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This paper addresses a real life scheduling problem characterised by multi-resource operations whose completion simultaneously requires more than one (renewable) resource of different types. Such problems arise in various companies not only in manufacturing but also in services. Solving such a problem needs to address two interconnected subproblems: a sequencing subproblem and a resource-allocation subproblem if more than one resource is available in some types. The resource-allocation subproblem consists of allocating to each operation the resources it requires while the sequencing subproblem consists of determining the order in which each resource performs the operations assigned to it. This paper focuses on the resource-allocation subproblem. It generalises the basic scheduling problems which consist of determining the operations' starting or completion times for a given processing sequence for every resource. We consider a cost function taking into account the makespan, the cost of resource utilisation, and the load imbalance among the resources of the same type. We first formulate the problem into a mixed-integer linear program (MILP). To efficiently solve it, even in practical-sized instances, an exact algorithm called BD (Benders decomposition with enhancing cuts) is developed where the master problem only considers integer variables. We prove that the slave problem can be transformed into finding the longest paths in a digraph and therefore can be solved with the Bellman–Ford algorithm. To enhance the efficiency of the method, equivalent solutions are limited in the master problem. The performance of the approach is evaluated by comparing it against CPLEX, a state-of-the-art commonplace MILP solver, used to directly solve the initial MILP. The computational results demonstrate that BD provides competitive solutions in all upper and lower bounds. In particular, it improves, compared with CPLEX, the upper and lower bounds by 5.07% and 4.63%, respectively, in solving practical-sized instances. The experiment also shows that considering load balancing can make more rational use of resources and avoid adverse effects caused by excessive workload of staff and imbalanced use of equipment, which is very important in real-world production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the excellent Y2−xNdxFe17 (x = 0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8) magnetic particles were prepared by the reduction–diffusion process. Through the ferromagnetic coupling between light rare earth element Nd and Fe atoms, we effectively modulated the magnetic crystallographic anisotropy of Y2Fe17. As the amount of Nd doping increases, the natural resonance frequency of Y2−xNdxFe17/PU increases to 15.7 GHz, the saturation magnetization increases to 120.43 emu/g, the Curie temperature increases to 390 K, and the average hyperfine field also increases to 22.5 T. Notably, the doping of Nd atoms leads to a slight expansion of the Y2−xNdxFe17 lattice, exhibiting distinct anisotropic characteristics that preferentially develop along the basal plane. The doping of rare earth Nd atoms with strong magnetic crystal anisotropy can not only significantly enhance the easy-plane magnetic crystallographic anisotropy, causing the natural resonance peak to shift toward higher frequencies, but also has important guiding significance for broadening the high-frequency application range of easy-plane rare earth transition metal alloys. This achievement provides new ideas and methods for the design and development of high-performance magnetic materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As one of the primary sources of carbon emissions, transportation sector has proposed various measures to reduce its carbon emissions. Introducing energy-efficient and low-carbon autonomous trucks into freight transportation is highly promising, but faces various challenges, especially safety issues. This study addresses eco-friendly lane reservation-based autonomous truck transportation network design for transportation safety and low carbon emissions. It aims to optimally implement dedicated truck lanes in an existing network and design dedicated routes for autonomous truck transportation to simultaneously minimise the negative impact caused by dedicated truck lanes and carbon emissions of the entire transportation system. We first formulate this problem into a bi-objective integer linear program. Then, an ϵ-constraint-based two-stage algorithm (ETSA) is proposed to solve it based on explored problem properties. A case study based on the well-known Sioux Falls network is conducted to demonstrate the applicability of the proposed model and algorithm. Computational results for 310 instances from the literature demonstrate that the proposed algorithm significantly outperforms the ϵ-constraint combined with the proposed ILP in obtaining the Pareto front. Moreover, helpful managerial insights are derived based on sensitivity analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The easy-plane FeSi3.5 composite with excellent magnetic properties and power loss is proposed. The magnetic properties and power loss of the easy-plane FeSi3.5 composite are studied by using the none easy-plane FeSi3.5 composite as a control. This easy-plane FeSi3.5 composite has an initial permeability of 62, resonance frequencies of 100 MHz and 1.5 GHz, and frequency stability of 40 MHz. In addition, the easy-plane FeSi3.5 composite has also excellent loss properties, with a high-frequency power loss of only 108.12 kW/m3. The three kinds of power loss of the easy-plane FeSi3.5 composite are reduced compared with the none easy-plane FeSi3.5 composite through loss separation, especially the eddy current loss and the excess loss. The eddy current loss and the excess loss of the easy-plane FeSi3.5 composite are only 0.03 and 12.93 kW/m3 at 500 kHz, which reduce by 99.44% and 92% compared with the none easy-plane FeSi3.5 composite. Effective reduction of power loss and significant improvement of magnetic properties are important for solving the problem of power loss encountered by power electronic devices at the kHz band. Therefore, the application of the easy-plane FeSi3.5 composite with excellent power loss and high-frequency magnetic properties becomes a novel approach to meet the practical application of power electronics. The method that increases the working frequency and decreases the maximum magnetic flux density keeping the energy transformation efficiency constant is a new method to reduce power loss at the wide frequency band. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We introduce a novel water bath hydrogenation process designed to enhance the magnetic properties and hyperfine field of Y2Fe17. The core of this process lies in the successful preparation of a new compound Y2Fe17H3.5 by introducing hydrogen in a mild water bath environment, accomplished by a chemical reaction between calcium, Y2Fe17, and ammonium acetate solution at room temperature and pressure. After hydrogen doping, cell volume expansion increased from 778.511 to 795.383 Å3, and notably, lattice expansion is anisotropic. Furthermore, saturation magnetization is increased from 103 to 134.93 emu/g, Curie temperature is increased from 320 to 461 K, and the average hyperfine field is increased from 18 to 25 T. The improvement in magnetic properties is due to the increase in Fe–Fe distance, which according to the Bethe–Slater curve leads to stronger Fe–Fe exchange interactions and enhancing ferromagnetic interactions. This work not only proposes the novel rhombohedral Y2Fe17H3.5 with excellent magnetic properties, but also provides a new method for hydrogen doping in Y2Fe17 which lays the foundation of fundamental solid state physics for further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Loading of WS2 can greatly improve water splitting H2 generation efficiency of CdS in experiments. Here, we constructed WS2/CdS(100) and WS2/CdS(110) heterostructures with smaller mismatches and explored their interaction energy and band offset by first-principles calculations. Our calculation suggests that the WS2/CdS(100) interface with a stronger binding energy is more active in experiments, while the WS2/CdS(110) interface is metastable. The band alignment between CdS and WS2 is highly dependent on the orientation of the interfaces, and WS2/CdS(100) and WS2/CdS(110) belong to type-I and type-II band alignments, respectively. Therefore, a metal electrode and hole scavenger may be essential in experiments to help WS2/CdS(100) efficiently trap electrons, and a suitable substrate and an appropriate growth temperature are also needed to composite the CdS(110) surface to achieve a higher photocatalytic efficiency. In addition, we performed a detailed analysis of the macroscopic average potential and found that the calculated accuracy of potential difference across the heterostructures due to slab thickness is less than 80 meV at WS2/CdS interfaces. In total, our calculations not only explain the physical reasons for the increased efficiency of WS2/CdS, but also provide a detailed guideline for the design of a more efficient synergistic catalyst. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Realization of microwave-absorbing materials with "small thickness, light weight, broad bandwidth, and low reflectivity" is an invariable topic. In this paper, Sm2Fe14BHx/polyurethane (SFBH/PU) composites with planar anisotropy were prepared by reduction–diffusion (R/D) and water bath hydrogenation (WBH) process. A minimum reflection loss (RL) value reaches −59.7 dB at the perfect matching frequency of 13.79 GHz with a thickness of only 1.035 mm. Compared with unhydrogenated SFB, the bandwidth and reflectivity are significantly improved. It is mainly attributed to the fact that introduction of hydrogen atoms effectively modulates the electromagnetic parameters and increases the Snoek limit ((μ i − 1) f r) , which leads to the improvement of the high-frequency microwave absorption performance. In addition, the bandwidth equation is derived and simplified from the perspective of the reflected wave at the interface, which is in good agreement with the measured results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The complex permeability and power losses are very important parameters for soft magnetic materials. In this paper, the temperature dependence of these two parameters is investigated for Mn–Zn ferrite. The Hopkinson peak was observed at 440 K below the Curie temperature (TC), and the domain-wall resonance peaks and the natural resonance peaks gradually move to lower frequencies until the Hopkinson temperature (TH). Further, the domain-wall resonance peaks from relaxation type to resonance type are observed by fitting the permeability spectrum, which is related to the reduction of the loss factor. In addition, the power losses were measured from 245 to 365 K and divided into hysteresis loss (Ph), eddy current loss (Pe), and excess loss (Pexc). Each loss contribution was discussed to be dependent on temperature. The results show that at high temperatures and high frequencies, the thermal superposition effect will cause an abnormal increase in excess loss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rare earth alloy Y 2 Co 17 − x Ni x was prepared by a low-cost co-precipitation reduction-diffusion process, and its crystal structure, static magnetic properties, and microscopic morphology were systematically characterized. The effects of Ni doping with different contents on the electromagnetic parameters and wave absorption properties of Y 2 Co 17 − x Ni x /polyurethane(PU) compounds were researched in the frequency range of 0.1–18 GHz. The results show that the static magnetic properties and wave absorption properties change significantly with Ni doping, and the maximum reflection loss of Y 2 Co 14 Ni 3 /PU reaches − 89.7 dB at 2.9 mm thickness, and the maximum reflection loss peaks of Y 2 Co 17 /PU and Y 2 Co 16 Ni 1 /PU are at 1.316 and 1.515 GHz, which is at the center frequency of the L-band. With Ni doping, the effective absorption bandwidth of the compounds at a frequency above 3 GHz is greatly increased. The physical factor in the bandwidth calculation was modified, and the effective absorption bandwidth of the material was calculated theoretically, and the error was less than 5 % compared with the experimental value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent results from the first-year baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO) data released by the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI), combined with cosmic microwave background (CMB) and Type Ia supernova (SN) data, have shown a detection of significant deviation from a cosmological constant for dark energy. In this work, we utilize the latest DESI BAO data in combination with the SN data from the full 5 yr observations of the Dark Energy Survey and the CMB data from the Planck satellite to explore potential interactions between dark energy and dark matter. We consider four typical forms of the interaction term Q. Our findings suggest that interacting dark energy (IDE) models with Q ∝ ρ de support the presence of an interaction where dark energy decays into dark matter. Specifically, the deviation from ΛCDM for the IDE model with Q = β H 0 ρ de reaches the 3 σ level. These models yield a lower value of Akaike information criterion than the ΛCDM model, indicating a preference for these IDE models based on the current observational data. For IDE models with Q ∝ ρ c, the existence of interaction depends on the form of the proportionality coefficient Γ. The IDE model with Q = β H ρ c yields β = 0.0003 ± 0.0011, which essentially does not support the presence of the interaction. In general, whether the observational data support the existence of interaction is closely related to the model. Our analysis helps to elucidate which type of IDE model can better explain the current observational data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of absorption-oriented intelligent switchable electromagnetic shielding materials has presented a promising solution for combining data transmission and electromagnetic shielding, and effectively reducing the secondary pollution caused by electromagnetic waves. However, it remains a challenge to achieve high electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness (EMI SE) and a great absorption coefficient while adapting to certain deformations. Herein, a nickel-plated silicon carbide whisker (Ni@SiCw) is introduced to enhance the absorption properties through electroless plating under dielectric loss and magnetic loss. Ni@SiCw/polyurethane (TPU) is prepared by solution blending and hot pressing. Additionally, silver nanowires (AgNWs)/TPU layers are fabricated by electrospinning and vacuum-assisted filtration. The Ni@SiCw/TPU layer is then bonded with the AgNWs/TPU layer using waterborne polyurethane, fabricating a composite material with an electromagnetic isolation structure. This structure adopts the absorption–reflection–reabsorption shielding mechanism, which allows the composite material to achieve both great EMI SE (49.87 dB) and A (0.72). Furthermore, the material demonstrates the ability to switch the electromagnetic shielding efficiency (15.97–45.92 dB) within a range of 30% strain deformation. Moreover, after 200 tensile cycles, there is no significant decline in its electromagnetic shielding performance, which provides a reference strategy for the development of intelligent electromagnetic shielding materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Overcoming the diffraction limit has been a long-lasting pursuit for researchers owing to the great potential it offers in going beyond the fundamental resolution restriction in imaging processes. In acoustics, meta-lenses have been a promising way to achieve sub-wavelength imaging, the practical application of which, however, has been limited by expensive material manufacturing, complex system setup, and material loss. Here, we propose a set of procedures equivalent to a virtual super-lens that selectively amplifies the evanescent wave components in the measured acoustic field spectrum, thereby enabling super-resolution imaging without any auxiliary setups or purposely designed super-lens. The proposed virtual super-lens is experimentally verified by considering the imaging of an irregularly shaped sample with sub-wavelength features. We further demonstrate the robustness of the high-quality imaging performance remains acceptable with some environment background noises. In the light of the simple experimental setup involved, our proposed method is flexible and can be readily applied to various practical imaging scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Remote photoplethysmography (rPPG) refers to a non-contact technique that measures heart rate through analyzing the subtle signal changes of facial blood flow captured by video sensors. It is widely used in contactless medical monitoring, remote health management, and activity monitoring, providing a more convenient and non-invasive way to monitor heart health. However, factors such as ambient light variations, facial movements, and differences in light absorption and reflection pose challenges to deep learning-based methods. To solve these difficulties, we put forward a measurement network of heart rate based on multiscale features. In this study, we designed and implemented a dual-branch signal processing framework that combines static and dynamic features, proposing a novel and efficient method for feature fusion, enhancing the robustness and reliability of the signal. Furthermore, we proposed an alternate time-shift module to enhance the model's temporal depth. To integrate the features extracted at different scales, we utilized a multiscale feature fusion method, enabling the model to accurately capture subtle changes in blood flow. We conducted cross-validation on three public datasets: UBFC-rPPG, PURE, and MMPD. The results demonstrate that MDAR not only ensures fast inference speed but also significantly improves performance. The two main indicators, MAE and MAPE, achieved improvements of at least 30.6% and 30.2%, respectively, surpassing state-of-the-art methods. These conclusions highlight the potential advantages of MDAR for practical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Slow-release urea, as an environmentally friendly fertiliser, can provide a continuous and uniform supply of nutrients needed by the crop, reduce the amount and frequency of fertiliser application, and promote the uptake and utilisation of nitrogen in crops. The production of E. ferox is often dominated by the application of quick-acting fertilisers, resulting in serious problems of over-fertilisation, inappropriate periods of fertilisation, eutrophication of soil and water due to fertilisation, and difficulties in applying fertilisers. Therefore, in this study, different amounts (CK, T1, T2, T3, T4, T5) of SRU (Slow-release Urea) were first applied, and T3 (18.8 kg·667 m−2) was found to significantly improve both yield and quality. Further, it was found that under different SRU (CK, S1, S2, S3, S4) application period treatments, application of 18.8 kg·667 m−2 at AFP20 (S2) period significantly increased the yield and quality of E. ferox. In the seed kernels of E. ferox, the total yield, soluble sugar content, total starch, and flavonoid content increased significantly by 10.35%, 36.40%, 5.91%, and 22.80%, respectively, compared with CK. In addition, the expression of key sugar transporter genes (EfSWEETs), flavonoid synthesis-related genes (EfPAL, EfDFR, etc.), and starch synthesis-related enzyme activities (SBE, SSS, GBSS) were significantly increased. By exploring the quantity of application and application period of SRU, this study was carried out to investigate the in-depth effect of SRU on the growth and development of E. ferox and to provide technical references for the increase in E. ferox yield, the improvement in E. ferox quality, and the simplification of fertiliser application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review critically evaluates current in vitro gastrointestinal models for assessing infant formulas from a perspective focusing on a process along digestion, absorption and microbial fermentation. Despite their potential, none of the current in vitro gastrointestinal models fully considers the dynamics and continuous upstream‐downstream process of the human digestive tract. Considering the substantial differences between infants and adults, there is a pressing need for whole‐process gastrointestinal models tailored to infants. Developing such models is crucial for accurately assessing infant formula nutritional value and physiological function, enhancing the formulation of infant formulas to better meet the needs of infants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the effect of social media attention on corporate greenwashing using a sample of Chinese A‐share listed firms from 2011 to 2021. We find that social media attention increases corporate greenwashing, and the effect is more pronounced for firms with negative financial performance and those with violations, supporting the pressure hypothesis. Drawing on fraud triangle theory, which considers the interplay of pressure, opportunity, and rationalization, we also find that the pressure effect is more pronounced for firms with higher CEO power, greater information asymmetry, as well as firms located in regions with a gambling culture and non‐state‐owned firms. This indicates that firms are more inclined to greenwash when they perceive an opportunity and can rationalize this behavior. Furthermore, our heterogeneity analyses demonstrate that the pressure effect is more significant for firms located in regions characterized by higher marketization, firms operating in non‐heavily polluting industries, and those that do not provide assured non‐financial reports. This study contributes to the literature on the role of social media and determinants of corporate greenwashing, providing important implications for firms' sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated whether local Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) with a strong sense of power foster excessive investment compared with non-local CEOs to explore how the psychological impacts of power shape individual behaviour. This study observed a sample comprising 5460 firms from Chinese listed firms yearly between 2008 and 2020. This study found a strong association between local CEOs and excessive investment. The results of this study remain consistent after a series of robustness tests. Further analyses revealed that both CEO overconfidence and power are important factors shaping excessive investment. In conclusion, these findings revealed that local CEOs foster excessive investment owing to the psychological effects of sense of power. This study provides insights into the influence of the CEO's local status on corporate decision-making, which can be beneficial for policymakers, investors, and other stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To evaluate the intracranial structures and brain parenchyma radiomics surrounding the occipital horn of the lateral ventricle in normal fetuses (NFs) and fetuses with ventriculomegaly (FVs), as well as to predict postnatally enlarged lateral ventricle alterations in FVs. Methods: Between January 2014 and August 2023, 141 NFs and 101 FVs underwent 1.5 T balanced steady-state free precession (BSSFP), including 68 FVs with resolved lateral ventricles (FVM-resolved) and 33 FVs with stable lateral ventricles (FVM-stable). Demographic data and intracranial structures were analyzed. To predict the enlarged ventricle alterations of FVs postnatally, logistic regression models with 5-fold cross-validation were developed based on lateral ventricle morphology, blended-cortical or/and subcortical radiomics characteristics. Validation of the models' performance was conducted using the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC), calibration curve, and decision curve analysis (DCA). Results: Significant alterations in cerebral structures were observed between NFs and FVs (p < 0.05), excluding the maximum frontal horn diameter (FD). However, there was no notable distinction between the FVM-resolved and FVM-stable groups (all p > 0.05). Based on subcortical-radiomics on the aberrant sides of FVs, this approach exhibited high efficacy in distinguishing NFs from FVs in the training/validation set, yielding an impressive AUC of 1/0.992. With an AUC value of 0.822/0.743 in the training/validation set, the Subcortical-radiomics model demonstrated its ability to predict lateral ventricle alterations in FVs, which had the greatest predictive advantages indicated by DCA. Conclusions: Microstructural alterations in subcortical parenchyma associated with ventriculomegaly can serve as predictive indicators for postnatal lateral ventricle variations in FVs. Clinical relevance statement: It is critical to gain pertinent information from a solitary fetal MRI to anticipate postnatal lateral ventricle alterations in fetuses with ventriculomegaly. This approach holds the potential to diminish the necessity for recurrent prenatal ultrasound or MRI examinations. Key Points: Fetal ventriculomegaly is a dynamic condition that affects postnatal neurodevelopment. Machine learning and subcortical-radiomics can predict postnatal alterations in the lateral ventricle. Machine learning, applied to single-fetal MRI, might reduce required antenatal testing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the mutual coupling between sub-faults in the case of compound faults in rolling bearings, coupled with external noise, energy attenuation during information transmission, etc., the acquired fault information is usually very weak and complex. This greatly increases the difficulty of extracting features from bearing compound faults. To further enhance the accuracy of fault feature extraction and achieve precise identification of rolling bearing compound faults, this paper presents an innovative compound fault diagnosis method that integrates variable step-size multiscale weighted Lempel-Ziv complexity (VMW-LZC) and intrinsic time-scale decomposition (ITD). First, considering that the traditional Lempel-Ziv complexity (LZC) method can only extract single-dimensional fault information without thoroughly exploiting fault characteristics, we optimize the coarse-graining process of proper rotation components (PRCs) after ITD using a variable step-size multiscale strategy. Additionally, LZCs obtained from variable step-sizes in each scale are fused and reconstructed using a weighted method. Meanwhile, multiple variable step-size multiscale LZCs are combined into a new signal evaluation index, VMW-LZC. In addition, with the new signal evaluation index VMW-LZC, the optimal PRC which is best representative of fault characteristic information is chosen. Furthermore, frequency spectrum of autocorrelation function of optimal PRC is used to identify multiple faults of bearings. To exemplify the efficiency of presented method, a comparison has been made among the optimal PRC chosen by the methods with VMW-LZC, traditional LZC (T-LZC), multiscale LZC(M-LZC), and classical kurtosis as signal evaluation indexes. The result has indicated that fused signal evaluation index VMW-LZC can actualize more precise option of sensitive fault component signals and the proposed ITD-VMW-LZC method can do a more precise job in identifying a compound fault of bearings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a complex clinical syndrome that significantly impacts patient outcomes, especially in critically ill patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs). The aspartate aminotransferase (AST) to alanine aminotransferase (ALT) ratio (AST/ALT), has also been reported as a risk factor of cardiovascular diseases. However, few studies investigated the correlations between the AST/ALT ratio and ICU mortality in critically ill patients with CHF. This study investigates the association between the baseline AST/ALT ratio measured within the first 24 h of ICU admission and 28-day ICU all-cause mortality in critically ill patients with CHF. This retrospective cohort study included 4869 critically ill patients with CHF from the eICU Collaborative Research Database. Patients were categorized into tertiles based on their AST/ALT ratio: Tertile 1 (0.13–0.97), Tertile 2 (0.97–1.50), and Tertile 3 (1.50–5.89). Univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to evaluate the association between the AST/ALT ratio and 28-day ICU all-cause mortality. Nonlinear threshold effects and subgroup analyses were conducted to assess the robustness of the findings. Kaplan-Meier survival curves were generated to compare survival probabilities across tertiles. Participants with higher AST/ALT ratios were older, had higher illness severity, and experienced worse clinical outcomes. In univariate analysis, the AST/ALT ratio was significantly associated with 28-day ICU mortality (HR: 1.24, 95% CI 1.13–1.37, P < 0.0001). This association remained significant in the fully adjusted multivariate model. The highest tertile of AST/ALT ratio was associated with a significantly higher risk of mortality compared to the lowest tertile across all models (HR: 1.48, 95% CI 1.07–2.03, P = 0.0162 in Model 4). A nonlinear relationship was observed, with a threshold identified at an AST/ALT ratio of 2.08. Below this turning point, the association remained strong (HR: 1.47, 95% CI 1.13–1.91, P = 0.0036), while above it, the association was no longer significant. Subgroup analyses revealed no significant interactions, indicating that the association between AST/ALT ratio and mortality was consistent across various patient characteristics. Survival analysis showed that patients in the highest tertile had the poorest survival outcomes (P < 0.0001). An elevated AST/ALT ratio within the first 24 h of ICU admission is independently associated with increased 28-day ICU all-cause mortality in critically ill patients with CHF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, the oncogenic mechanism of endoplasmic reticulum stress‐CAF (ERS‐CAF) subpopulation in chordoma remains unknown. Here, single‐cell RNA sequencing, spatial transcriptomics, GeoMx Digital Spatial Profiler, data‐independent acquisition proteomics, bulk RNA‐seq, and multiplexed quantitative immunofluorescence are used to unveil the precise molecular mechanism of how ERS‐CAF affected chordoma progression. Results show that hypoxic microenvironment reprograms CAFs into ERS‐CAF subtype. Mechanistically, this occurrs via hypoxia‐mediated transcriptional upregulation of IER2. Overexpression of IER2 in CAFs promotes chordoma progression, which can be impeded by IER2 knockdown or use of ERS inhibitors. IER2 also induces expression of ERS‐CAF marker genes and results in production of a pro‐tumorigenic paracrine GMFG signaling, which exert its biological function via directly binding to ITGB1 on tumor cells. ITGB1 inhibition attenuates tumor malignant progression, which can be partially reversed by exogenous GMFG intervention. Further analyses reveal a positive correlation between ITGB1high tumor cell counts and SPP1+ macrophage density, as well as the spatial proximity of these two cell types. Clinically, a significant correlation of high IER2/ITGB1 expression with tumor aggressive phenotype and poor patient survival is observed. Collectively, the findings suggest that ERS‐CAF regulates SPP1+ macrophage to aggravate chordoma progression via the IER2/GMFG/ITGB1 axis, which may be targeted therapeutically in future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Tibial tubercle osteotomy (TTO) is often employed for certain patellofemoral instability (PFI) cases, though its indications and effectiveness are not widely accepted. This systematic review gathers recent studies comparing isolated medial patellofemoral ligament reconstruction (iMPFLR) to MPFLR combined with TTO in managing PFI and to offer recommendations for clinicians when selecting TTO. This review proposes that MPFLR combined with TTO is superior to iMPFLR and that the combined procedure does not increase the incidence of postoperative complications. Methods: Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses 2020 (PRISMA 2020), extensive searches were performed on August 20, 2024, across PubMed/Medline, Embase, and Cochrane databases to locate relevant studies. Data on research protocols, participant characteristics (including epidemiological and radiographic features), functional scores, and complications were collected and examined. A meta-analysis was conducted to compare the outcomes between the two surgical techniques. Results: This systematic review analyzed 10 studies involving 715 participants, divided into a control group (which underwent iMPFLR) and an experimental group (which underwent MPFLR combined with TTO). In the control group, the incidence of severe trochlear dysplasia before surgery was 68.3% (95% CI [67.3-69.3%]), and the mean preoperative tibial tubercle to trochlear groove distance (TT-TG) was 16.1 mm (95% CI [15.8–16.3]). In the experimental group, both were respectively 79.1% (95% CI [77.5–80.7]) and 20.2 mm (95% CI [20.0-20.4]). Eight studies (80%) reported postoperative Kujala scores, with an average score of 85.1 (95% CI [84.4–85.9]) for the control group and 85.4 (95% CI [84.9–85.9]) for the experimental group (I²=22.7%). Four studies (40%) reported postoperative Lysholm scores, with an average score of 89.4 (95% CI [88.9–89.9]) for the control group and 89.1 (95% CI [89.0-89.3]) for the experimental group (I²=0%). The mean surgical failure rate for the control group was 5.1% (95% CI [4.7-5.6%]), compared to 3.2% (95% CI [3.0-3.4%]) for the experimental group, with an odds ratio (OR) of 2.18 (95% CI [1.05–4.53], I²=0%, p = 0.738). The rate of secondary surgeries in the control group was 1.9% (95% CI [1.6–2.2]), while in the experimental group it was 10.7% (95% CI [9.4–12.1]), with an OR of 0.12 (95% CI [0.03–0.54], I²=63.1%, p = 0.028). Conclusion: The combination of MPFLR and TTO for treating PFI yields knee joint function comparable to that achieved with MPFLR alone. The approach does not elevate the failure rate of the surgery or the incidence of other adverse events. However, the combined approach may prolong the postoperative rehabilitation process and typically requires removal of internal fixation devices, resulting in a higher rate of secondary surgeries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multi‐energy microgrids (MEMG) have become an effective means of integrated energy management due to their unique advantages, including area independence, diverse supply, flexibility, and efficiency. However, the uncertain deviation of the renewable energy generators (REGs) output and the uncertain deviation of the multiple energy load response cumulatively lead to the deterioration of the MEMG model performance. To address these issues, this article proposes a cooperative forecasting management model for MEMG that considers multiple uncertainties and load response knowledge characterization. The model combines a multi‐energy load prediction model with a management model based on deep reinforcement learning. It proposes multiple iterations of data, fits the dynamic environment of MEMG by continuously improving the long short‐term memory (LSTM) neural network based on knowledge distillation (KD) architecture, and then optimizes the MEMG state space by considering the knowledge of load response characteristics, Furthermore, it combines multi‐agent deep deterministic policy gradient (MADDPG) with horizontal federated (hF) learning to co‐train multi‐MEMG, addressing the issues of training efficiency during co‐training. Finally, the validity of the proposed model is demonstrated by an arithmetic example. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

El‐Sayed rule highlights the important role of heteroatoms (e.g., N, O, and S) and the corresponding nπ* transition in designing efficient organic phosphors. Nevertheless, for some heteroatom‐rich fluorophores, their phosphorescence is quite weak (e.g., fluorescein), since the nπ* components are absent in the whole transitions. Here, these chromophores (mainly with n electron‐containing twisted structure) are found doping into the boric acid (BA) matrix can activate the nπ* transition for efficient afterglow luminescence. For example, doping purely green‐emitting fluorescein into BA yielded a high afterglow quantum yield (≈24%) and a long‐lasting, blue‐shifted cyan afterglow (>10 s). The covalent/non‐covalent interactions between the BA matrix and the guests resulted in twisting the n electron‐containing structure to promote the spin‐orbit coupling process, leading to the generation of new excited state triplet transition pathways. Since the guest chromophores feature visible light absorption, a series of multi‐color afterglow phosphors with visible or white light excitation are successfully constructed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have emerged as a novel and effective treatment strategy, yet their effectiveness is limited to a subset of patients. The gut microbiota, recognized as a promising anticancer adjuvant, is being increasingly suggested to augment the efficacy of ICIs. Despite this, the causal link between the gut microbiota and the success of immunotherapy is not well understood. This gap in knowledge has driven us to identify beneficial microbiota and explore the underlying molecular mechanisms. Methods: Through 16S rDNA sequencing, we identified distinct gut microbiota in patients undergoing treatment with ICIs. Following this, we assessed the impact of probiotics on anti-PD-1 therapy in bladder cancer using mouse models, employing a multi-omics strategy. Subsequently, we uncovered the mechanisms through which Blautia-produced metabolites enhance antitumor immunity, utilizing untargeted metabolomics and a range of molecular biology techniques. Results: In our research, the LEfSe analysis revealed a significant enrichment of the Blautia genus in the gut microbiota of patients who responded to immunotherapy. We discovered that the external addition of Blautia coccoides hampers tumor growth in a bladder cancer mouse model by enhancing the infiltration of CD8+ T cells within the tumor microenvironment (TME). Further investigations through untargeted metabolomics and molecular biology experiments showed that oral administration of Blautia coccoides elevated trigonelline levels. This, in turn, suppresses the β-catenin expression both in vitro and in vivo, thereby augmenting the cancer-killing activity of CD8+ T cells. Conclusions: This research provided valuable insights into enhancing the efficacy of PD-1 inhibitors in clinical settings. It was suggested that applying Blautia coccoides and its metabolic product, trigonelline, could serve as a synergistic treatment method with PD-1 inhibitors in clinical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The design and preparation of lightweight and flexible electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding composites with high efficiency and low reflection are critical to the electronic field. First, silver nanowires (AgNWs) were vacuum filtered on the electrospun thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) fibrous film. Then, by combining the adhesive with the electrospun silicon carbide nanowhisker (SiCnw) @TPU composite fibrous film, the asymmetric EMI shielding composite films with high electromagnetic shielding efficiency (EMI SE) and low incident power were obtained. The lower AgNWs‐TPU layer provides the primary EMI SE, and the upper SiCnw@TPU fibrous film is used for electromagnetic wave absorption. This unique asymmetric structure, the synergistic effect of SiCnw's particular absorbing function and the excellent conductivity of the AgNWs layer make the film show high overall SE (SET = 55.18 dB). In order to improve the absorption effect of the composite film, the number of layers of SiCnw@TPU was adjusted, resulting in a final reflection coefficient value as low as 0.55. This work proposes a new strategy for developing EMI shielding composite films with high efficiency and low reflection, serving as a reference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluated the responses of sweet potatoes to Cadmium (Cd) stress through pot experiments to theoretically substantiate their comprehensive applications in Cd-polluted agricultural land. The experiments included a CK treatment and three Cd stress treatments with 3, 30, and 150 mg/kg concentrations, respectively. We analyzed specified indicators of sweet potato at different growth periods, such as the individual plant growth, photosynthesis, antioxidant capacity, and carbohydrate Cd accumulation distribution. On this basis, the characteristics of the plant carbon metabolism in response to Cd stress throughout the growth cycle were explored. The results showed that T2 and T3 treatments inhibited the vine growth, leaf area expansion, stem diameter elongation, and tuberous root growth of sweet potato; notably, T3 treatment significantly increased the number of sweet potato branches. Under Cd stress, the synthesis of chlorophyll in sweet potato was significantly suppressed, and the Rubisco activity experienced significant reductions. With the increasing Cd concentration, the function of PS II was also affected. The soluble sugar content underwent no significant change in low Cd concentration treatments. In contrast, it decreased significantly under high Cd concentrations. Additionally, the tuberous root starch content decreased significantly with the increase in Cd concentration. Throughout the plant growth, the activity levels of catalase, peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase increased significantly in T2 and T3 treatments. By comparison, the superoxide dismutase activity in T1 treatment was significantly lower than that of CK. With the increasing application of Cd, its accumulation accordingly increased in various sweet potato organs. The the highest bioconcentration factor was detected in absorbing roots, while the tuberous roots had a lower bioconcentration factor and Cd accumulation. Moreover, the transfer factor from stem to petiole was the highest of the potato organs. These results demonstrated that sweet potatoes had a high Cd tolerance and a restoration potential for Cd-contaminated farmland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The changes that occur in the gamma‐aminobutyric acid (GABA) levels within specific brain regions throughout the day are less clear. Purpose: To evaluate the daily fluctuations of GABA levels within the parietal lobe (PL) and anterior cingulate gyrus (ACC) regions and explore their association with melatonin (MT) levels, heart rate (HR), and blood pressure. Study Type: Prospective. Subjects: 26 healthy young adults (15 males and 11 females aged 22–27 years). Field Strength/Sequence: 3.0T, T1‐weighted imaging, Mescher–Garwood point resolved spectroscopy (MEGA‐PRESS) sequence. Assessment: The acquired GABA signal contained the overlapping signals of macromolecules and homocarnosine, hence expressed as GABA+. The creatine (Cr) signal was applied as an endogenous reference. The GABA+, GABA+/Cr were measured at six different time points (1:00, 5:00, 9:00, 13:00, 17:00, and 21:00 hours) using MEGA‐PRESS. The blood pressure, HR and sputum MT levels, were also acquired. Statistical Tests: The one‐way repeated‐measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to evaluate the GABA, blood pressure, HR, and MT levels throughout the day. A general linear model was used to find the correlation between GABA and blood pressure, HR, and MT. P < 0.05 was statistically significant. Results: Significant variations in GABA+/Cr and GABA+ levels were observed throughout the day within the PL region. The lowest levels were recorded at 9:00 hour (GABA+/Cr: 0.100 ± 0.003，GABA+:1.877 ± 0.051 i.u) and the highest levels were recorded at 21:00 hour (GABA+/Cr: 0.115 ± 0.003, GABA+:2.122 ± 0.052 i.u). The MT levels were positively correlated with GABA+/Cr (r = 0.301) and GABA+ (r = 0.312) within the ACC region. Data Conclusion: GABA+/Cr and GABA+ in ACC are positively correlated with MT. GABA levels in the PL have diurnal differences. These findings may indicate that the body's GABA level change in response to the light–dark cycle. Level of Evidence: 1 Technical Efficacy: Stage 2 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As large language models continue to expand in size and diversity, their substantial potential and the relevance of their applications are increasingly being acknowledged. The rapid advancement of these models also holds profound implications for the long-term design of stimulus-responsive materials used in drug delivery. Methods: The large model used Hugging Face's Transformers package with BigBird, Gemma, and GPT NeoX architectures. Pre-training used the PubChem dataset, and fine-tuning used QM7b. Chemist instruction training was based on Direct Preference Optimization. Drug Likeness, Synthetic Accessibility, and PageRank Scores were used to filter molecules. All computational chemistry simulations were performed using ORCA and Time-Dependent Density-Functional Theory. Results: To optimize large models for extensive dataset processing and comprehensive learning akin to a chemist's intuition, the integration of deeper chemical insights is imperative. Our study initially compared the performance of BigBird, Gemma, GPT NeoX, and others, specifically focusing on the design of photoresponsive drug delivery molecules. We gathered excitation energy data through computational chemistry tools and further investigated light-driven isomerization reactions as a critical mechanism in drug delivery. Additionally, we explored the effectiveness of incorporating human feedback into reinforcement learning to imbue large models with chemical intuition, enhancing their understanding of relationships involving -N=N- groups in the photoisomerization transitions of photoresponsive molecules. Conclusions: We implemented an efficient design process based on structural knowledge and data, driven by large language model technology, to obtain a candidate dataset of specific photoswitchable molecules. However, the lack of specialized domain datasets remains a challenge for maximizing model performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) molecules are regarded as promising materials for realizing high‐performance organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs). The connecting groups between donor (D) and acceptor (A) units in D–A type TADF molecules could affect the charge transfer and luminescence performance of TADF materials in aggregated states. In this work, we design and synthesize four TADF molecules using planar and twisted linkers to connect the aza‐azulene donor (D) and triazine acceptor (A). Compared with planar linkers, the twisted ones (Az‐NP‐T and Az‐NN‐T) can enhance A–A aggregation interaction between adjacent molecules to balance hole and electron density. As a result, highly efficient and stable deep‐red top‐emission OLEDs with a high electroluminescence efficiency of 57.3% and an impressive long operational lifetime (LT95 ∼ 30,000 h, initial luminance of 1000 cd m−2) are obtained. This study provides a new strategy for designing more efficient and stable electroluminescent devices through linker aggregation engineering in donor–acceptor molecules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the efficacy and safety of using metronomic S-1 adjuvant chemotherapy in locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (LANPC). Materials and Methods: We retrospectively collected data on patients diagnosed with LANPC between January 2016 and December 2021. All patients were treated with induction chemotherapy and concurrent chemoradiotherapy with or without metronomic chemotherapy (MC). Toxicities during MC were recorded. The chi-square test, Kaplan-Meier methods, propensity score matching (PSM), and Cox proportional hazards model were used for statistical analyses. Results: A total of 474 patients were identified, including 64 (13.5%) and 410 (83.5%) patients with or without receiving MC, respectively. Patients who received metronomic S-1 had significantly better 3-year locoregional recurrence-free survival (LRFS) (100% vs. 90.9%, p=0.038), distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS) (98.5% vs. 84.1%, p=0.002), disease-free survival (DFS) (98.4% vs. 77.5%, p < 0.001), and overall survival (OS) (98.0% vs. 87.7%, p=0.008) compared to those without metronomic S-1. The multivariate prognostic analysis revealed that metronomic S-1 was identified as an independent prognostic factor associated with better DMFS (hazard ratio [HR], 0.074; p=0.010), DFS (HR, 0.103; p=0.002) and OS (HR, 0.127; p=0.042), but not in LRFS (p=0.071). Similar results were found using PSM. Common adverse events observed in the metronomic S-1 group included leukopenia, neutropenia, increased total bilirubin, anorexia, rash/desquamation, and hyperpigmentation. All patients with adverse events were grade 1-2. Conclusion: It is worth conducting a randomized controlled trial to assess the effect of metronomic S-1 on survival outcomes and toxicities of LANPC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: This article addresses the safe tracking control problem of quadrotor unmanned aerial vehicles (QUAV) considering uncertain aerodynamics and unknown external disturbances. First, a robust adaptive backstepping controller is designed, where the bias of the control variable, that is, the tracking error of the attitude subsystem, is considered in the design process of the position subsystem. Meanwhile, the safe obstacle avoidance objective is realized by the quadratic programming (QP) method that combines the tracking controller with the exponential control barrier function (ECBF). Furthermore, an event‐triggered mechanism is used for the QP process to conserve computing resources. Simulation validates the feasibility and superiority of the proposed control scheme in presence of multi‐obstacle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Discrete Element Method (DEM) is an important tool for investigating the geotechnical properties of lunar regolith. The accuracy of DEM simulations largely depends on precise particle modeling and the appropriate selection of mesoscopic parameters. To enhance the reliability and accuracy of the DEM in lunar regolith studies, this paper utilized the high-fidelity IRSM-1 lunar regolith simulant to construct a DEM model with realistic particle shapes and conducted an angle of repose (AoR) simulation test. The optimal DEM parameters were calibrated using a combination of the Plackett–Burman test, steepest ascent test, and Box–Behnken design. The results indicate that the sliding friction coefficient, rolling friction coefficient, and surface energy significantly influence the simulation AoR. By optimizing against the measured AoR using a second-order regression model, the optimal parameter values were determined to be 0.633, 0.401, and 0.2, respectively. Under these optimal parameters, the error between the simulation and experimental AoR was 2.1%. Finally, the calibrated mesoscopic parameters were validated through a lifting cylinder test, showing an error of 6.3% between the simulation and experimental results. The high similarity in the shape of the AoR further confirms the accuracy and reliability of the parameter calibration method. This study provides a valuable reference for future DEM-based research on the mechanical and engineering properties of lunar regolith. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates a new resource-allocation problem involving multi-resource operations, where completing an operation requires simultaneous use of multiple (renewable) resources, probably of different types. The goal of the study is to provide a solution method that minimizes the makespan. The authors formulate the problem into a novel mixed-integer linear program (MILP) model. To efficiently solve practical-sized instances, an exact Benders decomposition algorithm is developed. This algorithm divides the original problem into a master problem of allocating resources and a subproblem of calculating the makespan, and both are linked via Benders cuts. The convergence is sped up by improving the mathematical model and embedding the variable neighborhood search algorithm. Compared with CPLEX, a commonly used MILP solver, the computational results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm provides tighter upper and lower bounds in most instances. In particular, compared with CPLEX, the proposed method can on average improve the upper and lower bounds by 4.76% and 4.39%, respectively, in solving practical-sized instances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies of the impact of biomass burning and the emissions of trace gases from biomass burning, especially using long-term observations, are scarce in China. We utilize solar absorption spectra obtained via ground-based high-resolution Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy to retrieve the atmospheric total columns and vertical profiles of carbon monoxide (CO), formaldehyde (H2CO), and hydrogen cyanide (HCN) in Hefei, China. Seasonal and interannual variability in the three gases from 2016 to 2022 are analyzed. Atmospheric CO shows significant seasonal variations, peaking during spring and winter, and declining during summer, with a seasonal amplitude of 8.07 × 1017 molecules cm−2 and a seasonal variability of 29.35%. H2CO and HCN have similar seasonal patterns to each other, with high concentrations in summer and low concentrations in winter. The seasonal amplitude of H2CO and HCN are 1.89 × 1016 molecules cm−2 and 2.32 × 1015 molecules cm−2, respectively, with a seasonal variability of 133.07% and 34.69%, respectively. The means of the annual variation rate for CO, H2CO, and HCN are (−2.67 ± 2.88)% yr−1, (2.52 ± 12.48)% yr−1 and (−3.48 ± 7.26)% yr−1, respectively. To assess the influence of biomass burning on the variations in column concentrations of the three gases, the correlation between CO, H2CO, and HCN was analyzed. The months during which the monthly correlation coefficient between CO and H2CO with HCN exceeds 0.8, and the fire radiative power (FRP) observed by satellites is larger than its monthly average are regarded as a biomass-burning occurrence in Anhui province. Additionally, the enhancement ratios of ΔH2CO/ΔCO and ΔHCN/ΔCO were calculated for the periods impacted by the biomass burning. Finally, backward trajectory cluster analysis and the potential source contribution function (PSCF) calculation identified the air mass transport pathways and the potential source areas at the Hefei site. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Video anomaly detection (VAD) aims to identify events or scenes in videos that deviate from typical patterns. Existing approaches primarily focus on reconstructing or predicting frames to detect anomalies and have shown improved performance in recent years. However, they often depend highly on local spatio-temporal information and face the challenge of insufficient object feature modeling. To address the above issues, this article proposes a video anomaly detection framework with Enhanced Object Information and Global Temporal Dependencies (EOGT) and the main novelties are: (1) A Local Object Anomaly Stream (LOAS) is proposed to extract local multimodal spatio-temporal anomaly features at the object level. LOAS integrates two modules: a Diffusion-based Object Reconstruction Network (DORN) with multimodal conditions detects anomalies with object RGB information; and an Object Pose Anomaly Refiner (OPA) discovers anomalies with human pose information. (2) A Global Temporal Strengthening Stream (GTSS) with video-level temporal dependencies is proposed, which leverages video-level temporal dependencies to identify long-term and video-specific anomalies effectively. Both streams are jointly employed in EOGT to learn multimodal and multi-scale spatio-temporal anomaly features for VAD, and we finally fuse the anomaly features and scores to detect anomalies at the frame level. Extensive experiments are conducted to verify the performance of EOGT on three public datasets: ShanghaiTech Campus, CUHK Avenue, and UCSD Ped2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Secondary flow path is one of the crucial aspects during the design of centrifugal blood pumps. Small clearance size increases stress level and blood damage, while large clearance size can improve blood washout and reduce stress level. Nonetheless, large clearance also leads to strong secondary flows, causing further blood damage. Maglev blood pumps rely on magnetic force to achieve rotor suspension and allow more design freedom of clearance size. This study aims to characterize turbulent flow field and secondary flow as well as its effects on the primary flow and pump performance, in two representative commercial maglev blood pumps of CH-VAD and HeartMate III, which feature distinct designs of secondary flow path. The narrow and long secondary flow path of CH-VAD resulted in low secondary flow rates and low disturbance to the primary flow. The flow loss and blood damage potential of the CH-VAD mainly occurred at the secondary flow path, as well as the blade clearances. By contrast, the wide clearances in HeartMate III induced significant disturbance to the primary flow, resulting in large incidence angle, strong secondary flows and high flow loss. At higher flow rates, the incidence angle was even larger, causing larger separation, leading to a significant decrease of efficiency and steeper performance curve compared with CH-VAD. This study shows that maglev bearings do not guarantee good blood compatibility, and more attention should be paid to the influence of secondary flows on pump performance when designing centrifugal blood pumps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Taylor–Couette flow with a high Taylor number and large radius ratio is widely present in fluid machinery, such as the internal clearance flow in a canned motor pump typically. Taylor–Couette flow with radius ratios from 0.934 to 0.977 and Taylor number from 107 to 1010 was investigated by numerical simulations. The results indicated that torque is positively correlated to radius ratio, while dimensionless torque is exponentially related to the Taylor number. Subsequently, the physical characteristics of the flow field were described by extracting statistical quantities such as the average azimuthal velocity profile, velocity fluctuations, and near-wall region analysis at four internal cylinder rotation frequencies and four radius ratios. The results revealed that increasing rotation frequency would increase velocity gradients near the wall, while higher radius ratios would produce more uniform velocity fluctuation distributions. In addition, near-wall profiles showed a constant shear force layer, while the logarithmic layer was affected by rotation frequency and radius ratio. The detailed analysis revealed that as the rotation frequency increased, the flow gradually transitioned to a turbulent state, intensifying the interaction between large and small vortex structures. The rotation speeds of Taylor vortices remained consistent across different radius ratios, with smaller scales and more numerous vortices observed at larger ratios. Smaller radius ratios led to more fine-scale vortex structures near the cylindrical wall, significantly impacting azimuthal velocity fluctuations. Finally, near-wall velocity streaks are presented to demonstrate their periodic nature and the relationship between high-speed and low-speed regions, as well as their interaction with the wall and changes with distance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To enhance the overall performance of regenerative flow pump (RFP) to achieve efficient and stable operation over a broad range, this paper employs numerical simulation to study the internal flow conditions of RFP models with three different inclination coefficients (Ic = −0.25, Ic = 0, Ic = 0.25). The analysis focuses on the pressure distribution, energy exchange, velocity variation, and vorticity distribution characteristics within the impeller and channel. The comparison indicates that at Ic = −0.25 with an outward channel, the flow within the pump is stabilized, and the rate of pressure growth and exchange intensity are increased. When Ic = 0 with a semi-circular channel and Ic = 0.25 with an inward channel, there are narrower flow space at the channel's outer diameter, impeding effective fluid motion along the channel and inducing chaotic flow. This condition escalates flow losses and adversely affects the hydraulic performance of the RFP. Additionally, the analysis based on the vorticity transport equation reveals that the Coriolis force term significantly contributes to the generation and transport of vortex in the impeller, while the vortex stretching term dominates the transport of vortex in the channel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Hyperglycemia is closely related to trophoblast dysfunction during pregnancy and results in suppressed invasion, migration, and pro‐inflammatory cell death of trophoblasts. Hyperglycemia is a dependent risk factor for gestational hypertension accompanied by decreased placental growth factor (PLGF), which is important for maternal and fetal development. However, there is currently a lack of evidence to support whether PLGF can alleviate trophoblast cell dysfunction caused by high blood sugar. Here, we aim to clarify the effect of hyperglycemia on trophoblast dysfunction and determine how PLGF affects this process. Methods: The changes in placental tissue histomorphology from gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) patients were compared with those of normal placentas. HTR8/SVneo cells were cultured in different amounts of glucose to examine cellular pyroptosis, migration, and invasion as well as PLGF levels. Furthermore, the levels of pyroptosis‐related proteins (NLRP3, pro‐caspase1, caspase1, IL‐1β, and Gasdermin D [GSDMD]) as well as autophagy‐related proteins (LC3‐II, Beclin1, and p62) were examined by Western blotting. The GFP‐mRFP‐LC3‐II system and transmission electron microscopy were used to detect mitophagy levels, and small interfering RNAs targeting BCL2 Interacting Protein 3 (siBNIP3) and PTEN‐induced kinase 1 (siPINK1) were used to determine the role of mitophagy in pyroptotic death of HTR‐8/SVneo cells. Results: Our results show that hyperglycemia upregulates NLRP3, pro‐caspase1, caspase1, IL‐1β at the protein level in GDM patients. High glucose (HG, 25 mM) inhibits viability, invasion, and migration of trophoblast cells while suppressing superoxide dismutase levels and promoting malondialdehyde production, thus leading to a senescence associated beta‐gal‐positive cell burst. PLGF levels in nucleus and the cytosol are also inhibited by HG, whereas PLGF treatment inhibited pyroptosis‐related protein levels of NLRP3, pro‐caspase1, caspase1, IL‐1β, and GSDMD, Gasdermin D N‐terminal domain (GSDMD‐N). HG‐induced mitochondrial dysfunction and BNIP3 and PINK1/Parkin expression. Knocking down BINP3 and PINK1 abolished the protective role of PLGF by preventing mitophagy. Conclusion: PLGF inhibited hyperglycemia, while PLGF reversed hyperglycemic injury by promoting mitophagy via the BNIP3/PINK1/Parkin pathway. Altogether, these results suggest that PLGF may protect against trophoblast dysfunction in diabetes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marine cold‐air outbreaks, or CAOs, are airmass transformations whereby relatively cold boundary layer (BL) air is transported over relatively warm water. To more deeply understand BL and mixed‐phase cloud properties during CAO conditions, the Cold‐Air Outbreaks in the Marine Boundary Layer Experiment (COMBLE) took place from late 2019 into early 2020. During COMBLE, the U.S. Department of Energy's first Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Mobile Facility (AMF1) was deployed to Andenes, Norway, far downstream (∼1,000 km) from the Arctic pack ice. This study examines the two most intense CAOs sampled at the AMF1 site. The observed BL structures are open cellular with high (∼3–5 km) and cold (−30 to −50 ° ${}^{\circ}$C) cloud tops, and they often have pockets of high liquid water paths (LWPs; up to ∼1,000 g m−2 ${\mathrm{m}}^{-2}$) associated with strong updrafts and enhanced turbulence. We use a high‐resolution mesoscale model to explore how well four turbulence closure methods represent open cellular clouds. After applying a radar simulator to model outputs for direct evaluation, cloud top properties agree well with AMF1 observations (within ∼10%), but radar reflectivity and LWP agreement is more variable. Results suggest that the turbulent Prandtl number may play an important role for the simulated BL and cloud properties. All simulations produce enhanced precipitation rates that are well‐correlated with a cloud transition. Finally, the eddy‐diffusivity/mass‐flux approach produces the deepest cloud layer and therefore the largest and most coherent cellular structures. We recommend the use of a non‐local turbulence closure approach to better capture turbulent processes in intense CAOs. Plain Language Summary: Over the high latitude oceans, shallow clouds containing both liquid and frozen hydrometeors, or mixed‐phase clouds, are frequently present. Moreover, they are important to the climate system due to their role in the radiation and moisture budgets. As a result of their microphysical makeup, they are especially challenging to simulate accurately for many numerical models across a range of spatial scales. To better understand these clouds during an intense outbreak of cold air from the Arctic, we utilize measurements from a recent field campaign called the Cold‐Air Outbreaks in the Marine Boundary Layer Experiment (COMBLE). We complement the COMBLE observations with high‐resolution numerical modeling to reveal more information about the cloud structures. We find that the simulated cloud properties, including morphology and abundance of liquid water at subfreezing temperatures, are dependent upon the method used to represent vertical turbulent exchanges between the ocean and atmosphere. Key Points: Cloud properties are well‐simulated compared to one satellite data set, and disagree more than they agree with ground‐based instrumentsEddy diffusivity‐mass flux approach produces the deepest clouds and largest cell sizesPrecipitation processes likely initiate cloud transition from closed to open cells [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, there are still great challenges in promoting bone defect healing, a common health problem affecting millions of people. Herein an osteoimmunity‐regulating biopatch capable of promoting stem cell‐based therapies for bone regeneration is developed. A totally biodegradable conjugate is first synthesized, which can self‐assemble into bioactive nano micelles (PPT NMs). This nanotherapy effectively improves the osteogenesis of periodontal ligament stem cells (PDLSCs) under pathological conditions, by simultaneously regulating IL‐17 signaling and ferroptosis pathways. Incorporation of PPT NMs into biodegradable electrospun nanofibers affords a bioactive patch, which notably improves bone formation in two rat bone defect models. A Janus bio patch is then engineered by integrating the bioactive patch with a stem cell sheet of PDLSCs. The obtained biopatch shows additionally potentiated bone regeneration capacity, by synergistically regulating osteoimmune microenvironment and facilitating stem cell differentiation. Further surface functionalization of the biopatch with tannic acid considerably increases its adhesion to the bone defect, prolongs local retention, and sustains bioactivities, thereby offering much better repair effects in rats with mandibular or cranial bone defects. Moreover, the engineered bioactive patches display good safety. Besides bone defects, this osteoimmunity‐regulating biopatch strategy can be applied to promote stem cell therapies for spinal cord injury, wound healing, and skin burns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the global objectives of achieving a "carbon peak" and "carbon neutrality" along with the implementation of carbon reduction policies, China's industrial structure has undergone significant adjustments, resulting in constraints on high-energy consumption and high-emission industries while promoting the rapid growth of green industries. Consequently, these changes have led to an increasingly complex power system structure and presented new challenges for electricity demand forecasting. To address this issue, this study proposes a 24-step multivariate time series short-term load forecasting algorithm model based on KNN data imputation and BiTCN bidirectional temporal convolutional networks combined with BiGRU bidirectional gated recurrent units and attention mechanism. The Kepler adaptive optimization algorithm (KOA) is employed for hyperparameter optimization to effectively enhance prediction accuracy. Furthermore, using real load data from a wind farm in Xinjiang as an example, this paper predicts the electricity load from 1 January to 30 December in 2019. Experimental results demonstrate that our comprehensive short-term load forecasting model exhibits lower prediction errors and superior performance compared to traditional methods, thus holding great value for practical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Vision Transformer (ViT) has demonstrated impressive performance in various visual tasks, but its high computational requirements limit its applicability on edge devices. Conversely, convolutional neural networks (CNNs) are commonly used in mobile applications, but their static and weak global properties hinder their performance. In this work, we propose a lightweight, high-density predictive classification hybrid-based model called CSFNet, which combines good local inductive bias capability with long-distance modeling property. To establish local-global information association, we introduce two layered structures. Firstly, we use the Local-Attention Block (LAB) with adaptive kernels and channel expansion ratio to aggregate n × n local information layer by layer, capturing multi-stage detail features and inducing efficient local inductive properties. Secondly, we introduce a linear complexity Channel-Spatial Fusion Attention (CSFA) that projects the attention matrix from both channel and tokens dimensions. The relationships between tokens are aggregated stage by stage to encode efficient contextual association information using low-rank matrix and element-by-element operations to reduce computational complexity. Experimental results demonstrate that our proposed CSFNet-XXS/XS/S models with 1.4M/2.4M/5.6M parameters and 0.3G/0.5G/1.1G multiply-adds (MAdds) achieve 70.23%/74.91%/78.82% top-1 accuracy on ImageNet-1k with competitive performance compared to recent mainstream methods. Furthermore, CSFNet performs well on small-scale datasets, MS-COCO2017 and ADE-20K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Humans can be exposed to multiple pollutants in the air and surface water. These environments are non-static, trans-boundary and correlated, creating a complex network, and significant challenges for research on environmental hazards, especially in real-world cancer research. This article reports on a large study (377 million people in 30 provinces of China) that evaluated the combined impact of air and surface water pollution on cancer. We formulate a spatial evaluation system and a common grading scale for co-pollution measurement, and validate assumptions that air and surface water environments are spatially connected and that cancers of different types tend to cluster in areas where these environments are poorer. We observe "dose–response" relationships in both the number of affected cancer types and the cancer incidence with an increase in degree of co-pollution. We estimate that 62,847 (7.4%) new cases of cancer registered in China in 2016 were attributable to air and surface water pollution, and the majority (69.7%) of these excess cases occurred in areas with the highest level of co-pollution. The findings clearly show that the environment cannot be considered as a set of separate entities. They also support the development of policies for cooperative environmental governance and disease prevention. Dissecting the associations between exposure to environmental pollution and cancer risk remains crucial. Here, the authors evaluate the impact of air and water pollution on cancer incidence in China using a spatial evaluation system and show that most excess cancer cases occurred in areas with the highest level of co-pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conventional androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) targets the androgen receptor (AR) inhibiting prostate cancer (PCa) progression; however, it can eventually lead to recurrence as castration‐resistant PCa (CRPC), which has high mortality rates and lacks effective treatment modalities. The study confirms the presence of high glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4) expression, a key regulator of ferroptosis (i.e., iron‐dependent program cell death) in CRPC cells. Therefore, inducing ferroptosis in CRPC cells might be an effective therapeutic modality for CRPC. However, nonspecific uptake of ferroptosis inducers can result in undesirable cytotoxicity in major organs. Thus, to precisely induce ferroptosis in CRPC cells, a genetic engineering strategy is proposed to embed a prostate‐specific membrane antigen (PSMA)‐targeting antibody fragment (gy1) in the macrophage membrane, which is then coated onto mesoporous polydopamine (MPDA) nanoparticles to produce a biomimetic nanoplatform. The results indicate that the membrane‐coated nanoparticles (MNPs) exhibit high specificity and affinity toward CRPC cells. On further encapsulation with the ferroptosis inducers RSL3 and iron ions, MPDA/Fe/RSL3@M‐gy1 demonstrates superior synergistic effects in highly targeted ferroptosis therapy eliciting significant therapeutic efficacy against CRPC tumor growth and bone metastasis without increased cytotoxicity. In conclusion, a new therapeutic strategy is reported for the PSMA‐specific, CRPC‐targeting platform for ferroptosis induction with increased efficacy and safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]