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The fruit neck is an important agronomic trait of cucumber (Cucumis sativus). However, the underlying genes and regulatory mechanisms involved in fruit neck development are poorly understood. We previously identified a cucumber yellow-green peel (ygp) mutant, whose causal gene is MYB DOMAIN PROTEIN 36 (CsMYB36). This study showed that the ygp mutant exhibited a shortened fruit neck and repressed cell expansion in the fruit neck. Further functional analysis showed that CsMYB36 was also a target gene, and its expression was enriched in the fruit neck. Overexpression of CsMYB36 in the ygp mutant rescued shortened fruit necks. Furthermore, transcriptome analysis and reverse transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) assays revealed that CsMYB36 positively regulates the expression of an expansin-like A3 (CsEXLA3) in the fruit neck, which is essential for cell expansion. Yeast 1-hybrid and dual-luciferase assays revealed that CsMYB36 regulates fruit neck elongation by directly binding to the promoter of CsEXLA3. Collectively, these findings demonstrate that CsMYB36 is an important gene in the regulation of fruit neck length in cucumber plants. A MYB transcription factor regulates cucumber fruit neck elongation by directly binding to the promoter of an expansin-like A3 gene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Increased planting densities boost crop yields. A compact plant architecture facilitates dense planting. However, the mechanisms regulating compact plant architecture in cucurbits remain unclear. In this study, we identified a cucumber (Cucumis sativus) compact plant architecture (cpa1) mutant from an ethyl methane sulfonate (EMS)‐mutagenized library that exhibited distinctive phenotypic traits, including reduced leaf petiole angle and leaf size. The candidate mutation causes a premature stop codon in CsaV3_1G036420, which shares similarity to Arabidopsis HOOKLESS 1 (HLS1) encoding putative histone N‐acetyltransferase (HAT) protein and was named CsHLS1. Consistent with the mutant phenotype, CsHLS1 was predominantly expressed in leaf petiole bases and leaves. Constitutive overexpressing CsHLS1 in cpa1 restored the wild‐type plant architecture. Knockout of CsHLS1 resulted in reduces leaf petiole angle and leaf size and as well as decreased acetylation levels. Furthermore, CsHLS1 directly interacted with CsSCL28 and negatively regulated compact plant architecture in cucumber. Importantly, CsHLS1 knockout increased the photosynthesis rate and leaf nitrogen in cucumbers, thereby maintaining cucumber yield at normal density. Overall, our research provides valuable genetic breeding resource and gene target for creating a compact plant architecture for dense cucumber planting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vitrified-bond diamond composites are materials commonly used for grinding wheels in the grinding process of silicon wafer production. In this study, the mechanism of the in situ honeycomb structure formation in the sintering process of composite materials was explored by changing the binder content without adding a pore-forming agent.The results show when the content of vitrified bond is 55 wt%, the in situ honeycomb structure forms, resulting in a porosity of 60.68 % and bending strength of 23.03 MPa.The X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy (RS), and thermogravimetry-differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA) results show that no graphitization of diamond grain occurs during sintering. The bonding ability between the vitrified bond and diamond grain, along with the microstructure of vitrified-bond diamond composites, was studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Moreover, the results of energy spectrum analysis (EDS) show that the diffusion and segregation of Na at the interface between the diamond particles and the vitrified bond improve the bonding strength, and the vitrified bond can effectively bond with the diamond particles. Finally, the formation mechanism of the honeycomb structure was elucidated using the surface and interface sintering theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we primarily focus on the edge frequency polygon estimator of $ f(x) $ f (x) , which represents the probability density function of a sequence of φ-mixing random variables $ \{X_i, i\geq 1\} $ { X i , i ≥ 1 }. We establish the uniformly strong consistency and the convergence rate of asymptotic normality for the edge frequency polygon estimator under suitable conditions. Notably, the convergence rate achieves $ O(n^{-1/6}) $ O (n − 1 / 6) , which is more precise compared to the corresponding rate mentioned in the existing literature. Additionally, we present simulation studies to validate the theoretical results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Combined with infrared thermography measurements, large eddy simulation was used to study the square-wave pulsating film cooling on turbine vane at the time-averaged blowing ratios of 0.5 and 1.5. On suction surface, the introduction of coolant pulsation results in the decrease of cooling effectiveness. On pressure surface, coolant pulsation at high blowing ratio can improve coolant coverage. Starting vortex is the typical structure in pulsating film cooling. However, on suction surface, due to fully-turbulent mainstream, plenty of small-scale vortices play a dominating role in flow fields, and the effect of starting vortex is unobvious. The statistic characteristics and power spectrum density (PSD) of velocity fluctuation were also analyzed in detail. The results show that the disturbance of coolant jet on suction-side mainstream boundary layer is very weak, However, on pressure side, coolant pulsation causes notable increase of PSD and turbulent kinetic energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to construct a multiwing chaotic system that has hidden attractors with multiple stable equilibrium points. Because the multiwing hidden attractors chaotic systems are safer and have more dynamic behaviors, it is necessary to construct such a system to meet the needs of developing engineering. Design/methodology/approach: By introducing a multilevel pulse function into a three-dimensional chaotic system with two stable node–foci equilibrium points, a hidden multiwing attractor with multiple stable equilibrium points can be generated. The switching behavior of a hidden four-wing attractor is studied by phase portraits and time series. The dynamical properties of the multiwing attractor are analyzed via the Poincaré map, Lyapunov exponent spectrum and bifurcation diagram. Furthermore, the hardware experiment of the proposed four-wing hidden attractors was carried out. Findings: Not only unstable equilibrium points can produce multiwing attractors but stable node–foci equilibrium points can also produce multiwing attractors. And this system can obtain 2N + 2-wing attractors as the stage pulse of the multilevel pulse function is N. Moreover, the hardware experiment matches the simulation results well. Originality/value: This paper constructs a new multiwing chaotic system by enlarging the number of stable node–foci equilibrium points. In addition, it is a nonautonomous system that is more suitable for practical projects. And the hardware experiment is also given in this article which has not been seen before. So, this paper promotes the development of hidden multiwing chaotic attractors in nonautonomous systems and makes sense for applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pneumatosis cystoides intestinalis is a rare intestinal disease characterized by single or multiple air cysts in the submucosa or subserosa of the intestinal wall. It is often accompanied by other gastrointestinal diseases. The clinical manifestations were nonspecific, and the diagnosis mainly depended on colonoscopy, imaging, and other auxiliary examinations. Case presentation: The reason for pneumatosis cystoides intestinalis's occurrence remains unclear. Enteral nutrition deficiency, especially the use of glucosidase inhibitors, may be involved in the pathogenesis of pneumatosis cystoides intestinalis in this patient. Here, we report a rare case of pneumatosis cystoides intestinalis in an elderly man who had been taking acarbose for diabetes for a long time. Colonoscopy of the patient was normal before taking acarbose. Conclusion: In patients with diabetes who are treated with glucosidase inhibitors for gastrointestinal symptoms, the possibility of pneumatosis cystoides intestinalis should be considered, and a thorough gastrointestinal examination should be performed in such patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Center cone locating at the rear portion of turbine is the key component of the integrated afterburner. Numerical studies were carried out to investigate full-coverage film cooling on center cone at engine-realistic conditions, and the effects of thermodynamic and geometric parameters on cooling effectiveness and aerodynamic loss were discussed in detail. The numerical model was validated by the infrared measured experiments. Two recirculation vortices were generated on the cone surface, and cause the reverse ejection of coolant. These two recirculation vortices were promoted by increasing blowing ratio, and mixed with each other as the blowing ratio reaches 3.0. Along the streamwise direction, cooling effectiveness decreases and reaches the minimum value at the tip of cone, which is very different from the flat-plate film cooling. Cooling effectiveness increases with the increases of blowing ratio, hole diameter and density ratio, but decreases with the increases of hole pitch and spacing. The discharge coefficient increases with the increases of hole diameter and inclination angle, but decreases with the increases of blowing ratio, hole pitch and spacing. Pure film cooling and double-wall cooling were also compared. The introduction of jet impingement cooling can generate higher cooling effectiveness, especially at low and medium blowing ratio, but causes the notable increase of pressure drop. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to adjust the properties of polyamide 6 (PA6) and expand its application, a new strategy of introducing an aromatic imide structure into the PA6 chain through the random copolymerization method is reported. The diimide diacid monomer was first synthesized by the dehydration and cyclization of pyromellitic dianhydride and 6-aminocaproic acid before it reacted with 1,6-hexamethylene diamine to form poly(amide imide) (PAI) salt, and finally synthesized PA6/PAI random copolymers containing an aromatic imide structure by the random copolymerization of ε-caprolactam and PAI salt. The introduction of an aromatic imide structural unit into the PA6 chain could have a great influence on its properties. As the content of PAI increases, the crystallinity (Xc) and melting temperature (Tm) of the PA6/PAI random copolymer gradually decrease, but its glass transition temperature (Tg) increases obviously. When the PAI content is 20 wt%, the copolymer PA6/PAI-20 has the best comprehensive performance and not only has high thermal stabilities but also excellent mechanical properties (high strength, high modulus, and good toughness) and dielectric properties (low dielectric constant and dielectric loss). Moreover, these properties are significantly superior to those of PA6. Such high-performance PA6 random copolymers can provide great promise for the wider applications of PA6 materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Synchronization of memristive neural networks (MNNs) by using network control scheme has been widely and deeply studied. However, these researches are usually restricted to traditional continuous-time control methods for synchronization of the first-order MNNs. In this paper, we study the robust exponential synchronization of inertial memristive neural networks (IMNNs) with time-varying delays and parameter disturbance via event-triggered control (ETC) scheme. First, the delayed IMNNs with parameter disturbance are changed into first-order MNNs with parameter disturbance by constructing proper variable substitutions. Next, a kind of state feedback controller is designed to the response IMNN with parameter disturbance. Based on feedback controller, some ETC methods are provided to largely decrease the update times of controller. Then, some sufficient conditions are provided to realize robust exponential synchronization of delayed IMNNs with parameter disturbance via ETC scheme. Moreover, the Zeno behavior will not happen in all ETC conditions shown in this paper. Finally, numerical simulations are given to verify the advantages of the obtained results such as anti-interference performance and good reliability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anti-PD-1-based therapy has resulted in a minimal clinical response in malignant gliomas. Gliomas contain numerous glioma-associated microglia/macrophages (GAMs), reported to contribute to an immunosuppressive microenvironment and promote glioma progression. However, whether and how GAMs affect anti-PD-1 immunotherapy in glioma remains unclear. Here, we demonstrated that M1-like GAMs contribute to the anti-PD-1 therapeutic response, while the accumulation of M2-like GAMs is associated with therapeutic resistance. Furthermore, we found that PD-L1 ablation reverses GAMs M2-like phenotype and is beneficial to anti-PD-1 therapy. We also demonstrated that tumor-induced impairment of the antigen-presenting function of GAMs could limit the antitumor immunity of CD4+ T cells in anti-PD-1 therapy. Our study highlights the impact of GAMs activation on anti-PD-1 treatment and provides new insights into the role of GAMs in regulating anti-PD-1 therapy in gliomas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Generally, people tend to learn or recall pleasant experiences during positive feelings. Similarly, people tend to learn or recall unpleasant things during negative feelings. The research in psychological field has demonstrated that human memory is closely related to emotion. On one hand, emotion helps store the memory that possesses the same emotion valence, which is known as the mood congruency memory (MCM). On the other hand, memory stored in a certain emotional state will be associated easily when the same emotion occurs, which is called mood-dependent memory (MDM). Inspired by the mechanisms of MCM and MDM, a memristor-based circuit of emotion-affected associative memory neural network is proposed in this work. The designed circuit mainly contains MCM module and MDM module. The functions, such as learning, forgetting, variable learning rate, MCM effect, MDM effect, and time interval, are implemented by the circuit. The simulation results in PSPICE show that the proposed memristive circuit can learn and associate the memory based on emotional effects like humans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we propose a fast hyperchaotic image encryption scheme based on RSVM and step-by-step scrambling-diffusion. In this scheme, we firstly propose a new algorithm named ring shrinkage with variable modulo (RSVM), which can randomly scramble the elements in a one-dimensional array, which are composed of the row numbers or column numbers of the pixel matrix to be encrypted. Before encryption, we use RSVM algorithm to generate two random one-dimensional arrays of pixel matrix (i.e. row array A s and column array B s ), and each element in the A s / B s represents the row/column number in the pixel matrix. Then the rows/columns of the pixel matrix are scrambled-diffused step-by-step according to the row/column numbers in the A s / B s . The initial control parameters of RSVM algorithm are controlled by SHA-256 of plaintext pixels, and RSVM algorithm controls the step-by-step scrambling-diffusion process of pixel matrix, rows and columns, so the small changes of plaintext pixels will lead to great differences in ciphertext images. In addition, the overall time complexity of the image encryption scheme is only Θ (1. 5 (M + N)) , which can greatly reduce the time cost. Finally, the experimental results and extensive security analysis prove the efficiency and feasibility of this image encryption method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the Lorenz chaotic system was discovered in 1963, the construction of chaotic systems with complex dynamics has been a research hotspot in the field of chaos. Recently, memristive Hopfield neural networks (MHNNs) offer great potential in the design of complex, chaotic systems because of their special network structures, hyperbolic tangent activation function, and memory property. Many chaotic systems based on MHNNs have been proposed and exhibit various complex dynamical behaviors, including hyperchaos, coexisting attractors, multistability, extreme multistability, multi-scroll attractors, multi-structure attractors, and initial-offset coexisting behaviors. A comprehensive review of the MHNN-based chaotic systems has become an urgent requirement. In this review, we first briefly introduce the basic knowledge of the Hopfiled neural network, memristor, and chaotic dynamics. Then, different modeling methods of the MHNN-based chaotic systems are analyzed and discussed. Concurrently, the pioneering works and some recent important papers related to MHNN-based chaotic systems are reviewed in detail. Finally, we survey the progress of MHNN-based chaotic systems for application in various scenarios. Some open problems and visions for the future in this field are presented. We attempt to provide a reference and a resource for both chaos researchers and those outside the field who hope to apply chaotic systems in a particular application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: We aimed to compare the clinical characteristics of acute osteomyelitis caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) in children. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the data of 64 children treated between September 2017 and June 2021. Based on the bacterial culture results, they were divided into MRSA and MSSA infection groups. Both groups were treated with debridement and vacuum-assisted closure for negative pressure drainage. Parameters including clinical manifestations, number of operations, length of hospital stay, inflammatory indicators, and concurrent arthritis were compared between the two groups. Results: In the MRSA infection group, there was one case each of residual joint stiffness and pathological fracture. Conversely, the MSSA group had two cases of residual joint stiffness. The MRSA infection group was more prone to high fever (t = 3.61, P = 0.001), white blood cell count elevation (t = 2.41, P = 0.022), arthritis (X2 = 7.48, P = 0.013), metastatic abscess (X2 = 4.78, P = 0.042), and a shorter length of progression from onset to admission (t = − 2.04, P = 0.046); however, it required more surgeries (t = 2.68, P = 0.009) and longer hospital stay (t = 2.04, P = 0.045). Conclusions: Pediatric acute osteomyelitis caused by MRSA is more prone to cause high fever and markedly elevated of white blood cell count, and is often accompanied with suppurative infection of adjacent joints and metastatic abscesses, thus requiring more surgeries and longer hospital stay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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

Aiming at the problems of small key space and weak resistance to differential attacks in existing encryption algorithms, we proposed a chaotic digital image encryption scheme based on an optimized artificial fish swarm algorithm and DNA coding. First, the key is associated with the ordinary image pixel through the MD5 hash operation, and the hash value generated by the ordinary image is used as the initial value of the hyper-chaotic system to increase the sensitivity of the key. Next, the artificial fish school algorithm is used to scramble the positions of pixels in the block. In addition, scrambling operation between blocks is proposed to increase the scrambling effect. In the diffusion stage, operations are performed based on DNA encoding, obfuscation, and decoding technologies to obtain encrypted images. The research results show that the optimized artificial fish swarm algorithm has good convergence and can obtain the global optimal solution to the greatest extent. In addition, simulation experiments and security analysis show that compared with other encryption schemes, the scheme proposed in this paper has a larger key space and better resistance to differential attacks, indicating that the proposed algorithm has better encryption performance and higher security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the beginning of the new century, the party and the government have always attached great importance to youth sports work and cared about the healthy growth of youth. The CPC Central Committee and the State Council have issued the opinions on strengthening youth sports and strengthening youth physique, which has initially formed a social consensus on promoting the healthy growth of young students. With the process of school education reform and the promulgation and implementation of the Ministry of Education's opinions on implementing and ensuring the time of daily sports activities for primary and middle school students, especially the official launch of the "national sunshine sports for hundreds of millions of students" in 2021, the school sports work in China has entered a new historical stage. Under this premise, the status and importance of Wushu in the intangible cultural field of schools have been gradually improved. As an important part of school sports, Wushu in the field of intangible culture plays an important role in strengthening students' physique, improving students' health, and promoting students' intellectual development. It is also one of the basic ways to realize school sports. How to better play its role has attracted the attention of many experts and scholars. This study focuses on the current situation of Wushu projects in the field of intangible culture in Weixian Middle School of Xingtai City, trying to understand its advantages and existing problems through the current situation, and put forward targeted solutions, so as to enable Wushu projects in the field of intangible culture to play their educational and fitness functions in school sports and provide help for the comprehensive development of middle school students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Time interval between stimuli plays a critical role in Pavlov classical conditioning. In this paper, a full-functional memristive Pavlov associative memory circuit with inter-stimulus interval effect is proposed. Compared with previous works, the proposed circuit extends the Pavlov associative memory with time interval to three complex situations of conditioning and realizes bionic associative memory learning curves called inter-stimulus interval effect. On this basis, the phenomena related to time interval in classical conditioning, blocking and facilitation, are implemented. PSPICE is used to simulate the whole circuit, and the simulation results demonstrate above functions. Furthermore, an application on classification is extended on the basis of the proposed circuit. The application circuit is also verified by the simulation results in PSPICE. This paper provides a reference to associative memory based on memristor in complex time situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cs3Bi2Br9 decorated with crystalline–amorphous Pd nanocubes as cocatalysts is reported to photocatalytically coproduce ca. 1400 μmol h−1 g−1 of H2 and benzaldehyde from the selective benzyl alcohol oxidation. This route offers an alternative for photocatalytic H2 generation using metal halide perovskites under mild conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emotional intelligence plays an important role in artificial intelligence. The brain circuitry of emotion mainly includes the prefrontal cortex, the amygdala, hippocampus and et al. Many brain emotional learning (BEL) models were proposed in recent years, the existing BEL models failed to consider the contextual information in practical applications, and do not discuss the corresponding circuit implementation. In this article, a context-dependent emotional learning network (CD-ELN) and its memristive circuit implementation are introduced. The added context-dependent module is used to process the contextual information, which makes the network context dependent when receiving the same input signals. For circuit implementation, the memristive circuit design mainly contains the amygdala module and orbitofrontal cortex module, which imitates the emotion learning process in the brain. Besides, a multi-input multioutput memristive circuit of the context-dependent emotional network is applied to multitask classification. PSPICE simulation results verified the adaptability and flexibility of the CD-ELN. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the existing affective associative memory neural network circuits, the change of emotions in the affective associative learning and forgetting processes is abrupt and the intensity of emotions is invariable. In fact, the transition from one emotion to another is a gradual process. In this paper, to realize the progressive changes of emotional intensity in the affective associative memory neural network, the gradual learning, gradual forgetting and gradual transferring processes of emotions are proposed and the memristor-based circuit of the affective associative memory neural network is designed. In the designed circuit, the firing frequency of output neurons is closely correlated with the intensity of emotions. The higher the firing frequency of output neurons, the stronger the emotional intensity. Based on the associative memory rule, the dynamical change of the synaptic weights leads to the gradual variation of the frequencies of output neurons. Thus, the function of variable emotional intensity can be realized and the gradual processes can be achieved. The PSPICE simulation results are given to verify that the proposed circuit could realize the affective learning, forgetting and transferring functions with gradual processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a key component in an integrated afterburner, the center cone plays a crucial role in reducing flow loss and increasing flame stabilization. A numerical analysis was performed to study the laminated cooling of the center cone under real engine operating conditions. The impact of both thermodynamic and geometric factors on the cooling efficiency of the cone is thoroughly investigated. The precision of the numerical model was also validated through infrared thermal imaging measurements. Due to the sudden expansion of channel, a pair of recirculating vortices was generated on the cone's surface. This, in turn, results in the reverse injection of coolant, and the decrease of cooling efficiency with the increase of streamwise distance. Cooling efficiency rises as the blowing ratio and pin-fin diameter increase, but decreases as the density ratio, impingement hole diameter, film hole spacing, and pitch increase. Remarkably, when the film hole diameter increases, the cooling efficiency in the front section of the cone increases consistently, but the efficiency in the middle and rear sections shows a drop at the large hole diameter. The flow coefficient increases with greater film and impingement hole diameters but decreases with a rise in density ratio, blowing ratio, pin-fin diameter, film hole spacing, and hole pitch. Furthermore, a comparative study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of laminated cooling and double-wall cooling. The findings suggest that introducing pin fins can lead to higher cooling efficiency, particularly under low to moderate blowing ratios, with potential efficiency improvements of approximately 15 %. Importantly, within the scope of this study, the introduction of pin-fin does not result in an obvious increase in pressure drop. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of economic globalization, demands for digital business data sharing among different subsidiary companies are constantly emerging. How to achieve secure transmission of commercial data in the Internet of Things (IoT) is a challenging task. In this paper, we propose a memristive neural network-based method for encrypted communication of commercial data. First, a high-dimensional memristive Hopfield neural network (MMHNN) model with three memristive synapses and seven neurons is proposed and its complex dynamical behaviors are deeply analyzed. The results of theoretical analysis and numerical simulations show that the proposed MMHNN can generate quasi-periodic, periodic, chaotic and hyperchaotic attractors, as well as some controllable 1-direction (1D), 2D, 3D hyperchaotic multi-scroll attractors and other types of parametric regulatory dynamics and initial value regulation dynamics. In addition, an analog equivalent circuit for the MMHNN is constructed, and the circuit simulations experimental results demonstrate the correctness and feasibility of the multi-scroll attractors phenomena. Finally, a novel MMHNN-based encryption scheme for IoT commercial data images is proposed by applying hyperchaotic spatial multi-scroll attractors, and the performance analysis shows that the proposed system achieves good encryption performances, especially in terms of keyspace, information entropy, correlation and differential attacks. The hardware experiments further verify the effectiveness and superiority of the proposed commercial data encryption scheme based on the MMHNN. • A high-dimensional memristive neural network model is proposed. • Multidirectional hyperchaotic multi-scroll attractors are found. • The analog memristive neural network circuit is designed and implemented. • A commercial data encryption solution is designed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study investigates the effects of upstream ramps on a backward-injection film cooling over a flat surface. Two ramp structures, referred to as a straight-wedge-shaped ramp (SWR) and sand-dune-shaped ramp (SDR), are considered under a series of blowing ratios ranging from M = 0.5 to M = 1.5. Regarding the backward injection, the key mechanism of upstream ramps on film cooling enhancement is suggested to be the enlargement of the horizontal scale of the separate wake vortices and the reduction of their normal dimension. When compared to the SDR, the SWR modifies the backward coolant injection well, such that a larger volume of coolant is suctioned and concentrated in the near-field region at the film-hole trailing edge. As a consequence, the SWR demonstrates a more pronounced enhancement in film cooling than the SDR in the backward-injection process, which is the opposite of the result for the forward-injection scheme. For the SWR, the backward injection provides a better film cooling effectiveness than the forward injection, regardless of blowing ratios. However, for the SDR, the backward injection could show a superior effect to the forward injection on film cooling enhancement, when the blowing ratio is beyond a critical blowing ratio. In the present SDR situation, the critical blowing ratio is identified to be M = 1.0. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Amino groups showed significant different effects on different reaction pathways. • The dibenzothiophene conversion decreased slightly with the content of amino groups. • A correlation was observed between CO-IR results and the catalyst performance. • The amino groups may affect the adsorption of reacting molecules on Pd particles. • The hydrodesulfurization reactions followed a Langmuir-Hinshelwood kinetics. The hydrodesulfurization (HDS) of dibenzothiophene (DBT) was studied over a series of Pd catalysts supported on Zr-based metal-organic frameworks, UiO-66 and its amino-functionalized analogues (UiO-66-xNH 2 , where x represents the molar ratio of 2-amino-1,4-benzenedicarboxylic acid/1,4-benzenedicarboxylic acid) to gain an insight into metal-support interactions. Pd/UiO-66 behaved better than a Pd/γ-Al 2 O 3 catalyst and a Pd/MCM-41 catalyst. The presence of amino groups showed minor negative influence on the conversion of DBT but significantly affected the activities and selectivities of different reaction pathways. With the increase in the content of amino groups, the direct desulfurization (DDS) pathway activity of the Pd/UiO-66-xNH 2 catalysts increased, while their hydrogenation pathway activity decreased. This provides an approach for the regulation of the pathway selectivities of Pd HDS catalysts. Based on kinetic analysis and characterization results, we propose that the amino groups affect the HDS performance of Pd/UiO-66 mainly by affecting the adsorption of reacting molecules on metal particles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using star‐branched polyamide 6 (SPA6) with hexafunctional cyclotriphosphazene core as a matrix resin and glass fiber (GF) as a reinforcing material, star‐branched polyamide 6/glass fiber (SPA6/GF) composites with different GF content were prepared by melt‐compounding method. The star‐branched structure of SPA6 and GF content have great effects on the properties of SPA6/GF composites. Compared with linear polyamide 6 (LPA6), SPA6 with star‐branched structure has low viscosity, high melt flowability and good impregnation and adhesion to GF, which endow SPA6/GF composites outstanding processability, good surface qualities and excellent mechanical properties even when the content of GF reaches 60 wt%. The use of SPA6 resin with star‐branched structure fundamentally solves the industry problem of traditional LPA6 resin in high‐filled modification. Such high‐performance SPA6/GF composites will provide great promise for large‐scale applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we consider the following critical equation: − Δ u + V (y) u = K (y) u N + 2 N − 2 , u > 0 , u ∈ H 1 (ℝ N) , where (y ′ , y ″) ∈ ℝ 2 × ℝ N − 2 , V (| y ′ | , y ″) and K (| y ′ | , y ″) are two nonnegative and bounded functions. Using a finite-dimensional reduction argument and local Pohozaev type of identities, we show that if N ≥ 5 , K (r , y ″) has a stable critical point (r 0 , y 0 ″) with r 0 > 0 , K (r 0 , y 0 ″) > 0 and B 1 : = V (r 0 , y 0 ″) ∫ ℝ N U 0 , 1 2 d y − Δ K (r 0 , y 0 ″) 2 ∗ N ∫ ℝ N | y | 2 U 0 , 1 2 ∗ d y > 0 , then the above equation has infinitely many positive solutions, where U 0 , 1 is the unique positive solution of − Δ u = u N + 2 N − 2 with u (0) = max y ∈ ℝ N u (y). Combining the results of [S. Peng, C. Wang and S. Wei, Constructing solutions for the prescribed scalar curvature problem via local Pohozaev identities, to appear in J. Differential Equations; S. Peng, C. Wang and S. Yan, Construction of solutions via local Pohozaev identities, J. Funct. Anal.274 (2018) 2606–2633], it implies that the role of stable critical points of K (r , y ″) in constructing bump solutions is more important than that of V (r , y ″) and that V (r 0 , y 0 ″) can influence the sign of Δ K (r 0 , y 0 ″) , i.e. Δ K (r 0 , y 0 ″) can be nonnegative, different from that in [S. Peng, C. Wang and S. Wei, Constructing solutions for the prescribed scalar curvature problem via local Pohozaev identities, to appear in J. Differential Equations]. The concentration points of the solutions locate near the stable critical points of K (r , y ″) , which include the case of a saddle point. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, some works on studying complete synchronization of dynamical systems are usually restricted to its two special cases: 1) power-rate synchronization and 2) exponential synchronization. Therefore, how to give a generalization of these types of complete synchronization by the mathematical expression is an open question that needs to be urgently solved. To begin with, this article proposes multimode function synchronization by the mathematical expression for the first time, which is a generalization of exponential synchronization, power-rate synchronization, logarithmical synchronization, and so on. Moreover, two adaptive controllers are designed to achieve robust multimode function synchronization of memristive neural networks (MNNs) with mismatched parameters and uncertain parameters. Each adaptive controller includes function $r(t)$ and update gain $\sigma $. By choosing different types of $r(t)$ , multiple types of complete synchronization, including power-rate synchronization and exponential synchronization can be obtained. And update gain $\sigma $ can be used to adjust the speed of synchronization. Therefore, our results enlarge and strengthen the existing results. Two examples are put forward to verify the validity of our results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Natural crop (loofah sponge, LS) was used to produce robust adsorbents for oil spill cleanup. • MTCS-LS was simply prepared without involving any sophisticated equipment and fluorine-containing reagents. • MTCS-LS exhibited evident advantages of adsorbing the oils with high viscosity. • The relationship between the adsorption performance and the structure of adsorbents was revealed. Polymer sponge and carbon aerogel have received widespread attention because of their high specific surface area and controllable wettability. However, the complex manufacturing processes and non-renewable raw materials of these porous materials have limited their practical applications. Herein, we conducted the thermal chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of hydrophobic methyltrichlorosilane (MTCS) on loofah sponge (LS), which led to the formation of a novel oil-adsorbing hydrophobic MTCS-coated loofah sponge (MTCS-LS). The obtained MTCS-LS retained the interconnected 3D porous structure and robust structure stability of natural LS, while exhibited dramatically improved hydrophobicity with contact angle of 137° in the pH range of 2–12. This unique characteristic conferred MTCS-LS selective oil removal ability from water, and MTCS-LS possessed oil sorption capacity of 13 times of its dry weight and high separation efficiency (>92%). Results of the adsorption-squeezing tests proved that the excellent reversible compressibility of natural LS was maintained after the silanization modification. Compared to other known oil-adsorbing materials, the MTCS-LS displayed apparent advantage in adsorbing oils with high viscosity (e.g. crude oil). Our study provides a simple approach to exploitation of biomass in pollutants removal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polynomial functions have been the main barrier restricting the circuit realization and engineering application of multiwing chaotic systems (MWCSs). To eliminate this bottleneck, we construct a simple MWCS without polynomial functions by introducing a sinusoidal function in a Sprott C system. Theoretical analysis and numerical simulations show that the MWCS can not only generate multibutterfly attractors with an arbitrary number of butterflies, but also adjust the number of the butterflies by multiple ways including self-oscillating time, control parameters, and initial states. To further explore the advantage of the proposed MWCS, we realize its analog circuit using commercially available electronic elements. The results demonstrate that in comparison to traditional MWCSs, our circuit implementation greatly reduces the consumption of electronic components. This makes the MWCS more suitable for many chaos-based engineering applications. Furthermore, we propose an application of the MWCS to chaotic image encryption. Histogram, correlation, information entropy, and key sensitivity show that the simple image encryption scheme has a high security and reliable encryption performance. Finally, we develop a field-programmable gate array test platform to implement the MWCS-based image cryptosystem. Both theoretical analysis and experimental results verify the feasibility and availability of the proposed MWCS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Counterfactual thinking puts a negative reality and better or worse alternative outcomes in the mind simultaneously. The implicit theory of intelligence considers whether individuals believe that intelligence can be promoted by effort or not. Previous studies suggest that counterfactual thinking interacting with the implicit theory of intelligence would evoke a belief in an attainable future or a belief that a certain future could one day be reality, thereby producing positive effects. Three studies examined the hypothesis that belief in an attainable future through counterfactual thinking would predict psychological capital, which is a positive developmental state of individuals. In Study 1 (N = 62), belief in an attainable future was operationalized by introducing the implicit theory of intelligence and counterfactual thinking. Incremental theorists had higher psychological capital when engaged in counterfactual thinking than controls. In Study 2 (N = 71), belief in an attainable future was operationalized by introducing the likelihood of the antecedents and of the outcomes, which were conceptualized as how people believe in their counterfactual thinking. Belief in an attainable future predicted psychological capital even after controlling for the influence of future time perspective and present-fatalistic time perspective, two concepts that depict how individuals process time-related information. In Study 3 (N = 76), we conducted an intervention study. Participants in the experimental group were directed to construct attainable counterfactual thinking for one week. The experimental group had higher psychological capital than the control group. Across three studies, the findings consistently provided primary support for the hypothesis that belief in an attainable future would predict psychological capital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, a full circuit of memristor-based neural network with weighted sum simultaneous perturbation training is proposed. Firstly, a synaptic circuit is designed by using a pair of memristors, which can represent negative, zero, and positive synaptic weights. Secondly, a full circuit of the neural network is designed, with all operations being completed on the circuit without any computer aid. The neural network is trained with the weighted sum simultaneous perturbation algorithm. The algorithm does not involve complex derivative calculation and error back propagation, and it only applies perturbations to weighted sum, so the circuit implementation is more simple. Finally, application simulations of the proposed neural network circuit are performed via PSpice. The results of simulation indicate that the memristor-based neural network is practical and effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lots of researchers have used memristors to realize the emotion model of associative memory. In previous works, researchers analyzed this associative memory from two perspectives—forgetting and variable learning rate. In the previous emotion model, neutral stimulus(message notification) and unconditioned reflex(good or bad message) were applied simultaneously. But the variable learning rate with time delay is not considered in the emotion model. When the unconditioned reflex lags behind the neutral stimulus, the associative memory can also be formed. This article proposes an emotion model of variable learning rate with time delay. We also consider three kinds of forgetting: only a stimulus of unconditioned reflex applied, only a neutral stimulus applied and neither stimulus of unconditioned reflex nor neutral stimulus applied. In the end, the software PSPICE is used to simulate the whole circuit. This paper provides an option to realize emotional learning based on memristor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Design and develop of cost-effective non-enzymatic electrode materials is of great importance for next generation of glucose sensors. In this work, we report a high-performance self-supporting electrode fabricated via direct epitaxial growth of nickel phosphide on Ni foam (Ni2P/NF) for nonenzymatic glucose sensors in alkaline solution. Under the optimal conditions, the uniform Ni2P nanosheets could be obtained with an average thickness of 80 nm, which provides sufficient active sites for glucose molecules. As a consequence, the Ni2P/NF electrode displays superior electrochemistry performances with a high sensitivity of 6375.1 μA mM−1 cm−2, a quick response about 1 s, a low detection limit of 0.14 μM (S/N = 3), and good selectivity and specificity. Benefit from the strong interaction between Ni2P and NF, the Ni2P/NF electrode is also highly stable for long-term applications. Furthermore, the Ni2P/NF electrode is capable of analyzing glucose in human blood serum with satisfactory results, indicating that the Ni2P/NF is a potential candidate for glucose sensing in real life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lots of researchers have used memristors to realize the emotion model of associative memory. In previous works, researchers analyzed this associative memory from two perspectives—forgetting and variable learning rate. In the previous emotion model, neutral stimulus(message notification) and unconditioned reflex(good or bad message) were applied simultaneously. But the variable learning rate with time delay is not considered in the emotion model. When the unconditioned reflex lags behind the neutral stimulus, the associative memory can also be formed. This article proposes an emotion model of variable learning rate with time delay. We also consider three kinds of forgetting: only a stimulus of unconditioned reflex applied, only a neutral stimulus applied and neither stimulus of unconditioned reflex nor neutral stimulus applied. In the end, the software PSPICE is used to simulate the whole circuit. This paper provides an option to realize emotional learning based on memristor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, A new 3D multi-scroll hidden attractor chaotic system is proposed. The proposed system has chaotic attractors with no equilibrium point, one stable equilibrium point and several stable equilibria. And these three types of hidden attractors can be obtained just through varying a parameter of the system. In the other hand, multi-scroll attractors are generated by a piecewise linear function. The phase diagrams and basins of attraction are respectively used to prove that this system has multi-scroll attractors and hidden attractors. There are also some other powerful tools to analyze the dynamical characteristics of this system like Lyapunov spectrums, bifurcation diagrams and Poincaré maps. This system has great application prospects in communication encryption due to the complex dynamic behaviors of the multi-scroll chaotic attractors and the security of the hidden attractors. Moreover, we accomplish the circuit experiment, and verify the feasibility of each case of the multi-scroll hidden attractor chaotic system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

COVID-19 is now a severe threat to global health. Facing this pandemic, we developed a space-encoding microfluidic biochip for high-throughput, rapid, sensitive, simultaneous quantitative detection of SARS-CoV-2 antigen proteins and IgG/IgM antibodies in serum. The proposed immunoassay biochip integrates the advantages of graphene oxide quantum dots (GOQDs) and microfluidic chip and is capable of conducting multiple SARS-CoV-2 antigens or IgG/IgM antibodies of 60 serum samples simultaneously with only 2 μL sample volume of each patient. Fluorescence intensity of antigens and IgG antibody detection at emission wavelength of ~680 nm was used to quantify the target concentration at excitation wavelength of 632 nm, and emission wavelength of ~519 nm was used during the detection of IgM antibodies at excitation wavelength of 488 nm. The method developed has a large linear quantification detection regime of 5 orders of magnitude, an ultralow detection limit of ~0.3 pg/mL under optimized conditions, and less than 10-min qualitative detection time. The proposed biosensing platform will not only greatly facilitate the rapid diagnosis of COVID-19 patients, but also provide a valuable screening approach for infected patients, medical therapy, and vaccine recipients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Petroleum refinery wastewater (PRWW) that contains recalcitrant components as the major portion of constituents is difficult to treat by conventional biological processes. An effective and economical biological treatment process was established to treat industrial PRWW with an influent COD of over 2500 mg L−1 in this research. This process is mainly composed of internal circulation biological aerated filter (ICBAF), hydrolysis acidfication (HA), two anaerobic–aerobic (A/O) units, a membrane biological reactor (MBR), and ozone-activated carbon (O3-AC) units. The results showed that, overall, this system removed over 94% of the COD, BOD5, ammonia nitrogen (NH4+-N) and phosphorus in the influent, with the ICBAF unit accounting for 54.6% of COD removal and 83.6% of BOD5 removal, and the two A/O units accounting for 33.3% of COD removal and 9.4% of BOD5 removal. The degradation processes of eight organic pollutants and their removal via treatment were also analyzed. Furthermore, 26 bacteria were identified in this system, with Proteobacteria and Acidobacteria being the most dominant. Ultimately, the treatment process exhibited good performance in degrading complex organic pollutants in the PRWW. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We revisit the following nonlinear critical elliptic equation − Δ u + V (| y ′ | , y ″) u = u N + 2 N − 2 , u > 0 , u ∈ H 1 (R N) , where (y ′ , y ″) ∈ R 3 × R N − 3 , V (| y ′ | , y ″) is a bounded non-negative function in R + × R N − 3. Assuming that r 2 V (r , y ″) has a stable critical point (r 0 , y 0 ″) with r 0 > 0 and V (r 0 , y 0 ″) > 0 , by using a modified finite-dimensional reduction method and various local Pohozaev identities, we prove that the problem above has multi-piece of bubble solutions, whose energy can be made arbitrarily large. Since there involves a new variable h ¯ in the concentrated points { x j ± } j = 1 m during the reduction process, we have to obtain a more precise estimate for the error term. And the bubble solutions are centered at points lying on the top and the bottom circles of a cylinder. Particularly, in one of these cases, the bubble solutions can concentrate at a pair of symmetric points relative to the origin. Our results present a new clustering type of blow-up phenomenon and we think the reason why this phenomenon can occur is mainly because that the function r 2 V (r , y ″) has non-isolated critical points. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Combing the advantages of film cooling, impingement cooling, and enhanced cooling by pin fins, laminated cooling is attracting more and more attention. This study investigates the effects of geometric and thermodynamic parameters on overall cooling effectiveness of laminated configuration, and model experiments were carried out to validate the numerical results. It is found that the increases in film cooling hole diameter and pin fin diameter both result in the increase in cooling effectiveness, but the increases in impingement hole diameter, impingement height, and spanwise hole pitch degrade the cooling performance. The increase of the coolant flow rate causes the increase in cooling efficiency, but this effect becomes weaker at a high coolant flow rate. The coolant-to-mainstream density ratio has no obvious effect on cooling effectiveness but affects wall temperature obviously. Moreover, based on the numerical results, an empirical correlation is developed to predict the overall cooling efficiency in a specific range, and a genetic algorithm is applied to determine the empirical parameters. Compared with the numerical results, the mean prediction error (relative value) of the correlation can reach 8.3%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hybrid organic–inorganic halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have attracted considerable attention in the photovoltaic community during the last decade due to unique properties, such as high absorption coefficient, solutionable fabrication, and compatibility with roll-to-roll technology. A certified power conversion efficiency of PSCs as high as 25.2% has been obtained, approaching the levels of silicon solar cells, copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS), and cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin-film solar cells. However, the device area of a PSC is one of the biggest challenges for the commercialize applications. To fabricate large-area PSCs, various fabrication methods have been proposed, including spray coating, slot-die coating, vacuum deposition, and blade coating. Here, the blade-coating technique progress for the PSC fabrication has been reviewed. Moreover, the optimized ways during the solution fabrication process, the efficient strategy for improving the perovskite films' morphology, have also been summarized in this work. In the last part, the challenges and opportunities of PSC commercialization have also been proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In transonic turbines, the oblique shock wave emanating from the stator's trailing edge impinges on the neighboring suction side, which has a complex effect on boundary layer flow. Numerical studies were performed to investigate the influence of oblique shock wave on suction-side film cooling, and the numerical results were validated by model experiments. The sudden increase of static pressure downstream of shock wave is adverse to coolant outflow, and cooling effectiveness shows a notable drop. Furthermore, injecting coolant into boundary layer can increase kinetic energy, and weaken flow separation caused by shock wave. Detailed influences of geometric and thermodynamic parameters on film cooling performance were analyzed. The increase of pressure ratio causes the downward motion of shock wave, which is beneficial to film cooling. The increase of hole size improves cooling effectiveness before shock wave, but reduces cooling effectiveness after shock wave. Cooling effectiveness decreases as hole inclination angle, hole pitch and spacing increases. Adding hole diameter or reducing hole inclination angle, hole pitch and spacing can increase discharge coefficient. Laminated cooling and film cooling were compared. By introducing jet impingement and pin fins, laminated structures can generate higher cooling effectiveness but lower discharge coefficient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Natural renewable materials have been engineered to synthesize functional products because of their wide availability and excellent biodegradability. Particularly, vegetable polyphenols have been regarded as sustainable tanning agents in the leather industry. However, the non-covalent binding nature and high consumption of polyphenols in the leather matrix have limited its potential for replacing chrome tannage. In this work, we developed a series of new polyphenol derivatives by selectively conjugating cyanuric chloride (CC) with phenolic group, and therefore introduced covalent binding moieties in polyphenol for the tanning process. Specifically, polyphenols with different molecular sizes, i.e., tannic acid (TA), ellagic acid (EA), and gallic acid (GA), were modified and evaluated in a comparative study. The obtained triazine-conjugated polyphenol derivatives (i.e., GACC, EACC, and TACC) exhibited appropriate molecular weight (460−1130 Da) and superior stability in the tanning bath (pH ∼8.0), which can effectively penetrate collagen networks. We further investigated the tanning performance of GACC, EACC, TACC, and a commercial triazine tanning agent (i.e., SACC). These polyphenol derivatives exhibited covalent and non-covalent synergistic interaction with collagen, endowing leather with excellent fiber dispersion and overall performance (i.e., thermal stability, organoleptic and physical properties). Of note, the tanning system effectively reduced the dosage of polyphenols and organic carbon emission and improved the biodegradability of wastewater. Together with these outstanding results, we envision that this work will pave the promising way for eco-leather manufacturing. [Display omitted] • Vegetable polyphenols were designed to form covalent bonding with collagen fibers. • Polyphenol derivatives showed superior pH-stability, effectively penetrating leather. • Polyphenol derivatives gave leather good fiber dispersion and overall performance. • The tanning system exhibited low-carbon emission and improved biodegradability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]