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AbstractBackground and AimMethodsResultsConclusionsTo explore the feasibility of a standardized training and assessment system for magnetically controlled capsule gastroscopy (MCCG).The results of 90 trainees who underwent the standardized training and assessment system of the MCCG at the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University from May 2020 to November 2023 was retrospectively analyzed. The trainees were divided into three groups according to their medical backgrounds: doctor, nurse, and non-medical groups. The training and assessment system adopted the ‘7 + 2’ mode, seven days of training plus two days of theoretical and operational assessment. The passing rates of theoretical, operational, and total assessment were the primary outcomes. Satisfaction and mastery of the MCCG was checked.Ninety trainees were assessed; theoretical assessment’s passing rates in the three groups were 100%. The operational and total assessment passing rates were 100% (25/25), 97.92% (47/48), and 94.12% (16/17), for the doctor, nurse, and non-doctor groups respectively, with no significant difference (χ2 = 1.741, p = 0.419). No bleeding or perforation occurred during the procedure. Approximately, 96.00% (24/25), 95.83% (46/48), and 94.12% (16/17) of the doctor, nurse and non-medical groups anonymously expressed great satisfaction, respectively, without statistically significant difference (χ2 = 0.565, p = 1.000). The average follow-up time was 4–36 months, and 87 trainees (96.67%) had mastered the operation of the MCCG in daily work.Standardized training and assessment of magnetically controlled capsule endoscopists is effective and feasible. Additionally, a strict assessment system and long-term communication and learning can improve teaching effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractBackgroundMaterials and methodsResults and conclusionsThe impact of electromagnetic radiation from communication on the male reproductive system has emerged as a significant concern in public health. A notable distinction of the 5G sub-6 GHz band, compared to traditional 2G, 3G, and 4G frequency bands, is the inclusion of higher frequency bands. This has raised public concerns regarding the potential effects of these higher frequencies on organisms, particularly their reproductive systems. While it is imperative to investigate the biological effects and potential risks associated with these new frequency bands in laboratory settings, comparing and evaluating differences between various frequency bands remain challenging due to the absence of standardized parameters such as exposure conditions and duration. In contrast, dose assessment offers a simpler and more reliable approach.The dose assessment method was employed in this study to investigate the risks associated with sub-6 GHz electromagnetic radiation from 5G base stations on the male reproductive system. A classical human body model (Duke) was utilized, and an electromagnetic simulation environment was established based on the actual polarization direction of the exposed base stations and various body postures. This research explored the effects of field direction, posture, public population, and frequency on the specific absorption rate of the reproductive system.While maintaining the same level of exposure, a higher frequency results in a reduced dosage on reproductive system. Further analysis reveals that, considering the public exposure threshold, the employment of higher frequency bands in 5G sub-6 GHz does not present a greater dosage on reproductive system compared to lower frequency bands. Consequently, with regard to dosage, there is no need for excessive concern among the general public regarding the impact of electromagnetic radiation emitted by 5G base stations operating below 6 GHz on male reproductive health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Access-based consumption has received close attention from academics and industry practitioners in recent years. However, the nature of this type of consumption and the corresponding concept of psychological ownership are yet to be fully understood in hospitality services. This study referred to self-determination theory and psychological ownership theory to examine antecedents and outcomes of psychological ownership in the accommodation context. Two studies were conducted: Study 1 empirically assessed theoretical relationships among the constructs with an Airbnb customer sample, and Study 2 evaluated the proposed model with a hotel sample. Findings highlighted identity and existential authenticity as consistent antecedents of psychological ownership while intimacy and communal identity were not. Multi-group analysis indicated that the two samples' path coefficients did not significantly differ, providing empirical evidence that supports the proposition that Airbnb and hotels both fall into the category of access-based consumption. The findings provide important insight into similarities and differences between new and traditional access-based consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of new approaches to digital art is based on improving a variety of technologies. The main goal of this paper is to identify the gamification of digital art through the promotion of speculative design and interactive experiences. To achieve this goal, theoretical and practical methods were used in the research. A survey determined approaches the designers used to improve their skills. Most respondents (28%) prefer reading books and watching video blogs on their own while 22% of designers took professional courses. Therefore, mechanisms that promote respondents' involvement in selecting professional courses for designers have been described. Cognitive assessment of the skills acquired after completing the course showed significant advantages compared to those observed at the start of the experiment. This was confirmed by the Cohen coefficient. The hierarchy analysis method also contributed to the identification of program elements that are most important for the development of professional skills while not relying exclusively on the data from respondents. The value of the presented work lies in the possibility to improve the skills of gamification in the field of design with the help of the developed mechanisms, the effectiveness of which has been confirmed in practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article deals with a repairable k-out-of-n: G system with retrial feature and two maintenance policies. All components in the system have two failure modes, mode a failure and mode b failure. When a component fails, the failed component will be repaired instantly if the repair equipment is idle. Otherwise, it enters into a retrial orbit and tries again after some time until it is repaired. The single repair equipment may be subject to breakdown in a busy period, and in order to improve system reliability, the idle repair equipment will be performed preventive maintenance. The Markov process theory and Laplace transform method are adopted to compute the reliability indexes of the system. Also, four optimization design models are constructed to determine the optimal repair rates of the components with two failure modes, and the minimization problems of the total expected cost function per unit time and the cost-effectiveness ratio are solved. To verify the correctness of the model, numerical analysis is executed to demonstrate the impact of each parameter on system reliability indexes, the optimal solutions of different optimization design models are obtained by using differential evolution algorithm and genetic algorithm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThis work introduces a quasi-3D refined theory for assessing the transient dynamic reactions of a sandwich annular sector plate subjected to mechanical shock loading. The sandwich structure has two facesheets composed of graphene origami (GOri)-enabled auxetic metal metamaterials (GOEAMs) and a core composed of carbon fiber reinforced polymer. The auxetic quality of the annular plates is mainly determined by the quantity of graphene and the level of folding in the GOri material. The elements are assessed layer by layer across the thickness of the plates. Micromechanical models supported by genetic programming may be used to predict the position-dependent Poisson’s ratio and other material parameters. The concept of Hamiltonian is used to deduce the governing equations of the structure. The equations of motion, which vary with time, are solved using the numerical solution process and the Laplace transform. A comprehensive parametric study is carried out to examine the influence of various geometric and physical parameters on the time-dependent behavior of annular sector plates. The current mathematical modeling results are being compared to the findings of previous works, as well as a machine learning technique. By using this machine learning methodology, it is feasible to computationally solve differential equations at a reduced expense, while simultaneously surmounting the challenge of formulation. To use machine learning techniques, a dependable dataset acquired from either experimental or numerical analysis is necessary. The dataset was created using the quantitative findings of the investigation. Furthermore, the machine learning technique demonstrates its capacity to provide very precise outcomes when predicting the transient behavior of the existing structure under novel loading and boundary circumstances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractBecause of the critical usage of biomedical applications, their constitutive materials must possess specific properties to satisfy the environmental conditions. Consequently, the selection of the best materials is one of the most important subjects in the manufacturing industry. Bio-composites are outstanding alternatives to customary biomaterials in biomedical applications owing to their supreme material properties. On the other hand, mechanical analyses including static and dynamic analyses of bio-systems should be carried out to optimize the designed biomedical applications like medical implants. Thus, wave dispersion analysis of functionally graded (FG) bio-composite plate could serve for design goals of biomedical structures. In this investigation, the influence of various higher-order shear deformation theories of the plate on the dispersion of bulk waves in FG bio-composite plate lying on Kerr foundation has been explored for the first time. The constituent materials of FG structure are gold alloy as metal phase and hydroxyapatite as ceramic phase. In order to compute the effective properties of the studied structure, the upper Hashin-Shtrikman homogenization scheme has been implemented. Higher-order theories and Hamilton’s principle have been applied to derive the governing equations and the obtained equations are analytically solved via a harmonic function. Eventually, the sensitivity of various important parameters has been surveyed and discussed comprehensively. The obtained outcomes have been indicated in detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Point-in-spherical-polygon tests are a fundamental problem in computational geometry. For such tests, efficiency is much required for many global information processing matters, especially their real-time processing. Though many efforts have been made, it is still challenging due to the constraints from the non-Euclidean space of the sphere. Recently, a method is proposed to construct an Adaptive Hexagonal Hierarchical Grid (AHHG) to manage spherical polygon edges, by which the non-Euclidean space constraint of the sphere can be well handled to improve point-in-spherical-polygon tests. However, this method is very expensive in the construction of AHHGs, which prevents its use in practice. In this paper, we present novel measures to divide the task of AHHG construction into several subtasks to solve the problems that arise in the parallel construction of incongruent adaptive hierarchies, so we can exploit the parallel computing potential of GPUs for acceleration. We also develop measures to adaptively optimize the hierarchical levels of an AHHG for high efficiency. Experimental results show that we can answer 1,000,000 query points against dynamically varying spherical polygons in over 100,000 edges in real time on a personnel computer, where AHHGs for spherical polygons are individually constructed. This is much superior to the existing methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ebony wood is often defective, showing severe cracks and deformations during manufacturing processes, and requires ample times for drying. The continuous drying has been proved to result in enormous collapses during the entire drying stage. In order to control the extent of collapses and further prevent these defects, a low temperature pre-freezing procedure was projected and followed by a cyclic drying program. This cyclic (intermittent) drying schedule was proposed based upon a so-called "mechano-sorptive creep gradient" (MSCG) strategy and elaborated by a "corresponding temperature differentia" (CTD) concept. The MSCG and CTD variables provided the theoretical explanation and the operational instruction to the cyclic drying test, respectively. The overall evolutions of collapse and transversal shrinkage of the ebony lumber boards were quantitatively investigated during the entire period of a cyclic drying process. Furthermore, the relationships between collapse and moisture content as well as cross section orientation were determined quantitatively. Under this specified pre-freezing plus cyclic drying method, the averaged collapse deformations were significantly decreased, with the maximum collapse variables accounting for 20 ∼ 30% of those under continuous cases, fully achieving the collapse controlling objective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we consider the prediction of the helium concentrations as function of a spatially variable source term perturbed by fractional Brownian motion. For the direct problem, we show that it is well-posed and has a unique mild solution under some conditions. For the inverse problem, the uniqueness and the instability are given. In the meanwhile, we determine the statistical properties of the source from the expectation and covariance of the final-time data u (r , T). Finally, numerical implements are given to verify the effectiveness of the proposed reconstruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract We conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate the efficacy and safety of veliparib in the treatment of advanced/metastatic breast cancer. Databases were searched for relevant studies till June 2023. Six RCTs involving 1912 patients were included. The pooled analysis provided evidence that veliparib-containing regimens could significantly improve the PFS (HR: 0.71; 95% CI: 0.61-0.83; p < 0.0001), OS (HR: 0.87; 95% CI: 0.76-0.99; p = 0.03), and ORR (RR: 1.52; 95% CI:1.06-2.18; p = 0.02) than those of controls for treating advanced/metastatic breast cancer. Breast cancer patients with BRCA-mutation tended to have a better PFS than the BRCA-wildtype group, and patients with TNBC tended to associated with a longer PFS than the non-TNBC group. Veliparib could significantly increase the risk of anemia, leukopenia, neutropenia, diarrhea, stomatitis, fatigue, and peripheral neuropathy. Anemia and neutropenia should be well concerned. The veliparib-containing regimen was efficacious in treating advanced/metastatic breast cancer with a controllable safety factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A number of recent studies have investigated the relationship between bride prices and social development. However, there has been little empirical evidence that bride prices affect household income. Based on a unique set of bride price data from China and data from China's Labour Force Dynamic Survey (CLDS), this paper studies the effect of bride prices on rural household income. The findings show that higher bride prices can significantly reduce rural household income. For income categories, higher bride prices have a significantly negative impact on the agricultural income of rural households, while higher bride prices can boost rural households' remittance income by inducing individuals to work as migrant workers. There is a significant age difference in the impact of rural household income. Finally, the relationship between bride prices and income is an inverted U-shape, and moderate bride prices are conducive to income growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information overload is a pervasive phenomenon in the information age and has a negative impact on personal psychological experiences and behavioural performance. The relationship between WeChat information overload and sleep quality was examined, as well as the mediating effects of social fatigue and irrational procrastination. A total of 1 899 Chinese college students (females = 45.8%; mean age = 20.26 years, SD = 1.70) were selected for study. They completed the Information Overload Scale, Social Fatigue Scale, Irrational Procrastination Scale, and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Path analysis results show a significantly positive correlation between information overload and sleep quality and the mediating role of irrational procrastination in this relationship. Social fatigue and irrational procrastination play a chain-mediating role in the link between information overload and sleep quality. This suggests that information overload has an impact on sleep quality through social fatigue and irrational procrastination. Student mental health counselling services should consider information overload and sleep deprivation indicators for support interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethnic clothing has long been a value-laden visual index to define, display, and, more recently, commodify ethnicity in China's ethnic politics, especially its role in the imaging and othering processes by the state and mainstream society. The question that needs further exploration is the negotiating processes that ethnic members strategically engage as part of the encounters. Through bringing traditional Dai ethnic clothing back to style, a recent fashion in Xishuangbanna, southwest China, provides an opportunity to expand our understanding of the interplay between self-conscious sartorial practices, the exercises of ethnic self-representation, and the politics of ethnicity (re)construction in China's contemporary minority regions. This article addresses not only what kind of collective Dai-ness (especially Dai femininity) these fashion-makers have crafted through their redesigning of Dai clothing but also their capability to carry out these exercises as central agents within the larger structure of the state. It particularly explores the question of "how it works"—the mechanism through which ethnic members navigate China's political-economic-technological power circuits, rework the state and mainstream discourses as direct participants, and turn their sartorial practices into a communicative channel to reconfigure ethnicity in their own fashion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play important roles in transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulation. LncRNAs, which are defined as non-coding RNAs more than 200 bp in length, are involved in key biological processes, such as cell proliferation and differentiation, epigenetic regulation, and gene transcriptional translation. Recent studies have shown that lncRNAs also play major regulatory roles in the reproduction of mammals. However, knowledge of the roles of lncRNAs in the chicken ovary lacking. In this study, we performed RNA-seq analyses of ovarian tissue from Hy-Line brown laying hens at four physiological stages [15, 20, 30, and 68 weeks of age (W)]. We identified 657 lncRNA transcripts that were differentially expressed during ovarian development, the number of down-regulated lncRNAs was higher than the number of up-regulated lncRNAs during development. We predicted the cis and trans target genes of the DE lncRNAs and constructed a lncRNA-mRNA interaction network, which indicated that the DE genes (DEGs) and the target genes of the DE lncRNAs are mainly involved in signaling pathways associated with ovarian development, including oocyte meiosis, calcium signaling pathways, ECM-receptor interactions, and ribosome and focal adhesion. Overall, we found that twelve lncRNAs were strongly involved in ovarian development: LNC_013443, LNC_001029, LNC_005713, LNC_016762, ENSGALT00000101857, LNC_003913, LNC_013692, LNC_012219, LNC_004140, ENSGALT00000096941, LNC_009356, and ENSGALT00000098716. In summary, our study utilized RNA-seq analysis of hen ovaries to explore key lncRNAs involved in ovarian development and function. Furthermore, the comprehensive analysis identified the target genes of these lncRNAs providing a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying ovarian development in hens and a theoretical basis for further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to investigate the role of salidroside (SAL) in the cellular communication between Müller cells and retinal ganglion cells in diabetic mice. The diabetes mellitus (DM) animal models were established by the intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin and treatment with SAL via gavage or by the injection of IL-22BP into the vitreous cavity. Immunohistochemistry was used to measure the expression of the glial fibrillary acidic protein in Müller cells. The expression of IL-22 and IL-22Rα1 in retinal tissues was assessed by immunofluorescence. Western blotting was used to measure the expression of inflammatory and apoptosis-related proteins. Hematoxylin–eosin staining, TUNEL staining, and flow cytometry were used to analyze the apoptosis of retinal ganglion cells. The effect of cellular interactions was explored by Transwell assays. Western blotting showed that glial fibrillary acidic protein, IL-22 protein expression was significantly upregulated in the DM animal models compared with the control mice. Immunofluorescence showed that IL-22 was highly expressed in Müller cells and IL-22Rα1 was expressed in ganglion cells in the retina of DM mice. Hematoxylin–eosin and TUNEL staining results showed an increase in the number of ganglion cells apoptotic in DM. However, SAL reversed these phenomena. Meanwhile, after coculture with Müller cells, Western blotting suggested that ganglion cells secreted p-STAT3, and c-caspase3 protein expression was increased. More interestingly, the treatment of IL-22BP and SAL inhibited the expression of the p-STAT3 and c-caspase3 proteins. Flow cytometry indicates that compared with the control group, the apoptosis rate of ganglion cells was increased in the high glucose group, while the apoptosis rate of cells in the recombinant IL-22 protein group was significantly increased, while the SAL inhibited ganglion cells apoptosis. SAL inhibits the apoptosis of retinal ganglion cells via the IL-22/STAT3 pathway in Müller cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Organic dyes have been widely used in industry but mistreatment of their use and disposal can have negative consequences on human health. A technique based on solid photocatalysts is feasible for remediating organic dyes without additional harmful byproducts or additives. Recently, metal-organic frameworks formed by the metal ions and organic linkers have been studied in the areas of photocatalysis and biomedicine. In this study, the assembly reaction of 2-CNB ligand with La(CH3COO)3 generated a metal-organic framework, [La(2-CNB)(CH3COO)2(H2O)]n (1, 2-CNB = 2-cyanobenzoic acid). Its high degradation efficiency makes 1 an effective photocatalyst for Rhodamine B (RhB) photodegradation under irradiation by UV light, with a degradation efficiency of 97.78% within 90 min. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hearing loss is the most prevalent sensory disorder worldwide. Several studies have indicated that sex steroid hormone levels may be vital to hearing. We aimed to explore the associations between speech-frequency hearing loss and sex steroid hormones. We conducted a secondary analysis based on 3558 adult participants' data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2015 to 2016. We defined hearing loss as a pure-tone average (PTA) at 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 kHz ≥20 dB in the better ear. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the association between sex steroid hormones and hearing loss risk. A nomogram model for the risk of hearing loss was constructed. There were 560 (15.7%) cases who had hearing loss among the participants enrolled in this study. Participants with hearing loss had a higher total testosterone level and a lower estradiol level. Individuals with estradiol levels in the highest tertile still had lower hearing loss risks than those in the lowest tertile. Nevertheless, the total testosterone level had no influence on the risk of hearing loss. Our research indicated that low estradiol concentrations were significantly associated with hearing loss, especially in menopausal women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Danyikangtai powder has a definite therapeutic effect on pancreatitis. However, the internal mechanism is unclear. The purpose of this experiment is to quickly identify the blood components of danyikangtai powder and evaluate its efficacy. 25 blood components were identified by comparing the components with the same mass spectrometry information from in vivo and in vitro samples. The AR42J cells of the pancreatitis model were treated with drug-containing plasma, and the drug efficacy was evaluated by investigating the amylase release rate. This study provides a scientific reference for its pharmacological research and rational clinical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This study investigates the impact of an inclined magnetic field (MHD) on entropy generation in double diffusive natural convective flow in a wavy enclosure filled with a non-Newtonian Casson fluid. The Galerkin Finite Element Method (GFEM) is employed to numerically solve the standard formulation, utilizing quadratic polynomials for momentum interpolation and a linear interpolating function for model approximation. The discretized system is resolved using Newton’s approach and PARDISO's matrix factorization. Through simulations of varying ranges of Rayleigh numbers ( 1 e 3 ≤ R a ≤ 1 e 5 ) , Casson parameter ( 0.1 ≤ β ≤ 10 ) , Hartmann numbers ( 0 ≤ H a ≤ 40 ) , Lewis numbers ( 0.1 ≤ L e ≤ 5 ) , and inclined angle gamma ( 0 ≤ γ ≤ 60 o ) , the study provides valuable insights into the behavior of double diffusive natural convection in the wavy enclosure. Isotherms, iso-concentration contours, and streamlines are analyzed to assess different input distributions, and the study presents graphical representations and tabular data on heat transfer, mass transfer rate, and entropy production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) continue to be among the most common pollutants in soil worldwide. Bioremediation and phytoremediation have become sustainable ways of dealing with TPH contamination and biostimulation-assisted phytoremediation is considered as a potential approach for the treatment of pollutants. In this study, the response surface was used to optimize the single-factor biological stimulation experiment of moisture content, leavening agent content and compound fertilizer content and got the best experimental plan of biological stimulation. It was found that TPH degradation rate was 28.6% by biostimulation after 70 days. Further, from 20 kinds of plant seeds, 5 kinds of suitable or growth and high germination rate were selected for petroleum hydrocarbon degradation experiment. In the phytoremediation, peanut was selected as the best plant species by measuring the TPH degradation rate, bacteria count, growth of test plants, germination rate and amount of catalase in the soil and it could achieved 31.1% degradation rate of petroleum hydrocarbons after 70 days. Finally, the artificial biostimulation and phytoremediation combined degradation experiment of petroleum hydrocarbons-contaminated soil was designed and it achieved 38.9% TPH degradation rate after 70 days. In petroleum hydrocarbon-contaminated soils, single remediation methods are often limited and may be disturbed by environmental conditions. In the actual research process of coupling biostimulation and phytoremediation, it is necessary to play the role of microorganisms on the premise of ensuring plant growth. This may further present challenges for combined bioremediation attempts. In this work, the response surface methodology was used to optimize the single-factor biological stimulation experiment of moisture content, leavening agent content and compound fertilizer content. As a result, the best biological stimulation experimental scheme can be obtained to repair oil contaminated soil. Then, biostimulation-assisted phytoremediation degradation experiment of petroleum hydrocarbons-contaminated soil was designed and an effective degradation rate of petroleum hydrocarbons in the soil was obtained. Biostimulation combined with phytoremediation improved the degradation rate of soil petroleum hydrocarbons in 70 days. After 70 days of combine remediation, the microorganisms biomass almost recovered before being contaminated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human placenta is key to fetal growth and development as it controls maternal-to-fetal exchanges of endogenous and exogenous substances. Despite numerous studies have investigated prenatal exposure to environmental chemicals and associated effects on adverse pregnancy outcomes (APOs), the role of placenta as a direct target of environmental chemicals and possible driver of pre- and postnatal effects has been largely overlooked. In the present work, we demonstrated that more than 330 environmental chemicals have been reported in human placenta, among which 260 chemicals exhibited an estimated median concentration from 3 pg/g to 5150 ng/g lipid weight in human placenta. We also discussed the main mechanisms through which environmental chemicals interfere with placental development and functions and cause a variety of possible APOs. They may include, but not limited to, the interference with placental nuclear receptors, such as peroxisome proliferator activated receptors, estrogen receptors, thyroid hormone receptors, and aromatic hydrocarbon receptor, induction of oxidative stresses in placenta, changes of placental levels of cytokines and chemokines, and changes of DNA methylation or microRNAs profiles. A number of important knowledge gaps were also identified in order to further facilitate the understanding of placenta-mediate peri- and postnatal effects of environmental chemicals, which include, but are not limited to, potential cocktail effects on placenta from prenatal exposure to a large complexity of environmental chemicals, sex-specific effects of environmental chemicals on the placenta, the mediation of placenta in the cause-effect relationships between environmental exposure and APOs, and the chemical-dependent sensitive window of exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) originally aimed to promote nature conservation through community empowerment, but this aim is not easy to achieve. To analyze the reasons and propose responses, this paper constructed an analytical framework for CBNRM based on the theory of socio-ecological system synergies. A mixed-method (questionnaires, interviews, and observations) explanatory case study of Feicui village within the Mount Huangshan World Natural Heritage Site in Eastern China was conducted. The research illuminates the complexity of the CBNRM initiative in Feicui village, which neglects socio-ecological system synergies, leading to a lack of connection between the benefits from and attitudes toward natural conservation and a loss of integrated resource management. This study responds to the incomprehensibility of CBNRM and provides important theoretical contributions to international debates on CBNRM by highlighting the essence of recognizing system synergies to avoid deviating from the original intent of CBNRM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This narrative inquiry explores a beginning teacher's counter story experiences in a high-needs secondary school in rural China. The study examines storied data culled from interviews, observations, and digital photos and videos of the participant's daily life. The research intent was to discover how the participant teacher lived counter stories with his students and teacher colleagues amid the competing and conflicting dominant narratives inside and outside the school. The study discusses how teacher reflection, 'intelligent rebellion', and teacher community are related to a teacher's sense of self and construction of counter stories. This research provides local, national and international insights into teacher retention and development in a professionally challenging rural school landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid and accurate estimation of forest biomass are essential to drive sustainable management of forests. Field-based measurements of forest above-ground biomass (AGB) can be costly and difficult to conduct. Multi-source remote sensing data offers the potential to improve the accuracy of modelled AGB predictions. Here, four machine learning methods: Random Forest (RF), Gradient Boosting Decision Tree (GBDT), Classification and Regression Trees (CART), and Minimum Distance (MD) were used to construct forest AGB models of Taiyue Mountain forest, Shanxi Province, China using single and multi-sourced remote sensing data and the Google Earth Engine platform. Results showed that the machine learning method that most accurately predicted AGB were GBDT and spectral index for coniferous (R2 = 0.99; RMSE = 65.52 Mg/ha), broadleaved (R2 = 0.97; RMSE = 29.14 Mg/ha), and mixed-species (R2 = 0.97; RMSE = 81.12 Mg/ha) forest types. Models constructed using bivariate variable combinations that included the spectral index improved the AGB estimation accuracy of mixed-species (R2 = 0.99; RMSE = 59.52 Mg/ha) forest types and reduced slightly the accuracy of coniferous (R2 = 0.99; RMSE = 101.46 Mg/ha) and broadleaved (R2 = 0.97; RMSE = 37.59 Mg/ha) forest AGB estimation. Overall, parameterizing machine learning algorithms with multi-source remote sensing variables can improve the prediction accuracy of mixed-species forests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As China has recently launched the GaoFen-1 satellite (GF-1) carrying on the wide-field view (WFV) sensor, it is a challenging task to make full use of its observations to produce the fractional vegetation cover (FVC). In light of this, our study presents a comprehensive algorithm to generate a 16 m/10-day FVC product by considering the vegetation types characteristics. For forests, considering the foliage clumping effect, FVC was estimated from the gap probability theory using GF-1 leaf area index (LAI) and clumping index (CI) as a priori knowledge; for non-forests, FVC was estimated from the dimidiate pixel model using GF-1 normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). The performance of GF-1 FVC from 2018 to 2020 was evaluated using FVC ground measurements obtained from 7 sites for crops, grasslands, and forests in China. The direct validation indicated that the performance of the FVC product was satisfactory, as evidenced by R2 = 0.55, RMSE = 0.15 and BIAS = 0.01 for all vegetation types. Furthermore, the GF-1 FVC exhibited better performance compared to the GEOV3 FVC at a spatial resolution of 300 meters. Moreover, the 10-day temporal interval of GF-1 FVC product successfully facilitated the extraction of regional phenological information at a spatial resolution of 16 meters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) grass has been recognized as a functional food with a wide spectrum of health-promoting properties. Supplementation with barley grass has the potential to prevent chronic diseases, such as cancer. Here, we investigated whether barley grass could protect against hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Our data showed that administration of barley grass juice attenuates tumor development in a hydrodynamic gene delivery-induced model of HCC. The expression levels of the immune cell markers Ptprc and Adgre1 were upregulated in the barley grass juice-treated and normal groups, compared to those in the vehicle group in the HCC model. Immune cells (CD45+, F4/80+, and CLEC4F + iNOS + cells) infiltration in the liver increased following barley grass juice administration. Our results indicate that barley grass could be beneficial for HCC alleviation, partly by regulating immune cell infiltration. The ingredients of barley grass affect immune cell infiltration in HCC, and the detailed mechanism requires further study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the morphological studies on the snake bones discovered in the Neolithic sites from the Zuojiang River Basin, Chongzuo, Guangxi, China, three extant snake species attributed to three different genera and three families have been identified: Elaphe moellendorffi (Boettger, 1886), Ophiophagus hannah (Cantor, 1836), and Python bivittatus Kuhl, 1820. Multiple linear regression of four vertebral measurements against the body size for extant specimens using an allometric model indicates a minimum snout-vent length of 3 882.5 mm, total body length of 4 578.7 mm for the largest vertebra of the Neolithic P. bivittatus found in this region. The result indicates a similar herpetofauna between the Neolithic period and current southwest Guangxi, in addition to a potential snake hunting lifestyles of pre-historical humans from the Zuojiang River basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Estimating the proportion of land-use types in different regions is essential to promote the organization of a compact city and reduce energy consumption. However, existing research in this area has a few limitations: (1) lack of consideration of land-use distribution-related factors other than POIs; (2) inability to extract complex relations from heterogeneous information; and (3) overlooking the correlation between land-use types. To overcome these limitations, we propose a knowledge-based approach for estimating land-use distributions. We designed a knowledge graph to display POIs and other related heterogeneous data and then utilized a knowledge embedding model to directly obtain the region embedding vectors by learning the complex and implicit relations present in the knowledge graph. Region embedding vectors were mapped to land-use distributions using a label distribution learning method integrating the correlation between land-use types. To prove the reliability and validity of our approach, we conducted a case study in Jinhua, China. The results indicated that the proposed model outperformed other algorithms in all evaluation indices, thus illustrating the potential of this method to achieve higher accuracy land-use distribution estimates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the startup process of CFB boiler, problems such as wear, coking and excessive pollutant emission may occur, which pose a serious threat to the safe and environmental protection operation of the power plant. Based on the Computational Particle Fluid Dynamics (CPFD) method, numerical simulation was carried out for the thermal startup process of CFB boiler, so as to analyze the flow field change and pollutant emission dynamic characteristics during the thermal startup process of the boiler. The results show that the formation of NO and SO2 is mainly concentrated in the dense-phase zone of CFB boiler during the thermal startup process. After stable operation of the boiler, the production of NO, SO2, CO and O2 presents dynamic fluctuation. The bed height (H0) and the initial bed temperature (T0) have certain influences on the formation and distribution of NO and SO2. The research results provide theoretical basis for the actual thermal startup and operation of CFB boiler and have certain reference value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The temperature control of magnetic hyperthermia therapy mainly relies on circulating water cooling and regulating magnetic field intensity, which increases complexity in clinical applications. Using magnetic materials with appropriate Curie temperature has become an effective means to solve temperature monitoring and potentially achieve self-regulating temperature. A self-temperature-regulating Fe83Zr10B7 magnetic material was prepared. Based on this material, a simplified model of magnetic hyperthermia for arm tumors was established and verified using the finite- element method. The influence of magnetic field intensity and frequency on the heating power and temperature rise rate of different-sized and shaped magnetic media was studied. Additionally, factors such as the size, quantity, and spatial arrangement of the magnetic media were analyzed for their impact on the damage to tumors with different volumes and shapes. Spherical shape is the most suitable for magnetic hyperthermia media, and the radius of the spherical magnetic media can be chosen according to the size of the tumor. For tumors with a radius below 10 mm, using magnetic media with a particle size of 3.5 mm is recommended. The optimal magnetic field conditions are H0 (10–12 kA/m) and f (110–120 kHz). Based on the good magnetic properties and heating performance of the Fe83Zr10B7 magnetic material, it is feasible to use it as a magnetic medium for magnetic hyperthermia. The results of this study provide references for the selection of thermal seed size and magnetic field parameters in magnetic hyperthermia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Va (also called "Wa") people are an ethnic minority living mainly in the southwest of Yunnan Province This study was conducted to obtain the genetic information and forensic statistical parameters of 15 autosomal short tandem repeat (STR) loci included in the AmpFlSTR®Identifiler™ kit (Applied Biosystems, Foster City, CA) in the Yunnan Va population, with a view to enriching the genetic databases of the Chinese Va population. A total of 508 unrelated Chinese Va individuals were genotyped with this 15 STR kit, the genetic polymorphisms and associated forensic parameters were calculated. The genetic relationships between Chinese Va and 26 other Chinese populations were also evaluated. All of the STR loci reached the Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium after Bonferroni correction. A total of 159 alleles were observed with allele frequencies ranging from 0.000984 to 0.606299. The combined discrimination power (CDP) and the cumulative probability of excluding (CPE) of the 15 STR loci were 0.999 999 999 999 999 988 126 and 0.999 995 734, respectively. Our results indicated that the geographically adjacent or ethnically close populations showed a higher genetic affinity. The results of this study will enrich the forensic databases of the Chinese Va population and could be applied in forensic analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We are concerned with control systems described by a class of semilinear fractional evolution hemivariational inequalities in separable reflexive Banach spaces. The constraint on the control is a nonconvex valued multivalued function which is lower semicontinuous with respect to the variable states. Along with the original system we also consider the system in which the constraint on the control is the upper semicontinuous convex valued regularization of the original constraint. We obtain the existence results of the control systems and the relaxation property among the solution sets of these systems. In the end, an example is provided to illustrate the application of the obtained theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: This cross sectional study was conducted to explore the moderating effect of sexual sensation seeking (SSS) on the association between alcohol/popper use before sex and multiple sexual partners (MSP) among men who have sex with men (MSM) in Guangzhou, China. Methods: From June 2017 to April 2018, MSM were recruited from a community-based HIV service center in Guangzhou, China; data on sociodemographics, sexual behaviors and SSS were collected. A product term of SSS and alcohol/popper use before sex was included in a multivariate logistic regression model to test the potential moderating effect of SSS on the association between alcohol/popper use before sex and MSP. Results: Among the 500 MSM included, individuals who reported alcohol use and popper use before sex, and MSP in the last six months accounted for 33.80%, 33.40%, and 60.40%, respectively. MSM with high SSS traits accounted for 54.80%. The association between popper use before sex and MSP was moderated by SSS (P for interaction = 0.007). A significant association between popper use before sex and MSP among MSM with low SSS traits (odds ratio [OR] = 4.22, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.06 ∼ 8.67). But not among MSM with high SSS traits (OR = 1.37, 95%CI: 0.77 ∼ 2.43) were observed. However, no moderating effect of SSS on the association between alcohol use before sex and MSP were observed. Conclusion: The moderated analysis indicated that SSS should be taken into consideration when tailoring interventions to prevent popper use before sex to reduce the risk associated with MSP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The inheritance pattern of genetically confirmed hereditary juvenile retinoschisis reported so far is X-linked recessive with limited number of female cases. We identified a female patient with retinoschisis, and this study reports the clinical features as well as the underlying genetic defect of this family. Detailed family history and pedigree analysis were performed. All affected subjects underwent detailed ophthalmic examinations, including best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), dilated fundoscopy, optical coherent tomography (OCT) and fundus autofluorescence (FAF). DNA sample of the proband was sequenced by next-generation sequencing (NGS). Sanger sequencing was performed for validation and segregation. Three affected subjects including one female and two males were confirmed in this consanguineous family. The BCVA ranged from 20/50 to hand motion. Foveoschisis, hyperopia, subcapsular cataracts, vitreous opacity, retinal pigmentation, and macular atrophy were present in all three patients, with variable severity. Nystagmus, esotropia, and retinal vessels transposition were noted in the female patient. Retinal detachment occurred in the female patient and her affected brother. A small deletion in RS1 gene c.97delT (p.W33Gfs*93) (NM_000330.3) was found, which was co-segregated in the pedigree. Consanguineous family having XLRS female patient could manifest as pseudo-dominant inheritance. Significant intrafamilial phenotypic variation was revealed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we consider the estimation of ruin probability in the classical compound Poisson model. We first show that the ruin probability can be expressed by the complex Fourier series expansion. Then using a random sample on claim number and individual claim sizes we construct a nonparametric estimator of the ruin probability. Error analysis of the new estimator is made when the sample size is large, and simulation results are also provided to show the efficiency of our method when the sample size is finite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the impact and transmission mechanism of foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows on the economic growth of city clusters. Via theoretical analysis, a spatial Durbin model (SDM) and mediating effect model are applied based on panel data of the three major city clusters in the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) from 1997 to 2018. The results reveal the following: (1) FDI inflows promote the economic growth of city clusters in the YREB, but the degrees of impacts on the three city clusters are different; (2) the spatial effects of FDI inflows differ across city clusters; the effects are negative in city clusters of the Yangtze River Delta and the Yangtze River Middle Reaches, and positive in the Chengdu-Chongqing city cluster; (3) urbanization and industrial structure upgrading are two important mechanisms by which FDI inflows promote the economic growth of city clusters. However, there are differences among the three major city clusters; the intermediary effect of urbanization is more significant in city clusters of Chengdu-Chongqing and the Yangtze River Middle Reaches, while the intermediary effect of industrial structure upgrading is more significant in the Yangtze River Delta and Chengdu-Chongqing city clusters. Policy implications are proposed accordingly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has been causing serious disasters to mankind. The incubation period is a key parameter for epidemic control and also an important basis for epidemic prediction, but its distribution law remains unclear. This paper analyzed the epidemiological information of 787 confirmed non-Wuhan resident cases, and systematically studied the characteristics of the incubation period of COVID-19 based on the interval-censored data estimation method. The results show that the incubation period of COVID-19 approximately conforms to the Gamma distribution with a mean value of 7.8 (95%CI:7.4–8.5) days and a median value of 7.0 (95%CI:6.7–7.3) days. The incubation period was positively correlated with age and negatively correlated with disease severity. Female cases presented a slightly higher incubation period than that of males. The proportion of infected persons who developed symptoms within 14 days was 91.6%. These results are of great significance to the prevention and control of the COVID-19 pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To identify the impacts of both port relocation and agglomeration effects on the spatial patterns of basic shipping service industries, a multimethodological framework was employed to identify maritime clusters, the colocation patterns between pairs of shipping service industries, and the determinants of the (re)location of shipping service firms. Taking Dalian Port as a case study, the firm-level (re)location data of 6 types of shipping services were collected and analysed. The results showed that although a maritime cluster appeared around the new port area, no significant colocation patterns were found, and the shipping service firms preferred the existing maritime cluster to the new port area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Chalcopyrite CuInS2 films were prepared from nitrates below 220 °C. When the anhydrous ethanol is used as the solvent, the reaction cycle, temperature and holding time are main factors affecting crystallization. Increasing the reaction cycle, temperature and holding time are beneficial to the crystallinity. CuInS2 films prepared with thioacetamide and thiourea as sulfur sources have the chalcopyrite structure, the crystallinity of CuInS2 film prepared by thiourea is slightly better than that of by thioacetamide. It consists of spherical particles with diameters of 0.1 ∼ 0.4 μm. The band estimated gap of chalcopyrite CuInS2 film samples is about 1.49 ∼ 1.51 eV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) systems are taking up an increasing market share owing to a high overall solar energy efficiency. An innovative PV/T system that combines amorphous silicon cells and micro-channel loop heat pipes is proposed in this paper. It can overcome problems of large thermal stress at fluctuating temperature and frosting in winter which exist in conventional PV/Ts using crystalline silicon cells and copper tube heat exchangers. A distributed parameter model is built and experimental validation on heat transfer and electricity generation is conducted. The parametric influences of thickness of air interlayer, cover factor, number of MCHPs, area of condenser are investigated. The results indicate that the overall energy efficiency increases from 22.30% to 47.61% as the thickness of air interlayer rises from 0 to 15 mm. A number of MCHPs of 8–14 and length of condenser of 4–6 m are recommended for the sake of cost-effectiveness, and the corresponding thermal and electrical efficiencies are about 47% and 6%. The proposed PV/T system can efficiently harness solar heat with a minor impact on electricity output and has significant potential in the medium temperature applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Influenza causes repeat epidemics and huge loss of lives and properties. To predict influenza epidemics, we proposed an infectious disease dynamic prediction model with control variables (SEIR-CV), which considers the characteristics of the influenza epidemic transmission, seasonal impacts, and the intensity changes of control measures over time. The critical parameters of the model were inversed using an adjoint method. When using the surveillance data of the past 15 weeks to invert the parameters, the epidemic in the next 3 weeks in the United States can be accurately predicted. In addition, roll predictions from 26 September 2016 to 27 September 2018 were implemented. The correlation coefficient between the predicted values and the surveillance values was greater than 0.975, and the overall relative error of the predictions was less than 10%. These good model performances demonstrated the practicability and feasibility of SEIR-CV for influenza and corresponding infectious disease prediction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This inquiry explores the scholarly influence of Elliot Eisner by examining how ideas derived from his scholarship have spread. The study begins with Eisner's bio-sketch and a literature review on the history of ideas and the use of knowledge in education, followed by descriptions of this paper's research method and data sources. The analysis revolves around (1) the influence of Eisner's ideas and approaches, (2) Eisner's direct impact through his involvement in projects/organizations, and (3) Eisner's effect on the academic literature. Discussions of generative scholarship, intergenerational legacy and scholarly influence conclude the work, along with the suggestion that the inquiry be re-enacted with other noteworthy scholarly figures in order to increase the understanding of the influence of ideas and research dissemination in the field of education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circular RNA 0067934 (circ_0067934) has been revealed as a cancer driver in multiple human malignancies, whereas its action in the pathogenesis of ovarian cancer (OC) remains unclear. This study focuses on the function of circ_0067934 in tumorigenesis and cisplatin (DDP) resistance in OC and the molecular mechanism. Expression of circ_0067934 in OC tissues and cells was examined, and its correlation with the clinical characteristics of patients was analyzed. Candidate targets of circ_0067934 were predicted using bioinformatics systems. Binding relationships between circ_0067934 and microRNA (miR)-545-3p and between miR-545-3p and inorganic pyrophosphatase 1 (PPA1) were validated via luciferase assays. Gain- and loss-of functions of circ_0067934, miR-545-3p and PPA1 were performed to determine their functions in proliferation, invasion, apoptosis and DDP resistance of OC cells in vitro and in vivo. Circ_0067934 was overexpressed in OC samples and associated with advanced tumor staging and lymph node metastasis. Downregulation of circ_0067934 reduced DDP resistance of the DDP-resistant A2780/DDP cell line and reduced cell proliferation and invasion, but the malignant behaviors of OC cells were restored after further miR-545-3p downregulation. Circ_0067934 served as a sponge for miR-545-3p and diminished its suppressive effect on PPA1 translation. Artificial upregulation of PPA1 enhanced proliferation, invasion and DDP resistance of A2780/DDP cells, and it reduced phosphorylation of the pro-apoptotic JNK signaling. Similar results were found in vivo. This study suggests that circ_0067934 sequesters miR-545-3p and enhances PPA1 expression to promote tumorigenesis and DDP resistance in OC. This study may provide novel approaches in the management of OC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is limited evidence on the association between different dimensions of socioeconomic status and mental health on adolescents in developing nations. The aim of this study was to examine this association among adolescents in East China. A school-based study that recruited 6902 adolescents aged 13 to 18 years was conducted in Suzhou, Hefei and Hangzhou. Multiple of indicators of socioeconomic status and mental health in adolescents were examined. Results revealed that girls showed significantly higher score of the global severity index, obsessive-compulsive, depression, anxiety, hostility, and phobic anxiety symptoms than boys. As expected, there was a slightly negative correlation between different dimensions of socioeconomic status to different domains of mental health problems (r ranged from −0.044 to 0.124). Furthermore, we found that maternal education and occupation were significantly associated with mental health for both boys and girls, while subjective socioeconomic status only was significantly associated with girls. In conclusion, adolescents in families with socioeconomic disadvantage, in the form of lower educational level and occupational prestige of mothers, had greater risk of mental health problem. Meanwhile, higher subjective socioeconomic status positively affects the mental health of female adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy scarcity and pollution problems have prompted researchers to search for renewable and clean energy sources for compression ignition (CI) engines. Two C8 biofuels, i.e., n-octanol and di-n-butylether (DnBE), are both promising to be the diesel fuel candidates because of their good ignition ability. However, their physical and chemical properties are different from each other. Thus, the combustion process of a CI engine could be optimized by manipulating the blending ratio of n-octanol and DnBE. In this work, to investigate the effects of n-octanol and DnBE blends on the combustion characteristics and emissions formation in a CI engine, the numerical investigation was carried out by the coupled KIVA4-CHEMKIN code. A multi-component reaction mechanism was implemented in the code to mimic the combustion of the fuels. Different DnBE/n-octanol blends were designed by varying the DnBE from 10% to 90% with an interval of 10% on an energy basis. Then the CI engine fueled with pure n-octanol, pure DnBE, and their blends was simulated at the engine speeds of 1500 rpm and 2280 rpm, respectively. Results suggest that blending more DnBE in octanol can shorten the ignition delay, increase peak pressure, mitigate pressure rise rate, and prolong the combustion duration. The emitted CO of the n-octanol fueled CI engine is high at both speeds. Blending DnBE in n-octanol can reduce CO emissions but inevitably leads to a rise in NO. More importantly, soot-free combustion can be achieved by fueling either n-octanol or DnBE. Finally, the optimal DnBE blending ratio is selected at 50%, of which IMEP can be improved by 6.12% and 6.9%, and CO can be reduced by 69.91% and 65.98% with acceptable increases in NO at 1500 and 2280 rpm, respectively. This implies that the optimization of CI engines can be achieved by adjusting the blending ratio of n-octanol and DnBE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compared to normal incidents, secondary incidents are more likely to result in severe injuries and fatalities. However, limited efforts have been made to unveil the factors affecting the severity of secondary incidents. Incidents that occurred on the Interstate-5 in California within five years were collected. Detailed dynamic traffic flow conditions, geometric characteristics and weather conditions were obtained. First, a Random Forest-based (RF) feature selection approach was adopted. Then, Support Vector Machine (SVM) models were developed to investigate the effects of contributing factors. For comparison, RF and Ordered Logistic (OL) models were also built based on the same dataset. It was found that the SVM model has high capacity for solving classification problems with limited data availability. Further, sensitivity analysis assessed the impacts of explanatory variables on the injury severity level. Explanatory variables, including occupancy, duration, frequency of lanes changes, and number of lanes, were found to contribute to injury severity of secondary incidents. Occupancy difference between upstream and downstream and duration are the most significant factors of high injuries in secondary incidents. Smoothing these traffic conditions after an incident occurs and responding fast in incident handing and clearance both have potential to reduce road trauma caused by secondary incidents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Today, due to increasing environmental considerations and energy demand, hydrogen fuel can be a suitable alternative energy carrier. This fuel can be produced from technologies based on fossil fuels (such as gasification and fossil fuel reforming), and/ or renewable sources (such as water electrolysis). The method of using water electrolysis technology to produce hydrogen energy along with the use of clean energy sources can be the most popular method due to the non-emission of polluting gases. In addition, such an approach can be fruitful in order to achieve development and sustainable society. The proposed energy system, which includes solar photovoltaic, solid oxide electrolyzer, dish collector, and solid oxide fuel cell, has not yet been evaluated in the literature. In other words, the components of the introduced hybrid system have new relationships and structures. The introduced energy system can produce hydrogen fuel and thermal and electrical energies. The main feature of the present paper is the use of clean solar energy to supply both the electrical and thermal energy required by the electrolyzer process to produce hydrogen fuel. The findings indicate that the introduced hybrid system can generate 217.3 kWh of electricity per day with an efficiency of approximately 50.5%. Furthermore, the energy cycle is capable of producing 4.34 kg/day of hydrogen fuel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) has been widely used in emergency response, self-driving and city-scale 3D mapping and navigation. Recent deep-learning based feature point extractors have demonstrated superior performance in dealing with the complex environmental challenges (e.g. extreme lighting) while the traditional extractors are struggling. In this paper, we have successfully improved the robustness and accuracy of a monocular visual SLAM system under various complex scenes by adding a deep learning based visual localization thread as an augmentation to the visual SLAM framework. In this thread, our feature extractor with an efficient lightweight deep neural network is used for absolute pose and scale estimation in real time using the highly accurate georeferenced prior map database at 20cm geometric accuracy created by our in-house and low-cost LiDAR and camera integrated device. The closed-loop error provided by our SLAM system with and without this enhancement is 1.03m and 18.28m respectively. The scale estimation of the monocular visual SLAM is also significantly improved (0.01 versus 0.98). In addition, a novel camera-LiDAR calibration workflow is also provided for large-scale 3D mapping. This paper demonstrates the application and research potential of deep-learning based vision SLAM with image and LiDAR sensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The nondestructive detection of kiwifruit texture has become an important necessity that influences kiwifruit economic efficiency and consumer recognition of the kiwifruit. This study investigated the feasibility of using hyperspectral imaging technology to identify textural characteristics of kiwifruit, and to establish the model with best performance. Firstly, a near-infrared hyperspectral online grading system (1000–2500 nm) was constructed to acquire spectral images. Textural characteristics were measured via three different textural analysis tests: textural profile analysis, puncture test, and shear test. Then, samples were divided into a calibration set and a prediction set based on rank sampling at a ratio of 3:1. Mean centralization, standard normal variate, and multiplicative scatter correction methods were applied to pre-process obtained spectra. Finally, the partial least squares method was used to establish prediction models of kiwifruit textural characteristics. The models of hardness1, chewiness, resilience, peel hardness, average hardness, and corrected hardness achieved good performance. Both the correlation coefficients of calibration (rc) and prediction (rp) values exceeded 0.9. The difference between the root mean square error (RMSE) of calibration and prediction was small, and the ratio of prediction to deviation (RPD) value exceeded 2, which was used to predict kiwifruit quality. However, the model of average shear force had a low accuracy with an RPD of 1.680 and the model of shear force also had an RPD below 1.5 and a low RMSE. The results showed that near-infrared hyperspectral imaging technique can be used as a nondestructive method for the textural characteristics kiwifruit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]