preserve the viability of both types of cells and they appeared to favor signaling between epithelial and mesenchymal cells, which is necessary in the promotion of cell proliferation. As such, the hydrogel scaffolds offer a promising system for the bioengineering of human tooth germs in vitro.

Probiotics or clay detoxifier can improve the intestinal health of monogastric animals fed diets contaminated with aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), but little is known in ruminants. This study aimed to investigate the effect of probiotics and clay detoxifier on the growth performance, enterotoxigenic bacteria, endotoxins and intestinal barrier of lambs fed diet contaminated with AFB1. Lambs (24) were randomly allocated into 4 groups with 6 replicates. Treatments included control, AFB1 (100 μg/kg), probiotics (AFB1 + probiotics @ 3×109 cfu/kg) and clay (AFB1 + clay @ 4.0 g/kg of feed). The trial lasted for 35 d. Results showed that AFB1 worsened body weight gain and feed conversion ratio, and these were recovered by probiotics and clay detoxifier supplementation. Also, AFB1 increased cecal counts of Clostridium perfringens, Salmonella, Escherichia coli and gram-negative bacteria, serum endotoxin and diamine oxidase, but decreased duodenal mRNA expressions of claudin-1, IgA inducing protein, junctional adhesion molecule 2 (JAM-2), joining chain of multimeric IgA and IgM (J-chain) and occludin. Probiotics ameliorated these negative effects, but for Clostridium perfringens and J-chain, whereas clay detoxifier only showed beneficial effects on Escherichia coli, gram-negative bacteria, endotoxins, claudin-1 and JAM-2. In addition, probiotics were more protective against enterotoxigenic bacteria and enterotoxic markers than clay detoxifier. The results suggest that the probiotics are capable of restoring growth performance and protecting intestinal barrier in lambs fed diet contaminated with AFB1.

Blueberries are rich in bioactive anthocyanins, which are associated with health benefits contributing to reducing the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. The objective of this study was to improve the yield of anthocyanins extracted from rabbiteye blueberry (Vaccinium ashei) fruits cultivated in Nanjing using ultrasound-assisted extraction and to identify the individual anthocyanins present in the extract. The extraction conditions of blueberry anthocyanins were optimized using response surface methodology. The Box–Behnken test was designed to investigate the effect of extraction using different ethanol concentrations, extraction time, and liquid-to-solid ratios. The optimum conditions of the extraction derived from the model were as follows: extraction time 24 h at 30°C using 72.50% ethanol which contains 0.02% v/v hydrochloric acid as a solvent and liquid-to-solid ratio 20 : 1 v/w. The extraction yield was 16.21 ± 0.44 mg/g under these optimum conditions. The 13 peaks of the anthocyanin extract from rabbiteye blueberry fruits in Nanjing were tentatively identified using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and high-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization interface-mass spectrometer (HPLC-ESI-MS), which are the derivatives of delphinidin, cyanidin, petunidin, peonidin, and malvidin that were glycosylated by glucose, galactose, or arabinose. This research provides a reliable scientific basis for efficacious extraction and identification of anthocyanins from blueberry fruits, which would be helpful for further investigation of the function and application of blueberry anthocyanins extract to human health.

This work reports on the approach of metamorphic In(Ga)As quantum wells on GaP/Si(001) substrates for Si-based mid-infrared applications. Metamorphic InP and In0.83Al0.17As templates are grown on Si, and room temperature photoluminescence emissions at 2.1 μm and 2.6 μm have been demonstrated from InAs/In0.53Ga0.47As triangular quantum wells and InAs quantum wells on the templates, respectively. The surface root mean square roughness is 4-5 nm. The quantum wells act fully strained and the threading dislocation density is 107-108 cm-2 in the upper side of buffer.

In this work, potential anticorrosive coating resulted from the composite with synergistic effect of biomimetic epoxy thermoset (BET) morphology and incorporated superhydrophobic silica microspheres was presented. First of all, superhydrophobic methyl-modified silica (MS) microspheres were synthesized by performing the conventional base-catalyzed sol-gel process of MTMS and APTMS. The as-prepared MS microspheres were identified as having an average particle size of ~1 µm in diameter. The as-prepared MS microspheres were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR), 29Si and 13C solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Morphological properties of MS microspheres and BET-silica composite coating were studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Subsequently, 3 wt% of MS microspheres were incorporated into an epoxy slurry of DGEBA/T-403 in dimetyl acetamide (DMAc), followed by performing the programmed heating through nanocasting technique with PDMS as soft template materials for pattern transfer by using leaf of Xanthosoma Sagittifolium as natural template, leading to the formation of artificial biomimetic composite coating. The appearance/dispersion capability of silica microspheres in BET coating was confirmed by the energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and Si-mapping. The roughness level of BET and BEC-3% were detected by AFM. The BETsilica composite was found to exhibit a contact angle (CA) of ~153°, revealing the synergistic effect of biomimetic epoxy morphology and incorporated superhydrophobic MS microspheres, which is found to be more hydrophobic than that of neat epoxy thermoset (CA = 81°). Corrosion protection of as-prepared coatings was demonstrated by performing a series of electrochemical measurements (Tafel, Nyquists and Bode plots) upon CRS electrodes in saline condition. It should be noted that the BET coatings upon CRS electrode revealed an effectively enhanced corrosion protection as compared to that coatings without biomimetic morphology. Moreover, the BET coating with superhydrophobic MS microspheres upon CRS electrode was found to exhibit better corrosion protection as compared to a counterpart coating without MS microspheres.

A three-dimensional coupled physical–biogeochemical model was used to simulate and examine temporal and spatial variability of sea surface pCO2 in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM). The model was driven by realistic atmospheric forcing, open boundary conditions from a data-assimilative global ocean circulation model, and observed freshwater and terrestrial nutrient and carbon input from major rivers. A 7-year model hindcast (2004–2010) was performed and validated against ship measurements. Model results revealed clear seasonality in surface pCO2 and were used to estimate carbon budgets in the Gulf. Based on the average of model simulations, the GoM was a net CO2 sink with a flux of 1.11 ± 0.84 × 1012 mol C yr−1, which, together with the enormous fluvial inorganic carbon input, was comparable to the inorganic carbon export through the Loop Current. Two model sensitivity experiments were performed: one without biological sources and sinks and the other using river input from the 1904–1910 period as simulated by the Dynamic Land Ecosystem Model (DLEM). It was found that biological uptake was the primary driver making GoM an overall CO2 sink and that the carbon flux in the northern GoM was very susceptible to changes in river forcing. Large uncertainties in model simulations warrant further process-based investigations.

Changes in extreme weather may produce some of the largest societal impacts of anthropogenic climate change. However, it is intrinsically difficult to estimate changes in extreme events from the short observational record. In this work we use millennial runs from the Community Climate System Model version 3 (CCSM3) in equilibrated pre-industrial and possible future (700 and 1400 ppm CO2) conditions to examine both how extremes change in this model and how well these changes can be estimated as a function of run length. We estimate changes to distributions of future temperature extremes (annual minima and annual maxima) in the contiguous United States by fitting generalized extreme value (GEV) distributions. Using 1000-year pre-industrial and future time series, we show that warm extremes largely change in accordance with mean shifts in the distribution of summertime temperatures. Cold extremes warm more than mean shifts in the distribution of wintertime temperatures, but changes in GEV location parameters are generally well explained by the combination of mean shifts and reduced wintertime temperature variability. For cold extremes at inland locations, return levels at long recurrence intervals show additional effects related to changes in the spread and shape of GEV distributions. We then examine uncertainties that result from using shorter model runs. In theory, the GEV distribution can allow prediction of infrequent events using time series shorter than the recurrence interval of those events. To investigate how well this approach works in practice, we estimate 20-, 50-, and 100-year extreme events using segments of varying lengths. We find that even using GEV distributions, time series of comparable or shorter length than the return period of interest can lead to very poor estimates. These results suggest caution when attempting to use short observational time series or model runs to infer infrequent extremes.

Physiological changes associated with senescence of flowers and abscission of floral parts in Oncidesa (formerly Oncidium) cv. Gower Ramsey are caused by a plant hormone ethylene which is produced by pollinia cap dislodgment during postharvest handling and transportation. The ethylene receptor gene OgERS1 of Oncidesa has been previously cloned and characterized. To analyze promoter activity of OgERS1, transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana plants were generated to express the ß-glucuronidase (GUS) reporter gene under the control of 5'-upstream sequence of OgERS1 from Oncidesa. The expression pattern of the OgERS1 promoter at the cellular level was investigated by analysis of GUS activity. This promoter can activate gene expression in both actively dividing young tissues and abscission-related aging tissues. Expression of GUS was detected in the shoot meristem uniquely in 10 to 30 d-old-plants and was found in flower buds, axillary buds, flower stems, and abscission layers during later development. In 2- to 3-week-old transgenic Arabidopsis, exogenous ethylene, glucose, lactose, and maltose enhanced promoter activity implying that crosstalk between sugar and an ethylene receptor may exist. However, indole-3-acetic acid, benzylaminopurine, abscisic acid, heat, wounding, salinity, drought, and flooding slightly suppressed promoter activity. These results demonstrate that the promoter of OgERS1 was developmentally and environmentally regulated, and imply a potential for application of this bi-functional promoter to increase branching or enhanced dwarfing.

Landslide monitoring is a crucial tool for the prevention of hazards. It is often the only solution for the survey and the early-warning of large landslides cannot be stabilized. The objective of present study is to use a low-cost image system to monitor the active landslides. We adopted the direct linear transformation (DLT) method in close range digital photogrammetry to measure terrain of landslide at the Huoyen Shan, Miaoli of central Taiwan and to compare measured results with e-GPS. The results revealed that the relative error in surface area was approximately 1.7% as comparing the photogrammetry with DLT method and e-GPS measurement. It showed that the close range digital photogrammetry with DLT method had the availability and capability to measure the landslides. The same methodology was then applied to measure the terrain before landslide and after landslide in the study area. The digital terrain model (DTM) was established and then was used to calculate the volume of the terrain before landslide and after landslide. The volume difference before and after landslides was 994.16 m3.

The aim of this study is to investigate the seasonal variations in the physicochemical properties of atmospheric ultra-fine particles (UFPs, d ≤ 100 nm) and submicron particles (PM1, d ≤ 1 µm) in an east Asian urban area, which are hypothesized to be affected by the interchange of summer and winter monsoons. An observation experiment was conducted at TARO (Taipei Aerosol and Radiation Observatory), an urban aerosol station in Taipei, Taiwan, from October 2012 to August 2013. The measurements included the mass concentration and chemical composition of UFPs and PM1, as well as the particle number concentration (PNC) and the particle number size distribution (PSD) with size range of 4–736 nm. The results indicated that the mass concentration of PM1 was elevated during cold seasons with a peak level of 18.5 µg m−3 in spring, whereas the highest concentration of UFPs was measured in summertime with a mean of 1.64 µg m−3. Moreover, chemical analysis revealed that the UFPs and PM1 were characterized by distinct composition; UFPs were composed mostly of organics, whereas ammonium and sulfate were the major constituents of PM1. The seasonal median of total PNCs ranged from 13.9 × 103 cm−3 in autumn to 19.4 × 103 cm−3 in spring. Median concentrations for respective size distribution modes peaked in different seasons. The nucleation-mode PNC (N4 − 25) peaked at 11.6 × 103 cm−3 in winter, whereas the Aitken-mode (N25 − 100) and accumulation-mode (N100 − 736) PNC exhibited summer maxima at 6.0 × 103 and 3.1 × 103 cm−3, respectively. The change in PSD during summertime was attributed to the enhancement in the photochemical production of condensable organic matter that, in turn, contributed to the growth of aerosol particles in the atmosphere. In addition, clear photochemical production of particles was observed, mostly in the summer season, which was characterized by average particle growth and formation rates of 4.0 ± 1.1 nm h−1 and 1.4 ± 0.8 cm−3 s−1, respectively. The prevalence of new particle formation (NPF) in summer was suggested as a result of seasonally enhanced photochemical oxidation of SO2 that contributed to the production of H2SO4, and a low level of PM10 (d ≤ 10 µm) that served as the condensation sink. Regarding the sources of aerosol particles, correlation analysis of the PNCs against NOx revealed that the local vehicular exhaust was the dominant contributor of the UFPs throughout the year. Conversely, the Asian pollution outbreaks had significant influence in the PNC of accumulation-mode particles during the seasons of winter monsoons. The results of this study implied the significance of secondary organic aerosols in the seasonal variations of UFPs and the influences of continental pollution outbreaks in the downwind areas of Asian outflows.

Non-Fermi liquids are strange metals whose physical properties deviate qualitatively from those of conventional metals due to strong quantum fluctuations. In this paper, we report transport measurements on the FeSe_{1−x}S_{x} superconductor, which has a quantum critical point of a nematic order without accompanying antiferromagnetism. We find that in addition to a linear-in-temperature resistivity ρ_{xx}∝T, which is close to the Planckian limit, the Hall angle varies as cotθ_{H}∝T^{2} and the low-field magnetoresistance is well scaled as Δρ_{xx}/ρ_{xx}∝tan^{2}θ_{H} in the vicinity of the nematic quantum critical point. This set of anomalous charge transport properties show striking resemblance with those reported in cuprate, iron-pnictide, and heavy fermion superconductors, demonstrating that the critical fluctuations of a nematic order with q≈0 can also lead to a breakdown of the Fermi liquid description.

The mechanism of steady-state microbunching (SSMB) has been proposed [D. F. Ratner and A. W. Chao, Phys. Rev. Lett. 105, 154801 (2010)PRLTAO0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.105.154801] to generate high-power coherent radiation at a high repetition rate or in continuous-wave mode using electron storage rings. In this paper, the related single-particle dynamics are theoretically and numerically studied, and important results are presented. The investigated effects are longitudinal quantum radiation excitation, nonlinear momentum compaction, and linear and nonlinear coupling of the transverse and longitudinal motion. Although this analysis is oriented toward SSMB, some of the analyzed effects are also crucial in cases such as coherent harmonic generation, bunch slicing, bunch compression, free-electron laser beam transport lines, and quasi-isochronous rings, which involve precise longitudinal phase-space manipulations.

This paper reports the observation of beam energy widening and distortion from Gaussian due to a nonvanishing horizontal chromaticity at a quasi-isochronous storage ring. The result originates from an average path-length dependence on the betatron oscillation amplitudes, which is intimately correlated to the transverse chromaticities. It is the first experimental validation of the impact of such a nonlinear transverse-longitudinal coupling effect on the equilibrium beam characteristics in a storage ring. The results could be important for quasi-isochronous rings, steady-state microbunching, nonscaling fixed-field alternate gradient accelerators, etc., where very small momentum compaction or large chromaticity is required.

An X-band GW-level polarization controllable TM01-TE11 mode converter for high power microwave (HPM) systems is proposed. The mode converter consists of a TM01-TE10 mode coupler, a TE11-TE10 mode coupler and four phase shifters. The overall axial dimension is less than 300 mm. By controlling the phase shifters, the online adjustment of vertical, horizontal and circular polarizations can be implemented. The simulation demonstrates that the transmission efficiency is higher than 95.6% from 9.4 GHz to 9.8 GHz. The power capacity of the mode converter is on GW-level.

Distributions of surface water partial pressure of carbon dioxide (pCO2) were measured on nine cruises in the Delaware Estuary (USA). The Delaware River was highly supersaturated in pCO2 with respect to the atmosphere during all seasons, while the Delaware Bay was undersaturated in pCO2 during spring and late summer and moderately supersaturated during mid-summer, fall, and winter. While the smaller upper tidal river was a strong CO2 source (27.1 ± 6.4 mol-C m−2 yr−1), the much larger bay was a weak source (1.2 ± 1.4 mol-C m−2 yr−1), the latter of which had a much greater area than the former. In turn, the Delaware Estuary acted as a relatively weak CO2 source (2.4 ± 4.8 mol-C m−2 yr−1), which is in great contrast to many other estuarine systems. Seasonally, pCO2 changes were greatest at low salinities (0 ≤ S < 5), with pCO2 values in the summer nearly 3-fold greater than those observed in the spring and fall. Undersaturated pCO2 was observed over the widest salinity range (7.5 ≤ S < 30) during spring. Near to supersaturated pCO2 was generally observed in mid- to high-salinity waters (20 ≤ S < 30) except during spring and late summer. Strong seasonal trends in internal estuarine production and consumption of CO2 were observed throughout both the upper tidal river and lower bay. Positive correlations between river-borne and air–water CO2 fluxes in the upper estuary emphasize the significance of river-borne CO2 degassing to overall CO2 fluxes. While river-borne CO2 degassing heavily influenced CO2 dynamics in the upper tidal river, these forces were largely compensated for by internal biological processes within the extensive bay system of the lower estuary.

In recent years, heavy rainfall conditions have caused disasters around the world. To prevent losses by floods, levees have often been constructed in inundation-prone areas. This study performed reliability analyses for the Chiuliao First Levee in southern Taiwan. The failure-related parameters were the water level, the scouring depth, and the in situ friction angle. Three major failure mechanisms were considered: the slope sliding failure of the levee and the sliding and overturning failures of the retaining wall. When the variability of the in situ friction angle and the scouring depth are considered for various flood return periods, the variations of the factor of safety for the different failure mechanisms show that the retaining wall sliding and overturning failures are more sensitive to the change of the friction angle. When the flood return period is greater than 2 years, the levee could fail with slope sliding for all values of the water level difference. The results of levee stability analysis considering the variability of different parameters could aid engineers in designing the levee cross sections, especially with potential failure mechanisms in mind.

Ecological models are effective tools for simulating the distribution of global carbon sources and sinks. However, these models often suffer from substantial biases due to inaccurate simulations of complex ecological processes. We introduce a set of scaling factors (parameters) to an ecological model on the basis of plant functional type (PFT) and latitudes. A global carbon assimilation system (GCAS-DOM) is developed by employing a dual optimization method (DOM) to invert the time-dependent ecological model parameter state and the net carbon flux state simultaneously. We use GCAS-DOM to estimate the global distribution of the CO2 flux on 1° × 1° grid cells for the period from 2001 to 2007. Results show that land and ocean absorb −3.63 ± 0.50 and −1.82 ± 0.16 Pg C yr−1, respectively. North America, Europe and China contribute −0.98 ± 0.15, −0.42 ± 0.08 and −0.20 ± 0.29 Pg C yr−1, respectively. The uncertainties in the flux after optimization by GCAS-DOM have been remarkably reduced by more than 60%. Through parameter optimization, GCAS-DOM can provide improved estimates of the carbon flux for each PFT. Coniferous forest (−0.97 ± 0.27 Pg C yr−1) is the largest contributor to the global carbon sink. Fluxes of once-dominant deciduous forest generated by the Boreal Ecosystems Productivity Simulator (BEPS) are reduced to −0.78 ± 0.23 Pg C yr−1, the third largest carbon sink.

We present a four-band and polarization-insensitive terahertz metamaterial absorber formed by four square metallic rings and a metallic ground plane separated by a dielectric layer. It is found that the structure has four distinctive absorption bands whose peaks are over 97% on average. The mechanism of the four-band absorber is attributed to the overlapping of four resonance frequencies, and the mechanism of the absorption is investigated by the distributions of the electric field. In particular, the frequency of each absorption peak can be flexibly controlled by varying the size of the corresponding metallic ring. The proposed concept is applicable to other types of absorber structures and can be readily scaled up to the structures that are working in the microwave frequency range. Moreover, the characteristic of the design can be used to design a five-band metamaterial absorber by adding one more metallic ring. The proposed absorber has potential applications in detection, imaging, and stealth technology.

The Surface Ocean CO2 Atlas (SOCAT), an activity of the international marine carbon research community, provides access to synthesis and gridded fCO2 (fugacity of carbon dioxide) products for the surface oceans. Version 2 of SOCAT is an update of the previous release (version 1) with more data (increased from 6.3 million to 10.1 million surface water fCO2 values) and extended data coverage (from 1968–2007 to 1968–2011). The quality control criteria, while identical in both versions, have been applied more strictly in version 2 than in version 1. The SOCAT website (http://www.socat.info/) has links to quality control comments, metadata, individual data set files, and synthesis and gridded data products. Interactive online tools allow visitors to explore the richness of the data. Applications of SOCAT include process studies, quantification of the ocean carbon sink and its spatial, seasonal, year-to-year and longerterm variation, as well as initialisation or validation of ocean carbon models and coupled climate-carbon models. Data coverage Repository-References: Individual data set files and synthesis product: doi:10.1594/PANGAEA.811776 Gridded products: doi:10.3334/CDIAC/OTG.SOCAT_V2_GRID Available at: http://www.socat.info/ Coverage: 79° S to 90° N; 180° W to 180° E Location Name: Global Oceans and Coastal Seas Date/Time Start: 16 November 1968 Date/Time End: 26 December 2011

An intensive aerosol characterization experiment was performed at the Taipei Aerosol and Radiation Observatory (TARO, 25.02° N, 121.53° E) in the urban area of Taipei, Taiwan, during July 2012. Number concentration and size distribution of aerosol particles were measured continuously, which were accompanied by concurrent measurements of mass concentration of submicron particles, PM1 (d ≤ 1 μm), and photolysis rate of ozone, J(O1D). The averaged number concentrations of total (Ntotal), accumulation mode (Nacu), Aitken mode (NAitken), and nucleation mode (Nnuc) particles were 13.9 × 103 cm−3, 1.2 × 103 cm−3, 6.1 × 103 cm−3, and 6.6 × 103 cm−3, respectively. Accordingly, the ultrafine particles (UFPs, d ≤ 100 nm) accounted for 91% of the total number concentration of particles measured in this study (10 ≤ d ≤ 429 nm), indicating the importance of UFPs to the air quality and radiation budget in Taipei and its surrounding areas. An averaged Nnuc / NOx ratio of 192.4 cm−3 ppbv−1 was derived from nighttime measurements, which was suggested to be the characteristic of vehicle emissions that contributed to the "urban background" of nucleation mode particles throughout a day. On the contrary, it was found that the number concentration of nucleation mode particles was independent of NOx and could be elevated up to 10 times of the "urban background" levels during daytime, suggesting a substantial amount of nucleation mode particles produced from photochemical processes. Averages (± 1σ) of the diameter growth rate (GR) and formation rate of nucleation mode particles, J10, were 11.9 ± 10.6 nm h−1 and 6.9 ± 3.0 cm−3 s−1, respectively. Consistency in the time series of the nucleation mode particle concentration and the proxy of H2SO4 production, UVB · SO2/CS, for new particle formation (NPF) events suggested that photooxidation of SO2 was likely one of the major mechanisms for the formation of new particles in our study area. Moreover, it was revealed that the particle growth rate correlated exponentially with the photolysis of ozone, implying that the condensable vapors were produced mostly from photooxidation reactions. In addition, this study also revealed that Nnuc exhibited a quadratic relationship with J10. The quadratic relationship was inferred as a result of aerosol dynamics and featured NPF processes in urban areas.

This paper reports the variation in rainfall characteristics associated with debris flows in the Chenyulan watershed, central Taiwan, between 1963 and 2009. The maximum hourly rainfall Im, the maximum 24 h rainfall Rd, and the rainfall index RI (defined as the product RdIm) were analysed for each rainfall event that triggered a debris flow within the watershed. The corresponding number of debris flows initiated by each rainfall event (N) was also investigated via image analysis and/or field investigation. The relationship between N and RI was analysed. Higher RI of a rainfall event would trigger a larger number of debris flows. This paper also discusses the effects of the Chi-Chi earthquake (CCE) on this relationship and on debris flow initiation. The results showed that the critical RI for debris flow initiation had significant variations and was significantly lower in the years immediately following the CCE of 1999, but appeared to revert to the pre-earthquake condition about five years later. Under the same extreme rainfall event of RI = 365 cm2 h−1, the value of N in the CCE-affected period could be six times larger than that in the non-CCE-affected periods.

A substrate integrated slot array antenna with a prescribed radiation pattern is investigated in this paper. To meet the requirement of a certain standard radiation pattern envelope, the array configuration and the element excitation coefficient should be considered together. An efficient and systematic method is proposed to determine the element number and element weights in a planar array. After that, the geometrical dimension of the substrate integrated slot array can be synthesized. As an example, a K-band 16 × 22 slot array antenna based on the substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) technology is designed, fabricated, and measured. Its radiation pattern can meet the class 3 antenna radiation pattern envelope of the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) standard pattern. Experimental results are in good agreement with simulated ones.

Background: Thoracoscopic surgery has become very popular in recent years. Conventional thoracoscopic surgery requires three or more port wounds for manipulations of endoscopic instruments. For complicated cancer surgery, more port wounds and a larger thoracotomy wound may be required due to technical reasons. We want to investigate the effectiveness of single-port thoracoscopic approach in elective thoracoscopic surgery for thoracic disease. Materials and methods: From July 1st, 2010 to March 31, 2011, 90 consecutive patients underwent general thoracoscopic surgery performed by the same thoracic surgeon. Two patients with severe trauma and massive bleeding were excluded from the study. All patients included had thoracoscopic surgery with a single-port approach. The surgical outcomes, complications, mortality and conversion rates were recorded and analyzed. Results: A total of 88 patients were included in this study. All these patients were operated on by the same surgeon. For sixty-eight patients, the single-port thoracoscopic approach was used. Nineteen patients were changed to a two-port thoracoscopic approach and one patient's was changed to mini-thoracotomy. Two patients died from terminal lung cancer and severe mitral regurgitation. Complications occurred in six cases. Eighty-seven patients (98.8%) were effectively managed with either single-port or a two-port approach. Only one patient was managed by mini-thoracotomy. Conclusion: Elective thoracoscopic surgery performed through a single-port wound is feasible. Single-incisional thoracoscopic surgery can be safely applied as a first-line approach in most cases of elective thoracoscopic procedures. Resumo: Introdução: A cirurgia toracoscópica tornou-se muito popular nos últimos anos. A cirurgia toracoscópica convencional requer três ou mais incisões para manipulação dos instrumentos endoscópicos. Para cirurgias de cancro complicadas, podem ser requeridas mais incisões e uma incisão toracotomia maior, por razões técnicas. Pretendemos investigar a eficácia da abordagem toracoscópica de incisão única em cirurgias toracoscópica eletivas. Materiais e métodos: Desde 1 de julho de 2010 até 31 de março de 2011, 90 pacientes consecutivos foram submetidos a cirurgia toracoscópica geral realizada pelo mesmo cirurgião torácico. Dois pacientes com trauma grave e hemorragia massiva foram excluídos do estudo. Todos os pacientes incluídos foram submetidos a cirurgia toracoscópica com uma abordagem de incisão única. Os resultados cirúrgicos, complicações, mortalidade e taxas de conversão foram registados e analisados. Resultados: Um total de 88 pacientes foram incluídos neste estudo. Todos estes pacientes foram operados pelo mesmo cirurgião. Para sessenta e oito pacientes, foi usada a abordagem de incisão única torácica. Dezanove pacientes foram convertidos para uma abordagem dupla porta e um paciente convertido em mini-toracotomia. Dois pacientes morreram de cancro do pulmão terminal e regurgitação mitral grave. Ocorreram complicações em seis casos. Oitenta e sete pacientes (98,8%) foram tratados eficazmente com uma abordagem de incisão única ou de incisão dupla. Apenas um paciente foi tratado por mini-toracotomia. Conclusão: A cirurgia toracoscópica eletiva realizada através de incisão única é viável. A cirurgia toracoscópica de incisão única pode ser aplicada em segurança como uma abordagem de primeira linha na maioria dos casos de procedimentos toracoscópicos eletivos. Keywords: Thoracoscopy, Video-assisted thoracic surgery, Single-incisional endoscopic Surgery, Palavras-chave: Torascopia, Cirurgia toracoscópica video-assistida, Cirurgia Endoscópica de incisão única

Chalcone isomerase (CHI, EC 5.5.1.6) is an entrance enzyme in the flavonoid biosynthesis, which catalyzes the conversion of chalcones to flavanones. In this study, the full-length CHI cDNA from grape vine (Vitis vinifera L.) was cloned, the recombinant protein was purified and the polyclonal antibody was prepared. Using these tools, the expression and tissue localization of CHI in developing grape berry was analyzed by RT-PCR, gel blot hybridization and immunohistochemical techniques. The expression of CHI was dependent on developmental stage, and CHI protein was mainly distributed in vascular bundles throughout all the stages of berry development, which suggested that flavonoids in the berry might have been partially synthesized in situ.

A 25-year-old woman underwent surgical tooth extraction. Several hours after the procedure, the woman complained of severe retrosternal pain and mild dyspnea. Subsequent imaging revealed subcutaneous emphysema from the mandibular region extending to the mediastinum and left side pneumothorax, as well as pneumopericardium. After treatment with antibiotics and analgesics, the patient recovered without any complications. Resumo: Uma mulher de 25 anos foi submetida a uma extração dentária. Várias horas após o procedimento, a mulher queixou-se de dor retroesternal aguda e dispneia ligeira. Imagiologia posterior revelou enfisema subcutâneo da região mandibular estendendo-se ao mediastino e pneumotórax à esquerda, bem como pneumopericárdio. Após o tratamento com antibióticos e analgésicos, a paciente recuperou sem quaisquer complicações. Keywords: Pneumothorax, Mediastinal infection, Palavras-chave: Pneumotórax, Infeção do mediastino

The stoichiometry of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and nutrients during biological uptake is widely assumed to follow the Redfield ratios (especially the C / N ratio) in large river plume ecosystems. However, this assumption has not been systematically examined and documented, because DIC and nutrients are rarely studied simultaneously in river plume areas and interpretation of ratios can be confounded by strong river–ocean mixing as well as intense biological activity. We examined stoichiometric ratios of DIC and nutrients (NO3-, PO43- and Si[OH]4) in the Mississippi River plume and adjacent continental shelf in June 2003 and August 2004 and calculated biological removal as the difference between observed concentrations and those predicted from conservative mixing, as determined from a multi-end-member mixing model and observed salinity and total alkalinity. Despite complex physical and biogeochemical influences, relationships between DIC and nutrients were strongly dependent on salinity range and geographic location, and influenced by biological removal. Lower C / Si and N / Si ratios in one nearshore area were likely due to localized input of high Si and low NO3- water from adjacent wetlands or preferential removal of nitrogen in the area. When net biological uptake was separated from river–ocean mixing and corrected for preferential N removal, the stoichiometric ratio of C / N / Si was similar to the Redfield ratio, thus supporting the applicability of the Redfield-type C / N / Si ratios in river-plume biogeochemical models.

This study analyzed the variability in the number of rainfall events related to debris-flow occurrence in the Chenyulan stream watershed located in central Taiwan. Rainfall data between 1970 and 2009 measured at three meteorological stations nearby/in the watershed were collected and used to determine the corresponding regional average rainfall for the watershed. Data on debris-flow events between 1985 and 2009 were collected and used to study their dependence on regional average rainfall. The maximum 24-h regional rainfall Rd was used to analyze the number of rainfall events Nr, the number of rainfall events that triggered debris flows Nd, and the probability of debris-flows occurrences P. The variation trends in Nr, Nd and P over recent decades under three rainfall conditions (Rd > 20, 230, and 580 mm) related to debris-flow occurrence were analyzed. In addition, the influences of the Chi-Chi earthquake on Nd and P were presented. The results showed that the rainfall events with Rd > 20 mm during the earthquake-affected period (2000–2004) strongly responded to the increases in the average number of rainfall events that triggered debris flows and the average probability of debris-flows occurrences. The number of rainfall events with Rd > 230 mm (the lower boundary for the rainfall ever triggering debris flow before the Chi-Chi earthquake), and Rd > 580 mm (the lower boundary for extreme rainfall ever triggering numerous debris flows) in the Chenyulan stream watershed increased after 2000. The increase in the number of extreme rainfall events with Rd > 580 mm augmented the number of rainfall events ever triggering numerous debris flows in the last decade. The increase in both the number of rainfall events that ever triggered debris flows and the probability of debris-flow occurrences was greater in the last decade (2000–2009) than in 1990–1999.

Soil moisture links the hydrologic cycle and the energy budget of land surfaces by regulating latent heat fluxes. An accurate assessment of the spatial and temporal variation of soil moisture is important to the study of surface biogeophysical processes. Although remote sensing has proven to be one of the most powerful tools for obtaining land surface parameters, no effective methodology yet exists for in situ soil moisture measurement based on a Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function (BRDF) model, such as the Hapke model. To retrieve and analyze soil moisture, this study applied the soil water parametric (SWAP)-Hapke model, which introduced the equivalent water thickness of soil, to ground multi-angular and hyperspectral observations coupled with, Powell-Ant Colony Algorithm methods. The inverted soil moisture data resulting from our method coincided with in situ measurements (R2 = 0.867, RMSE = 0.813) based on three selected bands (672 nm, 866 nm, 2209 nm). It proved that the extended Hapke model can be used to estimate soil moisture with high accuracy based on the field multi-angle and multispectral remote sensing data.

The role of tobacco transcription factor WRKY4 in leaf development and biotic stress tolerance was studied using RNAi suppressed transgenic plants. The leaves were more numerous and wider in NtWRKY4 RNAi suppressed transgenic lines compared to the vector control, while the levels of miRNA166 and miRNA396 were reduced in suppressed lines. NtWRKY4 expression was markedly induced in response to salicylic acid (SA), but not to abiotic stresses. When infected by tobacco mosaic virus (TMV), the leaves of the transgenic plants were more twisted and displayed a more obvious mosaic pattern compared to those of vector-transgenic plants. Less TMV viral RNA accumulated in vector-transformed plants than in transgenic plants. The results indicate that NtWRKY4 is involved in leaf morphogenesis and antiviral defense, which is seldom seen in WRKY family members.

Acute osteomyelitis is uncommon in pediatric patients, affecting one in five thousand children younger than the age of thirteen. Bone infection caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae is extremely rare, accounting for only 1.3% of acute osteomyelitis in children. We report a case of penicillin-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae-induced acute osteomyelitis in a 7-month-old male infant who was treated successfully with intravenous vancomycin and oral clindamycin.

A conical conformal leaky-wave antenna based on substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) technology is proposed and demonstrated in this paper. This antenna conforms to a conical shape surface with the angle of 40°. It has a narrow beam that scans from 80° to 97° with varying frequency (34 GHz~37 GHz). Both conformal and nonconformal antennas are fabricated through the standard PCB process. Their performances are compared within the desired frequency.

A broad range of anti-cancer agents, including glucocorticoids (GCs) and tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs), kill cells by upregulating the pro-apoptotic BCL2 family member, BIM. A common germline deletion in the BIM gene was recently shown to favor the production of non-apoptotic BIM isoforms, and to predict inferior responses in TKI-treated chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) and EGFR-driven lung cancer patients. Given that both in vitro and in vivo GC resistance are predictive of adverse outcomes in acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), we hypothesized that this polymorphism would mediate GC resistance, and serve as a biomarker of poor response in ALL. Accordingly, we used zinc finger nucleases to generate ALL cell lines with the BIM deletion, and confirmed the ability of the deletion to mediate GC resistance in vitro. In contrast to CML and lung cancer, the BIM deletion did not predict for poorer clinical outcome in a retrospective analysis of 411 pediatric ALL patients who were uniformly treated with GCs and chemotherapy. Underlying the lack of prognostic significance, we found that the chemotherapy agents used in our cohort (vincristine, L-asparaginase, and methotrexate) were each able to induce ALL cell death in a BIM-independent fashion, and resensitize BIM deletion-containing cells to GCs. Together, our work demonstrates how effective therapy can overcome intrinsic resistance in ALL patients, and suggests the potential of using combinations of drugs that work via divergent mechanisms of cell killing to surmount BIM deletion-mediated drug resistance in other cancers.

We find that dynamic aperture depends significantly on the bending radii of dipole magnets when designing a small storage ring for Tsinghua Thomson scattering X-ray source (TTX) mainly because of the nonlinearity of the dipole field. In this paper, we present systematic studies on the intrinsic-geometric nonlinearity of dipole magnets. The Hamiltonian approach is used to determine the expressions of the geometric nonlinear potential and the corresponding third-order resonance strengths. Simulations are conducted to study these resonances. Our analysis results agree well with the tracking results at the third-order resonances 3ν_{x}=ℓ and ν_{x}±2ν_{z}=ℓ, where ℓ’s are the integer multiple of the number of superperiods.