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BackgroundArtificial intelligence (AI) methods can potentially be used to relieve the pressure that the COVID-19 pandemic has exerted on public health. In cases of medical resource shortages caused by the pandemic, changes in people’s preferences for AI clinicians and traditional clinicians are worth exploring. ObjectiveWe aimed to quantify and compare people’s preferences for AI clinicians and traditional clinicians before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to assess whether people’s preferences were affected by the pressure of pandemic. MethodsWe used the propensity score matching method to match two different groups of respondents with similar demographic characteristics. Respondents were recruited in 2017 and 2020. A total of 2048 respondents (2017: n=1520; 2020: n=528) completed the questionnaire and were included in the analysis. Multinomial logit models and latent class models were used to assess people’s preferences for different diagnosis methods. ResultsIn total, 84.7% (1115/1317) of respondents in the 2017 group and 91.3% (482/528) of respondents in the 2020 group were confident that AI diagnosis methods would outperform human clinician diagnosis methods in the future. Both groups of matched respondents believed that the most important attribute of diagnosis was accuracy, and they preferred to receive combined diagnoses from both AI and human clinicians (2017: odds ratio [OR] 1.645, 95% CI 1.535-1.763; P

The unique morphology of 2D van der Waals materials enables them to withstand large deformations and significant nonuniform strain, potentially inducing a strong flexoelectric effect. Despite the size‐dependent flexoelectric effect showing potential for modulating the optoelectronic performance of 2D van der Waals materials, it is far from being fully exploited owing to various challenges. Herein, the use of nanowires with different diameters as the bending media to fabricate 2D α‐In2Se3/β‐InSe heterojunctions with large curvatures of 0.1–1 µm−1 is proposed. The significant band alignment modulation in α‐In2Se3 resulting from the bending‐induced flexoelectric effect is verified through Kelvin probe force microscopy. The strain‐induced piezoelectric effect can be negated because of the weak vdW forces at the interface. The flexoelectric polarization in β‐InSe is screened via the accumulated electrons in the unilateral depleted heterojunction. Compared to the flat heterojunction, the curved heterojunction with an average curvature of 0.9 µm−1 shows 2.48‐fold and 7.62‐fold increases in open‐circuit voltage and zero‐biased responsivity, respectively. This study demonstrates the first successful modulation of photodetection in 2D heterojunctions by exploiting the flexoelectric effect, providing a new perspective for high‐performance 2D vdW optoelectronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: We identified the notch gene in the reproductive system of the Basilepta melanopus beetle, a pest affecting oil tea plants. It was discovered that the Notch signaling pathway is crucial for the early development of insect ovaries. Specifically, suppressing the Notch gene expression by RNAi led to impaired ovarian development, decreased mating rates, and reduced egg production. These findings highlight the potential of RNAi-based, Notch-targeted pest control strategies as a practical approach for managing the forest pest B. melanopus populations. Basilepta melanopus is a pest that severely affects oil tea plants, and the Notch signaling pathway plays a significant role in the early development of insect ovaries. In this study, we explored the function of the notch gene within the Notch signaling pathway in the reproductive system of B. melanopus. The functional domains and expression patterns of Bmnotch were analyzed. Bmnotch contains 45 epidermal growth factor-like (EGF-like) domains, one negative regulatory region, one NODP domain and one repeat-containing domain superfamily. The qPCR reveals heightened expression in early developmental stages and specific tissues like the head and ovaries. The RNA interference (RNAi)-based suppression of notch decreased its expression by 52.1%, exhibiting heightened sensitivity to dsNotch at lower concentrations. Phenotypic and mating experiments have demonstrated that dsNotch significantly impairs ovarian development, leading to reduced mating frequencies and egg production. This decline underscores the Notch pathway's crucial role in fecundity. The findings advocate for RNAi-based, Notch-targeted pest control as an effective and sustainable strategy for managing B. melanopus populations, signifying a significant advancement in forest pest control endeavors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]