Search

Ferroptosis, an iron-dependent regulated cell death mechanism, holds significant promise as a therapeutic strategy in oncology. In the current study, we explored the regulatory effects of epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), a prominent polyphenol in green tea, on ferroptosis and its potential therapeutic implications for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Treatment of NSCLC cell lines with varying concentrations of EGCG resulted in a notable suppression of cell proliferation, as evidenced by a reduction in Ki67 immunofluorescence staining. Western blot analyses demonstrated that EGCG treatment led to a decrease in the expression of glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4) and solute carrier family 7 member 11 (SLC7A11) while increasing the levels of acyl-CoA synthetase long-chain family member 4 (ACSL4). These molecular changes were accompanied by an increase in intracellular iron, malondialdehyde (MDA), and reactive oxygen species (ROS), alongside ultrastructural alterations characteristic of ferroptosis. Through small RNA sequencing and RT-qPCR, transfer RNA-derived small RNA 13502 (tsRNA-13502) was identified as a significant target of EGCG action, with its expression being upregulated in NSCLC tissues compared to adjacent non-tumorous tissues. EGCG was found to modulate the ferroptosis pathway by downregulating tsRNA-13502 and altering the expression of key ferroptosis regulators (GPX4/SLC7A11 and ACSL4), thereby promoting the accumulation of iron, MDA, and ROS, and ultimately inducing ferroptosis in NSCLC cells. This study elucidates EGCG's multifaceted mechanisms of action, underscoring the modulation of ferroptosis as a viable therapeutic approach for enhancing NSCLC treatment outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] The creation of a Z-scheme heterojunction is a sophisticated strategy to enhance photocatalytic efficiency. In our study, we synthesized an In 2 S 3 /MnO 2 /BiOCl dual Z-scheme heterostructure by growing BiOCl nanoplates on the sheets of In 2 S 3 nanoflowers, situated on the surface of MnO 2 nanowires. This synthesis involved a combination of hydrothermal and solution combustion methods. Experiments and density functional theory (DFT) calculations demonstrated that the In 2 S 3 /MnO 2 /BiOCl composite exhibited notable photo reduction performance and photocatalytic stability. This was attributed to the pivotal roles of BiOCl and MnO 2 in the composite, acting as auxiliaries to enhance the electronic structure and facilitate the adsorption/activation capacity of CO 2 and H 2 O. The yield rates of CO, CH 4 , and C 2 H 4 over In 2 S 3 /MnO 2 /BiOCl as the catalyst were 3.94, 5.5, and 3.64 times higher than those of pure In 2 S 3 , respectively. Photoelectrochemical analysis revealed that the dual Z-scheme heterostructure, with its oxygen vacancies and large surface area, enhanced CO 2 absorption and active sites on the nanoflower/nanowire intersurfaces. Consequently, the dual Z-scheme charge transfer pathway provided efficient channels for boosting electron transfer and charge separation, resulting in high C 2 H 4 , CH 4 , and CO yields of formed and exihibits an promising photoreduction rate of CO 2 to CO (51.2 µmol/g.h), CH 4 (42.4 µmol/g.h) and C 2 H 4 (63.2 µmol/g.h), respectively. DFT, in situ Diffuse reflectance infrared fourier transform spectroscopy, and temperature-programmed desorption tests were employed to verify the intermediates pathway. The study proposed a potential photocatalytic mechanism based on these findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

0.3 mm‐thick grain‐oriented silicon steel sheets with varying Y contents are produced via twin‐roll strip‐casting and two‐stage cold rolling process. This study primarily investigates the evolution of microstructure, texture, and precipitation along the processing. Specifically, the effect of rare earth Y on second‐phase particle precipitation in ultralow carbon grain‐oriented silicon steel is examined. Results indicate that higher Y content will consume beneficial inhibitor elements such as S and N, leading to the formation of coarse rare earth inclusions (≈10 μm) in the cast strip. This significantly diminishes inhibition ability and magnetic induction (B8 = 1.58 T≈1.71 T). On the contrary, the addition of trace Y can accelerate the precipitation of inhibitors. During the intermediate annealing stage, steel with trace Y exhibits a significant enhancement in precipitate distribution density (from 2.8 μm−2 to 13.6 μm−2), and the final magnetic induction B8 increases from 1.86 T to 1.91 T compared to steel without Y. In addition, the results of first‐principle calculations based on density functional theory reveal that the doped Y atom prefers to segregate at the Al–N interface, and the interface energy reduces from 1.871 J m−2 to 1.024 J m−2, thereby promoting the precipitation of AlN. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper exploits data from Sina Weibo posts to study the effect of the Wuhan lockdown on expressed happiness during the initial COVID-19 outbreak. By applying the difference-in-differences method to a city-level expressed happiness index generated by Weibo posts, we find that the announcement regarding human-to-human transmission significantly lowered expressed happiness in Wuhan relative to Chinese cities outside Hubei province, while the subsequent Wuhan lockdown had protective effects during the first 12 days. The effects on expressed happiness remained significant in the medium run toward the end of Wuhan lockdown. However, our results also suggest that the protective effects of the Wuhan lockdown declined as the lockdown continued and the risk of infection became lower. Our findings are robust to the use of alternative control groups and sample periods, different expressed happiness measures, and the potential censorship of Weibo. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid processing with low-latency and high-throughput is a critical requirement for the applications of big data streams. However, the interferences among stream processing tasks in a data center decrease the utilization of the computational resources and prolong the latency of the tasks. Thus, we study an optimal scheduling method for processing a big data stream on heterogeneous servers with multicores in a data center. We model the big data stream processing and the scheduling problem with four objects or factors which are streaming data items, processing tasks, computational nodes and the cores inside each computational node. An interference model based on regression analysis and a prediction model based on the Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average are presented. Then, we propose a two-stage scheduling method including the fine-grained core scheduling and the coarse-grained node scheduling. In the core scheduling stage, we design a core scheduling algorithm named CS_TDF. In the node scheduling stage, we design a node scheduling algorithm named NS_ITF for a single time window and a continuous scheduling algorithm named PS_UIM for the entire data stream in all time windows. The experimental results show that our scheduling method achieves low interference and high computational resource utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sepsis-induced cardiomyopathy (SICM) is common complication in septic patients with a high mortality and is characterized by an abnormal inflammation response, which was precisely regulated by endogenous specialized pro-resolving mediators (SPMs). However, the metabolic changes of cardiac SPMs during SICM and the roles of SPMs subset in the development of SICM remain unknown. In this work, the SPMs concentration was assessed using ultra-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) of SICM mice and SICM patients. The cardiac function was measured by echocardiography after the treatment of a SPMs subset, termed Resolvin D2 (RvD2). Caspase-11−/−, GSDMD−/− and double deficient (Caspase-11−/−GSDMD−/−) mice were used to clarify the mechanisms of RvD2 in SICM. We found that endogenous cardiac SPMs were disorders and RvD2 was decreased significantly and correlated with left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and β-BNP, cTnT in Lipopolysaccharide/Cecum ligation and puncture (CLP) induced SICM models. Treatment with RvD2 attenuated lethality, cardiac dysfunction and cardiomyocytes death during SICM. Mechanistically, RvD2 alleviated SICM via inhibiting Caspase-11/GSDMD-mediated cardiomyocytes pyroptosis. Finally, the plasma levels of RvD2 were also decreased and significantly correlated with IL-1β, β-BNP, cTnT and LVEF in patients with SICM. Of note, plasma RvD2 level is indicator of SICM patients from healthy controls or sepsis patients. These findings suggest that decreased cardiac RvD2 may involve in the pathogenesis of SICM. In addition, treatment with RvD2 represents a novel therapeutic strategy for SICM by inhibiting cardiomyocytes pyroptosis. [Display omitted] • Endogenous cardiac RvD2 was decreased and correlated with cardiac function in SICM. • Resolvin D2 ameliorates SICM via inhibiting Caspase-11/GSDMD dependent pyroptosis. • Plasma RvD2 level is indicator of SICM from healthy controls or sepsis patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Self‐trapped exciton (STE) induced broad‐band emission (BE) has sparked considerable interest due to its potential applications in white‐light emitters and optoelectronics. This phenomenon is widely observed in organic–inorganic hybrid perovskites with soft lattice structures, and its physical origin is still under debate. Herein, strong sub‐bandgap STE emission with a large Stokes shift and a photoluminescence quantum yield of up to 9.2% in van der Waals (vdW) layered In4/3P2S6 is reported. Combining comprehensive optical characterizations and theoretical calculations, this concludes that defect‐assisted extrinsic STE is responsible for the BE. The excitonic state can be further localized by hydrostatic pressure, resulting in a threefold PL intensity enhancement. In addition, angle‐resolved polarized Raman demonstrates the anisotropic lattice dynamics in IPS, which may underpin the highly linear anisotropy of the STE emission. This work clarifies the defect, STE, and anisotropy coupling effect in vdW crystal, and provides innovative avenues to modulate the STE luminescence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since procedural justice was proposed, this vein of research has gained much popularity in scholarship, empirical supports, and theoretical advancement. Yet, research on the procedural fairness within police organizations, particularly on the underlying and mediating mechanisms between internal and external procedural justice, remains understudied. Relying on survey data collected from Taiwanese police officers, this study expands the current literature by testing the direct relationships between supervisor, organizational, and social supports and external procedural justice and their indirect connections through supervisor trustworthiness and self-legitimacy. Supervisor and social supports were found to directly boost officers' commitment to external procedural justice. Perceived organizational support promotes external procedural justice through cultivating officer self-legitimacy. This study concludes by discussing cross-border research and pragmatic implications for police training and management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) is a powerful method for absolute nucleic acid quantification with high precision and accuracy. However, complicated operational steps have hampered the use and diffusion of ddPCR. Therefore, an automated, easy-to-use, low-sample-consumption, and portable ddPCR platform is urgently needed. This paper proposes a microfluidic ddPCR platform based on a microfluidic chip that can realize the sample-to-result function by switching the rotary valve, achieving the dual function of the flow-focusing structure for droplet generation and readout. Sample, generation oil, and analysis oil were pre-added to the reservoirs. Droplets were generated due to focusing flow, and after passing through the integrated temporary storage bin in the rotary valve, the droplets and oil subsequently entered the collecting tube, improving the droplet-to-oil volume ratio for enhanced thermal cycle performance. Droplets with an average diameter of 107.44 μm and a CV of 2.38% were generated using our chip under the optimal pressures. High-performance thermal cycling was achieved through improvements of the droplet-to-oil volume ratio of the sample, the integrated heating lid, the pure copper heating base, and the temperature-controlling algorithm. Gradient quantification experiments were conducted for the HER2 and CEP17 genes extracted from breast cancer cells, yielding strong linear correlations with R2 values of 0.9996 for FAM and 0.9989 for CY5. Moreover, pronounced linearity was obtained between the detected concentrations of HER2 and CEP17, indicated by a slope of 1.0091 and an R2 of 0.9997, signifying consistent HER2 : CEP17 ratios across various sample dilutions. The outcomes of the quantitative analysis, encompassing the dynamic range and the consistency of the HER2 : CEP17 ratio using our ddPCR platform, meet the standards required for breast cancer assessment and therapy. Our ddPCR platform is automated, portable, and capable of stable droplet generation, high-efficiency amplification, realization of the sample-to-result function based on dual-function flow-focusing structure, and accuracy absolute quantification, underscoring its significant potential for ddPCR analysis in clinical diagnostics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Overtopping failure of earthfill dams is a complex process that involves strong soil–water coupling and structural failure. Physically based numerical models are essential for characterizing the breach mechanism and the failure process. In this study, a dam-break model that considers the combined effects of seepage and overflow is proposed. This model simultaneously solves the governing equations for solid and fluid phases in two different sets of Lagrangian particles. The coupling between water and soil are, respectively, modelled with SPH and DEM particles by considering their interactions, including drag force, buoyancy and particle adhesion. The capillary force caused by the meniscus between soil particles is incorporated to characterize the saturation degree of the soil. The dam-break model is validated by simulating seepage through an earth dam, a small-scale dam-break test, and dam erosion progress. Finally, the proposed model is employed to simulate the overtopping failure of an earthfill dam. Numerical simulations show that the proposed numerical model is capable for capturing the salient features of dam breach. Moreover, some other soil–water coupling processes, such as reservoir water infiltration, dam slope erosion and collapse, breach development, and dam failure, can be predicted by this model as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chemical intercalation brings about intriguing opportunities to tailor the properties of van der Waals (vdW) layered materials by crafting molecular composite at an atomic scale. Despite a plethora of reports on various materials, the chemical intercalation effect on long-range ferroelectric order remains scarcely explored. Herein, we report the construction of hybrid supercrystal based on a model vdW ferroelectric, CuInP2S6 by molecular intercalation. Although the out-of-plane lattice structure remains commensurate, its ferroelectric polarization is largely destroyed by the chemical intercalation, as confirmed by combined piezoresponse microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. Alternatively, we observed a dipole glass transition at about 280 K by dielectric spectroscopy and correlated it with the Raman analysis. This work highlights the impact of chemical intercalation on collective ferroic orders and paves the routes for creating artificial hybrid crystals by incorporating functional molecules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Symmetric solid oxide electrolysis cells (SSOECs) have attracted considerable interest because of their low fabrication cost and few compatibility issues. However, the development of SSOECs is restricted by the lack of electrode materials with desirable catalytic activity and stability. Herein, novel double-perovskite Sr 2 Ti 1−x FeNi x O 6 (STFNx) oxides are prepared and evaluated as electrodes for CO 2 electrolysis in SSOECs. The Sr 2 Ti 0.9 FeNi 0.1 O 6 (STFNi01) electrode shows the best performance with the minimum polarization resistance. The physicochemical characterization reveals that Ni substitution increases the concentrations of surface-adsorbed oxygen species and electrical conductivity and enhances CO 2 chemical adsorption, improving the electrode surface reaction kinetics, as evidenced by the distribution of relaxation time analysis. The STFNi01 symmetric cell presents a current density of 0.91 A cm−2 at 1.6 V and 800 °C and shows no performance degradation in the durability test due to the excellent carbon deposition resistance, indicating that STFNi01 is a promising electrode material for SSOECs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Renal ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury, which leads to acute kidney injury (AKI), is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in a variety of clinical situations. This study aimed to investigate the protective role of Mfn2 during renal I/R injury. Overexpression of Mfn2 in NRK-52E rat renal tubular epithelial cells and rats, then we constructed hypoxia reoxygenation (H/R) cells and I/R rat model. Apoptosis, ROS, ATP, Ca2+ levels in cells and rats, as well as renal tissue and functional injury in rats were detected respectively. Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress was further examined in cells and rats. The morphological changes of mitochondria-associated ER membranes (MAMs) were also detected. Mfn2 expression is reduced in H/R-treated NRK-52E cells and renal tissue of I/R rats. At the cellular level, overexpression of Mfn2 promoted cell proliferation, inhibited cell apoptosis, attenuated mitochondrial damage and Ca2+ overload, and ER stress. In addition, Mfn2 also restored the MAMs structure. In vivo experiments found that overexpression of Mfn2 could improve renal function and alleviate tissue injury. Concomitant with elevated Mfn2 expression in the kidney, reduced renal cell apoptosis, restored mitochondrial function, and reduced calcium overload. Finally, ER stress in rat kidney tissue was alleviated after overexpression of Mfn2. These results reveal that Mfn2 contributes to ER stress, mitochondrial function, and cell death in I/R injury, which provides a novel therapeutic target for AKI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compared with the conventional constant-current constant-voltage (CC-CV) charging method, the multi-stage constant-current (MSCC) charging method offers advantages such as rapid charging speed and high charging efficiency. However, MSCC must find the optimal charging current profile (OCCP) in order to achieve the aforementioned benefits. Hence, in this paper, five bio-inspired optimization algorithms (BIOAs), including particle swarm optimization (PSO), modified PSO (MPSO), grey wolf optimization (GWO), modified GWO (MGWO), and the jellyfish search algorithm (JSA), are applied to solve the problem of searching for the OCCP of the MSCC. The best solution-finding procedure is run on the MATLAB platform developed based on minimizing the objective function of combining charging time (CT) and energy loss (EL) with a proportional weight. Without requiring numerous and time-consuming actual charge-and-discharge experiments, a wide range of searches can be quickly achieved only through the battery equivalent circuit model (ECM) established. The theoretical derivation and correctness are confirmed via the simulation and experimental results, which demonstrate that the OCCPs obtained by using the devised charging strategies possess the shortest CT and the best charging efficiency (CE), and among them, MPSO has the best fitness value (FV). Compared with the traditional CC-CV method, the experimental results show that the maximum improvement rates (IRs) of the studied approaches in terms of six charging performance evaluation indicators (CPEIs), including CT, charging capacity (CHC), CE, charging energy (CWh), average temperature rise (ATR), and FV, are 21.10%, 0.40%, 0.24%, 2.85%, 18.86%, and 68.99%, respectively. Furthermore, according to the comprehensive evaluation with CPEIs, the top three with the best overall performance are the JSA, MPSO, and GWO methods, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solar steam generation (SSG) is an extremely promising desalination technology that meets the global demand for clean water. Herein, we report a facile and effective method that utilizes absorbed heat to evaporate limited water while minimize heat loss. The top layer is a hydrophilic photothermal layer that allows for uniform distribution of water on the photothermal layer, whereas the bottom layer is a hydrophobic insulating layer that provides excellent insulation and heat preservation. Water is supplied by dripping from the top to thoroughly avoid heat loss caused by contact between the photothermal layer and water body. We achieve a high evaporation rate of 1.622 kg/m2h and energy conversion efficiency of 90.8 % under 1 sun irradiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Renal ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury, which leads to acute kidney injury (AKI), is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in a variety of clinical situations. This study aimed to investigate the protective role of Mfn2 during renal I/R injury. Overexpression of Mfn2 in NRK-52E rat renal tubular epithelial cells and rats, then we constructed hypoxia reoxygenation (H/R) cells and I/R rat model. Apoptosis, ROS, ATP, Ca2+ levels in cells and rats, as well as renal tissue and functional injury in rats were detected respectively. Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress was further examined in cells and rats. The morphological changes of mitochondria-associated ER membranes (MAMs) were also detected. Mfn2 expression is reduced in H/R-treated NRK-52E cells and renal tissue of I/R rats. At the cellular level, overexpression of Mfn2 promoted cell proliferation, inhibited cell apoptosis, attenuated mitochondrial damage and Ca2+ overload, and ER stress. In addition, Mfn2 also restored the MAMs structure. In vivo experiments found that overexpression of Mfn2 could improve renal function and alleviate tissue injury. Concomitant with elevated Mfn2 expression in the kidney, reduced renal cell apoptosis, restored mitochondrial function, and reduced calcium overload. Finally, ER stress in rat kidney tissue was alleviated after overexpression of Mfn2. These results reveal that Mfn2 contributes to ER stress, mitochondrial function, and cell death in I/R injury, which provides a novel therapeutic target for AKI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To enhance the load‐bearing capacity and energy absorption capacity of the honeycomb, three kinds of star‐rhombus honeycombs (SRHs) are proposed by adding rhombic parts to the traditional star‐shaped honeycomb (TSH). The quasi‐static crushing responses of SRHs, including deformation mechanism, crushing stress, specific energy absorption (SEA), and Poisson's ratio, are studied based on the finite‐element (FE) method. The introduction of rhombic parts increases the number of plastic hinges, resulting in significantly higher crushing stress and SEA of the SRHs than that of the TSH. Among the SRHs, SRH‐A has the largest energy absorption, and the SEA value of SRH‐A is 98.2% higher than TSH. Then, parametric studies including wall thickness, cell wall angle, and spacing length between the vertices of the star‐shaped part and the rhombic part are carried out. The wall thickness and cell wall angle have the greatest influence on the crushing response of SRHs. Crushing stress and Poisson's ratio of SRHs can be adjusted by changing the wall thickness of the rhombic part. The configurations and geometric parameters of the rhombic part determine the Poisson's ratio of SRHs. This study provides effective guidance for designing star‐shaped honeycombs with enhanced load‐bearing capacity and energy absorption capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The application of high-strength steel plates can reduce ship weight, and the saddle plate is one of the most common types of double-curved hull plates. To fill the research gap regarding high-strength steel saddle plates, two prediction models are established here to predict deformation in saddle plate forming. Deflection is a key parameter reflecting the overall deformation of a curved plate. Therefore, first of all, the influencing factors of the line heating of high-strength steel saddle plates were analyzed. The influence of plate geometric parameters and forming parameters on deflection was researched. Second, a multiple linear regression model between deflection and the geometric parameters and forming parameters of high-strength steel saddle plates was established. Finally, to solve the problem of a large error in the multivariate regression model for extrapolation, an intelligent prediction program for deflection based on a support vector machine (SVM) was developed using the Python language. The results show that the error of the multiple regression model was less than 5% for data interpolation. The error of the intelligent prediction model for deflection was less than 5% for data extrapolation. This research can provide data support for the automatic forming of marine saddle plates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solar desalination of seawater is an effective approach to address the scarcity of freshwater resources. For solar steam generation, it is critical to design biodegradable, sustainable, low-cost, and high-evaporation-rate technology. This study aims to develop a novel solar desalination technology by designing and fabricating a nanocomposite material with excellent light absorption and thermal conversion properties. We designed a double-layer aerogel structure, which uses naturally abundant carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) as the basic skeleton to achieve sustainability and biodegradability, and uses carbon nanotubes as the photothermal material for efficient light absorption to prepare a ferric tannate/carbon nanotube/carboxymethyl cellulose composite aerogel (FT-CNT-CMC aerogel). Experimental results demonstrate that the FT-CNT-CMC aerogel exhibits a high light absorption rate of 96–98% within the spectral range of 250–2400 nm, showcasing remarkable photothermal conversion performance. Under a sun intensity of 1 kW·m−2, the FT-CNT-CMC aerogel achieves a significant evaporation rate of 1.942 kg·m−2·h−1 at room temperature. Moreover, the excellent performance of the FT-CNT-CMC aerogel is validated in practical seawater desalination and organic dye wastewater purification. The FT-CNT-CMC aerogel exhibits a retention rate exceeding 99% for Na+, Mg2+, K+, and Ca2+ ions in simulated seawater, while no characteristic absorption peaks are observed in methylene blue and rhodamine B dye solutions after purification. These findings highlight the promising potential of the FT-CNT-CMC aerogel in the field of novel solar desalination, providing a viable solution to obtain freshwater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epilepsy and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are common neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders, respectively, that can exist as comorbidities. However, the degree of comorbidity between both disorders has never been quantified based on a systematic review with meta-analysis. We performed a systematic search of the literature in Embase, PubMed, PsychINFO and the Cochrane Library on June 20, 2022. In a meta-analysis of 63 studies with a total sample size of 1,073,188 individuals (172,206 with epilepsy and 900,982 with ADHD) from 17 countries, the pooled prevalence of ADHD in epilepsy was 22.3% (95% CI 20.3–24.4%). The highest pooled prevalence was 12.7% (95% CI 9–17.1%) for ADHD-I subtype, whereas the pooled prevalence of epilepsy in ADHD was 3.4% (95% CI 2.53–4.21%). However, substantial heterogeneity in comorbidity rates was observed and partially attributed to the following factors: sample size, sample specification, geographical variations and diagnostic methods. Our study highlights the need for increased awareness of this diagnostic co-occurrence, and research is warranted to elucidate the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nanocrystals doped transparent glasses or glass ceramics have shown promising tunable magnetic and magneto-optical performance. In this study, the Al 2 O 3 -induced in-situ crystallization of Gd 3 Al 2 Ga 3 O 12 in tellurite glass was reported. 10–20 nm-cubic Gd 3 Al 2 Ga 3 O 12 (Ia3d space group) nanocrystals formed in tellurite glass with Al 2 O 3 content ≤ 0.75 mol% by 400 °C-heat treatment. When Al 2 O 3 content in glass was higher than 0.75 mol%, excessive Al 2 O 3 triggered the crystallization of orthorhombic GdAlO 3 (Pnma) in which the Gd and Al ions existed as octahedral GdO 8 and AlO 6 units at a temperature higher than 398 °C. The in-situ crystallization influenced the glass network structure, broke the linkage of tetrahedral TeO 4 , and BO 4 , and formed trigonal pyramids TeO 3 and BO 3 instead. At the same time, nuclear magnetic resonance spectra revealed the conversion of AlO 4 → AlO 6 , GaO 4 → GaO 6 , and the changes from bridging oxygen to non-bridging oxygen as well. From energy-dispersive X-Ray analysis, Gd3+ clusters were observed, leading to the ferromagnetism of glass. Electron paramagnetic resonance spectra witnessed an enhancement of the Zeeman effect which is the reason for the improvement of Faraday rotation. Tellurite glass with 0.75 mol% Al 2 O 3 after 400 °C-annealing (A75) showed a giant Verdet constant of 93 rad/T.m at 633 nm which is superior to most of the values from the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the philosophy of deterrence has long been rooted in the criminal justice system and has informed policy and programming, the results of such strategies have been mixed. A handful of research efforts have focused on the relationship between various deterrence perspectives and cyberbullying; however, few address this issue in a non-Western context. To develop a more comprehensive assessment of cyberbullying deterrence and perceptions of punishment among adolescents, this study utilizes a large-scale data set collected from Taiwan. Results indicate a negative association between cyberbullying and a sense of the certainty of punishment from authorities. Moreover, perceptions of the severity of punishment decrease the propensity for cyberbullying behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a novel red-emission Ca 2 LiScB 4 O 10 : Sm phosphor and the phosphor-in-glass system was synthesized by a high-temperature solid-state reaction and melt-quenching methods. 50–100 nm well-distributed monoclinic Ca 2 LiScB 4 O 10 : Sm phosphors with space group of P2 1 /n were confirmed through Transmission electron microscopy and SAED patterns. Rietveld refinement XRD pattern verified that the doping of different amounts of Sm3+ ions decreased the lattice constants/volume and shifted the diffraction peaks. The Fourier transform infrared spectra, nuclear magnetic resonance, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy revealed the change of vibrational modes and coordination groups in the Ca 2 LiScB 4 O 10 and boro-phosphate host as the Sm3+ amounts increased. The band gap calculated using Tauc's plot showed that the band gap decreased from 3.86 to 3.6 eV for phosphors and from 3.75 to 3.0 eV for phosphor-in-glasses when the Sm3+ concentration increased from 0.1% to 1%, and agree well with DFT simulation values. The density of states analysis suggests that most of Sm3+ occupied the Ca2+ sites while partial Sm3+ replaced the Sc2+ sites. Radiative parameters such as cross-section and branching ratio were explained in terms of the Judd-Ofelt parameter. 0.9%CLSBO phosphor-doped glass exhibited the strongest red emission with high color purity (94.4%), long lifetime (2.365 ms), and good thermal stability (91%) in the 25–250 °C temperature range. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the demand for construction of lightweight ships and polar ships, high-strength steel is increasingly applied in shipbuilding. There are a large number of complex curved plates to be processed in ship construction. The main method for forming a complex curved plate is line heating. A saddle plate is an important type of double-curved plate, which affects the resistance performance of the ship. The existing research on high-strength-steel saddle plates is lacking. To solve the problem of forming for high-strength-steel saddle plates, the numerical calculation of line heating for a EH36 steel saddle plate was studied. By combining it with a line heating experiment of low-carbon-steel saddle plates, the feasibility of numerical calculation based on the thermal elastic–plastic theory for high-strength-steel saddle plates was verified. Under the premise that the processing conditions such as the material parameters, heat transfer parameters, and the constraint mode of the plate were correctly designed, the effects of the influencing factors on deformation of the saddle plate could be studied by the numerical calculation method. The numerical calculation model of line heating for high-strength-steel saddle plates was established, and the effects of geometric parameters and forming parameters on shrinkage and deflection were studied. This research can provide ideas for the lightweight construction of ships and provide data support for automatic processing of curved plates. It can also provide inspiration for curved plate forming in fields such as aerospace manufacturing, the automotive industry, and architecture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on moving-target detection and tracking in a three-dimensional (3D) space, and proposes a visual target tracking system only using a two-dimensional (2D) camera. To quickly detect moving targets, an improved optical flow method with detailed modifications in the pyramid, warping, and cost volume network (PWC-Net) is applied. Meanwhile, a clustering algorithm is used to accurately extract the moving target from a noisy background. Then, the target position is estimated using a proposed geometrical pinhole imaging algorithm and cubature Kalman filter (CKF). Specifically, the camera's installation position and inner parameters are applied to calculate the azimuth, elevation angles, and depth of the target while only using 2D measurements. The proposed geometrical solution has a simple structure and fast computational speed. Different simulations and experiments verify the effectiveness of the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent success in exfoliating violet or Hittorf's phosphorus down to monolayer reignites the research passion in this ancient yet mysterious material, questing for superior electronic and optoelectronic functionalities. Unfortunately, the poor air stability that plagues black phosphorus also exists in the violet counterpart. Aiming to provide more insight into the degradation chemistry and accordingly find a facile solution for it, herein, we employ concerted elemental, chemical and vibrational spectroscopies to reveal the critical role of oxygen and water in the degradation mechanism and pathway of violet phosphorus in ambient condition. Thereafter, a simple passivation approach by oxide encapsulation is demonstrated to realize air-stable violet phosphorus photodetector device. As the proof-of-concept, the photodetector fabricated accordingly shows superior figures of merit with ultralow dark current (< 10−13 A), high low-light responsivity (6 A W−1) and fast response time (< 10 ms) in the ultraviolet to visible spectrum, as well as great chemical robustness against harsh environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ferroelectric has been considered as a promising material in the photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting area. Here, we design the hybrid ferroelectric–semiconductor heterostructure photocathode for enhanced PEC performance; BiFeO3 (BFO) is used for ferroelectric while two dimensional material g-C3N4 for the semiconductor. The optimized BFO/g-C3N4 heterojunction photocathode shows a 2.4 times enhancement in the photocurrent density than the pristine BFO sample. The improvement in the PEC performance is ascribed to the type II heterojunction formed between BFO and g-C3N4, resulting in the enhanced separation of the photogenerated charge carriers. More importantly, the PEC performance can be further improved by positive polarization of the BFO/g-C3N4 heterojunction photocathode. Our ferroelectric–semiconductor heterojunction material may be a promising solution for achieving highly efficient PEC systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of this article is to understand trends in the incidence of renal cancer and to construct a nomogram to predict the prognosis of patients with renal cancer by analyzing clinical parameters. We extracted data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database for patients with renal cancer from 2010 to 2015. The incidence rate was calculated to understand the trend of renal cancer in recent years, and the Kaplan–Meier method was used to analyze the relationship between patients' clinical variables and overall survival. Nomogram and calibration curves were constructed based on factors predicted by multivariate Cox regression. Data from 68,496 eligible renal cancer patients were included in the study. The incidence of renal cancer was higher in men than women and tended to stabilize over time. We further found that age, gender, marital status, AJCC stage, histological type, metastatic disease, and surgery were independent parameters for prognosis in renal cancer patients. Finally, a nomogram was constructed based on the above parameters, and its validity was verified with the agreement index and calibration curve. Renal cancer incidence trend gradually stabilized. Seven independent parameters for renal cancer patients were obtained by analysis and utilized to construct a nomogram that could provide guidance for clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Patients with diabetes are confronted with numerous obstacles to achieve adequate glycemic control during hospitalization. The aim of this study was to explore the risk factors associated with glycemic control in hospitalized patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) treated with continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII). Methods: This cross-sectional study included 5223 patients hospitalized with T2DM in a tertiary hospital in Xiamen (China) between January 2017 and December 2019. All patients were managed according to established protocols for glycemic monitoring and insulin pump treatment regimens. Demographic information and clinical profiles were collected from electronic health records. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to identify the risk factors associated with glycemic control. Results: Among the 5223 hospitalized patients with T2DM receiving CSII therapy, 55.2% achieved their ideal blood glucose level (3.9–10.0 mmol/L), 44.5% experienced hyperglycemia (> 10.0 mmol/L), and 0.3% experienced hypoglycemia (< 3.9 mmol/L) during their hospitalization. Multivariate analyses showed that among inpatients with T2DM, older age, male gender, higher low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) level, lower C-peptide (C-P) level, lower body mass index (BMI), longer duration of diabetes, previous insulin prescriptions, nephropathy, and retinopathy were factors more likely to be associated with a blood glucose level in the hyperglycemic range (P < 0.05). We also observed that among hospitalized patients with T2DM, those with lower BMI, lower C-P, lower LDL-C, longer disease duration, and previous insulin prescriptions were more likely to correlate with a higher proportion of hypoglycemia range (all P < 0.05). Conclusion: Older age, male gender, lower BMI, lower C-P, higher LDL-C, previous insulin prescriptions, longer duration of diabetes, nephropathy, and retinopathy may be risk factors for a higher proportion of hyperglycemic events in hospitalized patients with T2DM under CSII therapy. Furthermore, lower BMI, lower C-P, lower LDL-C, longer duration of diabetes, and previous insulin prescriptions were found to be important factors for a higher proportion of hypoglycemic events. Evaluating the clinical features, comorbidities, and complications of hospitalized patients is essential to achieve reasonable glycemic control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nanostructured thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) have become a noteble research field for the development of high-performance thermal protection coatings. The mechanical properties are essential for TBCs, which determine the functionality, reliability and durability of coatings. In this article, the nanostructured 8YSZ (n-8YSZ) and conventional 8YSZ (c-8YSZ) coatings were fabricated by atmospheric plasma spraying (APS). The goal of the work is to do an evaluation and comparison of the nanomechanical properties of n-8YSZ and c-8YSZ coatings. The microstructure of coatings was observed by scanning electron microscopy and the nanomechanical properties was characterized using nano-indenter. Results indicate that the microstructure of the n-8YSZ coating exhibits bi-modal distribution while the microstructure of the c-8YSZ coating shows mono-modal distribution. The elastic indentation work (W e) is 11.952 ± 1.243 nJ and the plastic indentation work (W p) is 20.266 ± 5.594 nJ for the n-8YSZ coating. Meanwhile, the W e is 11.753 ± 0.634 nJ and the W p is 16.508 ± 3.000 nJ for the c-8YSZ coating. The microstructure of the coating has little effect on W e , but much on W p. The dissipation ratio of plastic deformation work (η) is 0.621 ± 0.046 for the n-8YSZ coating and 0.579 ± 0.042 for the c-8YSZ coating. Therefore, it can be predicted that the n-8YSZ coating is superior to the c-8YSZ coating in terms of erosion performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We describe a photo‐induced reaction for the in situ generation of highly reactive alkyl diazo species from carbonyl precursors via photo‐excitation of N‐tosylhydrazone anions. The diazo intermediates undergo efficient C−H insertion of aldehydes, leading to the productive synthesis of aldehydes and ketones. The method is applicable to the iterative synthesis of densely functionalized carbonyl compounds through sequential trapping of the diazo species with various aldehydes. The reaction proceeds without the need of any catalyst by light irradiation and features high functional group tolerance. More than 70 examples, some performed on a gram‐scale, demonstrate the broad applicability of this reaction sequence in synthesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We describe a photo‐induced reaction for the in situ generation of highly reactive alkyl diazo species from carbonyl precursors via photo‐excitation of N‐tosylhydrazone anions. The diazo intermediates undergo efficient C−H insertion of aldehydes, leading to the productive synthesis of aldehydes and ketones. The method is applicable to the iterative synthesis of densely functionalized carbonyl compounds through sequential trapping of the diazo species with various aldehydes. The reaction proceeds without the need of any catalyst by light irradiation and features high functional group tolerance. More than 70 examples, some performed on a gram‐scale, demonstrate the broad applicability of this reaction sequence in synthesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aiming at the low efficiency of manual measurement of threads and the lack of practicability in machine vision measurement before, online size measurement of threads at the end of sucker rods based on machine vision was studied. A robotic arm is used to carry an optical device to achieve high-quality image acquisition of threads. Based on the prior knowledge of the thread profile angle, the directional edge detection operator is customized to achieve the accurate detection of the left and right edges of the thread. Noise filtering, sorting, and left and right edge-matching algorithms based on connected domains are developed to eliminate the interference effects of electrostatic dust and oil pollution in online measurement, and the dimension of thread profile angles, pitches, major diameters, and minor diameters can be precisely calculated. The experimental results show that the screw thread parameter measurement time is about 0.13 s; the maximum and minimum average errors of the thread angles are 0.011° and 0.632°, respectively; and the total average deviation is less than 0.08°. For the screw thread pitch, major diameter, minor diameter, and pitch diameter parameter measurement, the deviation of the measurement results between the proposed method and the universal tool microscope (UTM) method is less than 10 μm. It fully proves the effectiveness and accuracy of the method in this paper and, at the same time, shows that the method has good real-time performance and high application significance, which lays a good foundation for the subsequent online thread measurement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ruddlesden-Popper oxide, Cu-substituted La 1.5 Sr 0.5 NiO 4+δ series materials (La 1.5 Sr 0.5 Ni 1-x Cu x O 4+δ ; denoted as LSNCu x ; x = 0, 0.1, 0.25, 0.5) are investigated as air electrodes in solid oxide electrolysis cells (SOECs) for electrolysis of CO 2. Room temperature crystal structure, electrical conductivity and oxygen exchange capacity, as well as electrochemical performance of LSNCu x are comprehensively investigated. Among the series of samples, LSNCu 0.25 half-cell exhibits the lowest polarization resistance value of 0.179 Ω cm2 at 800 °C, which decreases by approximately 86.07% compared with that of LSN. In addition, the fuel electrode-supported single cell with LSNCu 0.25 air electrode presents a high current density of 1.2 A cm−2 at 1.5 V under 30% CO–70% CO 2 condition at 800 °C, which is 207% of LSN (0.58 A cm−2) under the same condition. Results show that the impressive catalytic activity for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is ascribed to the improved electronic conductivity and oxygen exchange capacity. With Cu substitution for Ni-site, the contraction of Ni–O bond in NiO 6 octahedron and increased concentration of charge carries owing to the oxidation of Ni2+ to Ni3+ are beneficial to the electron conduction. The formation of more interstitial oxygen as ionic compensation also favors the oxygen ion diffusion/exchange and greatly accelerates the charge transfer process. Furthermore, no degradation is observed for the single cell durability test at 750 °C for 50 h, which demonstrates the highly stable performance of LSNCu 0.25 air electrode for electrolysis of CO 2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports the effects of soil–water interaction on the mechanical behaviors of shear-zone soils taken from a bedding landslide in the Three Gorges Reservoir area of China. Two types of wetting treatment, namely cyclic wetting–drying and soaking in fluid, are adopted to mimic the enduring effect on landslide materials caused by reservoir operation. The effect induced by rainfall infiltration is also mimicked by varying water contents in the soils. The degree of soil–water interaction is indicated by the shear strength obtained from reversal direct shear and ring-shear tests. The experimental results indicate that the enduring soil–water interaction gives rise to significant disintegration of the soil particles, whereas the increasing water content greatly decreases the friction between particles at the shear surface. All this interplay between water and shear-zone soils leads to dramatic reduction in the shear strength. Moreover, it is found that the friction angle is more sensitive to cyclic wetting–drying pretreatment, while soaking pretreatment has a larger influence on the stiffness and cohesion of the soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing traffic flow prediction methods generally only consider the spatiotemporal characteristics of traffic flow. However, in addition to the spatiotemporal characteristics, the interference of various external factors needs to be considered in traffic flow prediction, including severe weather, major events, traffic control, and metro failures. The current research still cannot fully use the information contained in these external factors. To address this issue, we propose a novel metro traffic flow prediction method (KGR-STGNN) based on knowledge graph representation learning. We construct a knowledge graph that stores factors related to metro traffic networks. Through the knowledge graph representation learning technology, we can learn the influence representation of external factors from the traffic knowledge graph, which can better incorporate the influence of external factors into the prediction model based on the spatiotemporal graph neural network. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The enormous amount of data that are generated by hyperspectral remote sensing images (HSI) combined with the spatial channel's limited and fragile bandwidth creates serious transmission, storage, and application challenges. HSI reconstruction based on compressed sensing has become a frontier area, and its effectiveness depends heavily on the exploitation and sparse representation of HSI information correlation. In this paper, we propose a low-rank sparse constrained HSI reconstruction model (LRCoSM) that is based on joint spatial-spectral HSI sparseness. In the spectral dimension, a spectral domain sparsity measure and the representation of the joint spectral dimensional plane are proposed for the first time. A Gaussian mixture model (GMM) that is based on unsupervised adaptive parameter learning of external datasets is used to cluster similar patches of joint spectral plane features, capturing the correlation of HSI spectral dimensional non-local structure image patches while performing low-rank decomposition of clustered similar patches to extract feature information, effectively improving the ability of low-rank approximate sparse representation of spectral dimensional similar patches. In the spatial dimension, local-nonlocal HSI similarity is explored to refine sparse prior constraints. Spectral and spatial dimension sparse constraints improve HSI reconstruction quality. Experimental results that are based on various sampling rates on four publicly available datasets show that the proposed algorithm can obtain high-quality reconstructed PSNR and FSIM values and effectively maintain the spectral curves for few-band datasets compared with six currently popular reconstruction algorithms, and the proposed algorithm has strong robustness and generalization ability at different sampling rates and on other datasets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing high-performance electromagnetic wave absorbing materials (EWAMs) with tunable nano-microstructures is of great significance for solving increased electromagnetic radiation pollution. Three-dimensional hierarchical networks within magnetic metal nanoparticles are promising candidates with the great balance of enhanced electromagnetic wave attenuation and impedance matching, but hard to construct. Herein, a two-step electrospinning/in-situ self-assembly strategy was employed, successfully synthesizing a 3D hierarchical core-shell NC@Co/NC nanofiber network (NC@Co/NC-900). The N-doped Carbon (NC) core fibers (diameter of ∼250 nm) built a 3D-conductive network, while the Co@C nanoparticles (diameter of ∼20 nm) embedded into N-doped Carbon (Co/NC) shell (thickness of ∼50 nm) enhanced the polarization loss and magnetic loss. More importantly, the controlled transformation of Co@C nanoparticles in the shell was realized by modulating the calcination temperature at 900 °C, showing an optimal homogeneously dispersion in a narrow particle size distribution in the range of 15–25 nm. Uniformly multiple reflection in core-shell NC@Co/NC-900 fiber network enhanced the electromagnetic wave attenuation with the optimal impedance matching, displaying excellent RL min of −55.82 dB at 11.60 GHz and wide EAB of 7.44 GHz in a low filler loading of 15 wt %. The whole X and Ku bands could be fully covered in different thickness of 4.0 and 3.0 mm. This work presents a superior nano-micro structural design strategy on 3D hierarchical networks with multiple reflections. A 3D hierarchical core-shell nanofiber network with controllable temperature-induced transformation of Co@C nanoparticles in the shell was elaborately constructed, showing enhanced electromagnetic attenuation and impedance matching. The brilliant EWA was realized, which can fully cover the whole X and Ku bands. This work represents a superior structural design strategy towards hierarchical 3D network. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clastic soil is ubiquitous in practice but still poses a challenge for testing and modelling. Conventional laboratory tests with small sizes are not suitable for the large grain size, while large-scale tests and field tests are often too costly and time-consuming. In this paper, the mechanical behaviour of clastic soil is described by a hypoplastic constitutive model based on numerical simulations considering both the soil matrix and breccia. The numerical simulations indicate that the breccia content, gradation and the overconsolidation ratio have a significant influence on the strength, deformation and failure pattern of the clastic soil. The coarse particles are found to change the stress path developed in the soil matrix and consequently influence the critical state of the soil matrix. Moreover, the coarse particle distribution based on computed tomography scanning seems to have a larger impact than the breccia content on the failure pattern of clastic soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study proposes a random parameter bivariate probit model to analyze risk factors on the crash injury severity of both motorcycle riders and passengers in a single modeling framework. The proposed model can not only account for the underlying correlation of common factors affecting the rider and its pillion passenger simultaneously, but also can capture the unobserved heterogeneity across crash samples. The case analysis is based on 3665 motorcycle-carrying-passenger crashes in Hunan province of China. Model comparisons show that the proposed random parameter bivariate probit model outperforms two conventional models in the goodness-of-fit. The results of parameter estimations show that, age and gender differences in passengers pose significant effects on injury severity of the rider in crashes. Specifically, when carrying a vulnerable passenger including women, children and elders, the rider is less likely to sustain severe injuries. But for injury severity of the passenger, these vulnerable passengers are more likely to suffer from severe injuries. Apart form age and gender attributes, factors including collision objects, helmet use, drunk riding, night without lights, peak periods, high-speed roads have significant effects on rider injury and/or passenger injury. Relevant suggestions to alleviate the injury severity for motorcycle-carrying-passengers crashes are recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Electrocardiogram (ECG) findings in patients with anterior wall myocardial infarction (MI) complicated by ventricular septal rupture (VSR) have rarely been studied. Methods. We conducted a single-center retrospective study among patients with anterior MI complicated by VSR over the past ten years. The presence of ST-segment elevation (STE) in inferior leads and new onset of complete right bundle branch block (RBBB) on ECG were studied for the prediction of in-hospital mortality. Results. Among the 85 patients enrolled, 45 (52.9%) were male, with a median age of 70 years. Sixty-five patients (76.5%) died in the hospital, and the remaining 20 patients (23.5%) had improved conditions and were discharged. Inferior STE was present in 35 patients (41.2%), including 32 patients in the death group and 3 patients in the survival group (P = 0.005). New-onset RBBB was present in 25 patients (29.4%), with 22 patients in the death group and 3 patients in the survival group (P = 0.103). Multivariate logistic regression showed that inferior STE was an independent predictor of in-hospital death in patients with anterior MI and VSR (OR: 14.488; 95% CI: 1.708-122.887; P = 0.014). Conclusions. In patients with anterior MI complicated by VSR, inferior STE was associated with a higher risk of in-hospital mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aluminum nitride (AlN) composites powders with hydrolysis resistance were successfully fabricated by chemically grafting titanate coupling agents (KR-238S) and poly (N-vinyl pyrrolidone-co-itaconic acid) (NVP-IA). The results from TEM/EDS, FT-IR, XPS, pH measurements, XRD, SEM/EDS, Zeta potential and TG indicated that the surface of AlN particle were victoriously coated using a dip-coating method. The TEM results showed that a wrapping layer approximately 10–20 nm thick was formed on the surface of the AlN powders, shaping up as a core–shell structure to isolate contact with water molecules. Measuring the pH value of AlN powders in deionized water at 25 °C is to investigate the hydrolytic behavior. The Al(OH)3 was formed within 12 h of the original AlN powders being hydrolyzed, whereas the modified AlN particles maintained their morphology and crystal structure for 276 h to against hydrolysis. In particular, the zeta potential analysis demonstrates that M-AlN has stronger absolute zeta values due to the hydrophilicity of vinylpyrrolidone. The results obtained from the thermal gravimetric analysis also revealed that NVP-IA vaporizes at high temperatures. Therefore, this study provides a novel NVP-IA/AlN composites produced via using a simple cladding modification method, and find a new way to improve the hydrolysis resistance of AlN powders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A new framework based on a dynamic optimization problem identifies the adaptive therapeutic schedule for prostate cancer. • A competitive model between drug-sensitive and drug-resistant cells is established and validated using available data. • The stability of equilibrium points and existence of a periodic solution indicate the feasibility of adaptive therapy. • Our therapeutic framework is superior to the current approaches in the total drug dose and the survival time. Adaptive therapy, a new therapeutic strategy, is increasingly applied in the treatment of cancer. According to the evolutionary game theory of cancer cells, adaptive therapy is understood as the dynamic regulation of cancer cells. However, it is a great challenge to identify the therapeutic period and dose in adaptive therapy. In this study, we establish a competitive model between drug-sensitive and drug-resistant cancer cells. Theoretical analysis, including the stability of equilibrium points and the existence of periodic solutions, validates the interpretability of the model. The available data for prostate cancers are used to identify the model parameters. Furthermore, we propose a new dynamic optimization problem with constraints to establish the adaptive therapeutic schedule for prostate cancer, and an optimal set of decisions in this optimization problem represents the therapeutic period and dose in adaptive therapy. Through numerical simulations and quantitative analysis, we compare our therapeutic schedule and current adaptive therapeutic schedules in patients with prostate cancer in three aspects: the total drug dose, the peak number of drug-resistant cancer cells and the survival time. These results demonstrate that our therapeutic framework is superior to the current adaptive therapeutic schedules. The proposed therapeutic framework could provide an identifiable adaptive therapy to achieve personal and precise treatment for prostate cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metal‐composite hybrid thin‐walled tube has been widely studied due to its excellent lightweight characteristics and crashworthiness. In particular, there are few reports on the research and design of induced metal‐composite thin‐walled tubes under axial impact. Therefore, the crashworthiness of different induced Al‐CFRP tubes was studied in this article by combining experimental and numerical simulation subjected to axial impact. The experimental results showed that the reasonable induced design is helpful to improve the crashworthiness of Al‐CFRP hybrid tubes. Based upon the experimental tests and numerical modeling, the crashworthiness of the induced Al/CFRP tube was explored. Thereafter, the influence of structural parameters (CFRP fiber winding Angle, ratio of aluminum tube thickness to CFRP tube thickness) on the crashworthiness of induced Al‐CFRP tube was investigated numerally, and the structural parameters were optimized by multi‐objective design to obtain the optimal structural design parameters. And then the parametric study was carried out for exploring the effects of the hole diameter and hole number on the crushing behaviors of Al‐CFRP hybrid tubes. Finally, a new multi‐row induced structure was proposed. All multi‐row induced configurations were evaluated by Complex Proportional Assessment Method (COPRAS), and the best induced configuration (C20 tube) was determined. Compared with the single‐row induced structure with the best crashworthiness, the SEA, Fmean, and CFE of the C20 tube increased by 4.41%, 5.24%, and 10.94%, respectively, and the Fmax of the C20 tube decreased by 6.59%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing prediction formulas for clear-water scour development are typically empirical fittings of lab-scale results. However, it is unreasonable to evaluate the in-situ clear-water scour process around a pile based on small-scale flume tests due to inherent scale effect. This study proposes a time-dependent model of clear-water scour development around a pile foundation under steady currents. A scaling expression of shear stress acting on sediment particles at the front of a circular pile is established based on the phenomenological theory of turbulence. By applying the sediment transport model of flat-bed to local scour around a circular pile, a physics-based ordinary differential equation for predicting the scour depth development is derived. The analytical solution of scour depth development is generally more consistent with the experimental data compared with previous models. The probability density function distribution of the proposed model's error mainly concentrates within the range of ±10%, which is significantly superior to previous models. The proposed model integrates all pertinent parameters that govern the scour process using fundamental principles, rendering it free from scale issues and applicable to prototype conditions. The present model is applied to evaluating clear-water scour development around typical prototype piles with diameters ranging from 2.0 m to 10.0 m. The predicted variations of equilibrium scour time with pile diameter, flow velocity and sediment particle size aligns closely with previous experimental observations. • A time-dependent model of clear-water scour development around a pile foundation is proposed based on the phenomenological theory of turbulence. • The derived analytical solution of scour depth development is more consistent with the experimental data compared with previous models. • The proposed model is free from scale issues and can be applied to prototype conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces a new hypoplastic model characterized by a simple and elegant formulation. It requires only 7 material parameters to depict salient mechanical behaviors of granular materials. The numerical implementation employs an explicit integration method, enhanced by a best-fit stress correction algorithm in a smoothed particle hydrodynamics code. The performance of this model in capturing soil behavior across a range of scenarios is demonstrated by conducting various numerical tests, including triaxial and simple shear at low strain rates, as well as granular collapse, rigid penetration and landslide process at high strain rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • A Li/Na dual-cation borohydride system with ZnCl 2 introduced as reactive additives. • In-situ formed Zn(BH 4) 2 as a metastable phase to trigger dehydrogenation at 60 °C. • Further formed Zn as catalytic nucleation sites for (de)hydrogenation of LiBH 4 /NaBH 4. • LiCl acts as interfacial stabilizer to keep the dispersity of borohydride particles. • A high capacity retention of nearly 70% is reached after 5 cycles. Dual-cation borohydrides composed of alkali or alkaline-earth metals attract considerable attention for hydrogen storage, thanks to their high hydrogen capacity and low eutectic melt point; however, they still suffer from high-temperature-dependent dehydrogenation and poor reversibility. In-situ catalyzation and nanoconfinemnt are effective for easing these problems, but a simple and efficient method is required to achieve their coulping. Here inspired from the structural stabilization and performance improvement roles on anodes of metal batteries by constructing metallophilic Zn sites and interfacial LiCl layers, we develop a 0.62LiBH 4 -0.38NaBH 4 system with ZnCl 2 as reactive additives by one-step ball milling. In-situ evolved LiCl and Zn(BH 4) 2 are surprisingly identified as interfacial stabilizers and metastable phases to disperse borohydride particles and to trigger hydrogen release below 100 °C, respectively. Further formed Zn from the decomposition of Zn(BH 4) 2 acts as catalytic nucleation sites to promote the one-step and reversible (de)hydrogenation of LiBH 4 and NaBH 4 , without producing high chemical potential intermediates, benefiting from the strong affinity of Zn towards Li and Na. These factors contribute to a cyclic stability of nearly 70 %, the highest for dual-cation borohydrides reported so far. The present work provides new insights and a feasible scheme for developing promising borohydride-based storage systems towards practical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Effective health monitoring of concrete structures is vital in structural and geotechnical engineering, especially for internal monitoring in harsh environments. This article presents and validates a solution for distributed fiber optic sensing (DFOS) using Brillouin optical frequency-domain analysis (BOFDA) technology for monitoring the internal strain throughout the life cycle of common concrete slabs. The principle and sensing mechanism of BOFDA are briefly introduced and analyzed. A well-designed and deployed fiber under test (FUT) layout is utilized to accurately capture the internal strain distribution of a concrete slab. Besides, fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors and a thermocouple probe are incorporated for point strain reference and global temperature compensation. This paper presents a comprehensive monitoring method of concrete slabs throughout their entire life cycle. The monitoring process covers the preparation, pouring, curing, corrosion, and loading stages. Our experimental results demonstrate the feasibility of holistically monitoring strain distribution in concrete slabs over their lifetime. Additionally, post-processing of the data enables tracking of strain evolution at specific sensor nodes of interest. Furthermore, our study includes an extreme loading scenario, allowing examination of the strain variation process at rebars and key nodes. The strain distribution patterns observed in the experiment align with the finite element simulation results. These findings provide valuable guidance for crack prediction and structural health monitoring (SHM) of concrete slabs. The proposed scheme offers a unique and highly precise solution for full life-cycle SHM capable of functioning effectively in harsh environments such as energization and saltwater corrosion, thereby expanding its potential applications. • Precise internal strain data collection using DFOS for ongoing monitoring of concrete slab structures. • Deep insights into structural behavior and performance via continuous monitoring of strain distribution in structures. • Proven effectiveness in challenging conditions, such as electric current and saltwater corrosion, shown in rigorous tests. • Guidance for SHM and crack prediction in concrete structures, facilitating early alarm for structural integrity assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Error analysis of camera external parameters in monocular vision is proposed. • The mathematical expression for measurement error of measurement plane misalignment is deduced based on a 2D camera imaging model. • Quantitative measurement errors are concluded from the mathematical expression to guide precision measurement. • The derived mathematical model performance is tested with both industrial and telecentric lenses. Monocular vision is widely employed in industrial measurement scenarios due to its low cost, flexibility, mature algorithms, and high reliability. However, in actual production line monocular vision measurement systems, the measured plane may be affected by motion mechanisms or device vibrations, causing it to deviate from the system calibration plane and resulting in measurement errors. Current research primarily focuses on analyzing the influence of camera internal parameters and feature extraction algorithms on measurement errors, with limited quantitative analysis of the impact of camera external parameters. To address this issue, our paper derives a mathematical expression for measurement error when rotational and translational motion occurs between the measurement and calibration planes. Theoretical analysis reveals that when the camera optical axis is perpendicular to the measurement plane, measurement error is independent of the main point coordinates of the camera's optical axis, translation component in the measurement plane, and rotation angle around the camera's optical axis. Instead, it exhibits a linear relationship with the translation component in the direction of the camera's optical axis and is inversely proportional to the normalized focal length of the camera. When the optical axis of the camera is not perpendicular to the calibration plane, the measurement error exhibits a nonlinear relationship with camera's internal and external parameters. To verify our theoretical derivation's accuracy, we conduct measurement experiments using both industrial and telecentric lenses and analyzed rotation and translation of the measured plane separately. The measurement data was evaluated by Root Mean Square Error and Pearson Correlation Coefficient, which demonstrates that experimental and theoretical function images exhibit consistent trends, verifying our theoretical derivation's correctness and providing a theoretical guide for improving actual visual measurement accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lempel–Ziv complexity (LZC), as a nonlinear feature in information science, has shown great promise in detecting correlations and capturing dynamic changes in single-channel time series. However, its application to multichannel data has been largely unexplored, while the complexity of real-world systems demands the utilization of data collected from multiple sensors or channels so as to extract distinguishable fault features for fault diagnosis. This paper proposes a novel method called multivariate multiscale dispersion Lempel–Ziv complexity (mvMDLZC) to extract the fault features hidden in multi-source information. First, multivariate embedding theory is applied to obtain multivariate embedded vectors and multivariate dispersion patterns, which can reflect the inherent relationships in the multichannel series. Second, by assigning labels to these patterns, the original multichannel time series can be transformed into a symbolic sequence with multiple symbols instead of the original binary conversion, enabling the accurate recovery of the system dynamics. Finally, the complexity counter value and normalized LZC are calculated for the complexity measure. Experimental results using synthetic and real-world datasets demonstrate that mvMDLZC outperforms existing LZC-based methods and multivariate dispersion entropy in recognizing different states of mechanical systems. Additionally, mvMDLZC exhibits robustness in handling challenges such as small sample datasets and noise interference, making it suitable for real industrial applications. These findings highlight the potential of mvMDLZC as a valuable approach for dissecting multichannel systems across various real-world scenarios. • Symbolic transformation improves multichannel time series analysis. • Proposed mvMDLZC extends LZC-based methods for multichannel systems. • The comprehensive comparative studies confirm mvMDLZC's effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]