Search

In timber construction, Glulam post-and-beam systems are commonly used to transfer vertical loads to the foundation. In such systems, the connections play a critical role in structural performance. Pre-engineered connectors, which facilitate fast and efficient assembly, are typically designed to resist only vertical shear loads. However, during seismic and wind events, post-and-beam systems deform horizontally, and axial forces develop at the connections. In this research, the performance of RICON and MEGANT pre-engineered connectors was studied under biaxial loading involving concurrent shear and axial forces. A total of 12 full-scale tests on Glulam frame segments were conducted. Neither type of connector experienced any resistance loss under concurrent shear loads equal to the factored shear resistance and axial loads equal to 5% of the factored shear resistance. The axial load-carrying capacity of the RICON and MEGANT connectors was up to 124% and 97% of their factored shear resistance, respectively. The global failure of all the studied connectors demonstrated both ductility and residual deformation capacity. These results provide valuable information for engineers designing Glulam post-and-beam systems in seismic regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By analyzing the changes in three Stokes vectors, the trajectory of polarization state on the Poincaré sphere, and the polarization change rate, both theoretical and practical aspects of polarization state variations in signal light within optical fiber composite overhead power ground wires (OPGWs) during real thunderstorm conditions, were examined. Our findings reveal that lightning and mechanical vibrations both impact the polarization state of the signal light in OPGW. Theoretical models demonstrate that lightning induces polarization changes through the Faraday magneto-optic effect and exhibits nonlinear electro-optic effects, leading to a maximum polarization change rate of Mrad s−1. In contrast, mechanical vibrations cause long-term, low-intensity polarization rate changes, with a maximum polarization rate of Krad s−1, highlighting a significant optical birefringence effect. Digital signal processing algorithms for coherent receivers with over 100G polarization multiplexing provide valuable guidance for recovering polarization states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: The morbidity and mortality of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) continue to increase with the accelerating global aging process. During the past decade, the pathophysiology, diagnostic methods, and prognostic prediction of HFpEF have been revolutionized, resulting in new and effective management strategies. Dynamic prognostic assessment facilitates systematic clinical management of patients, and the aim of this study was to investigate the risk factors for mortality in patients with HFpEF and to develop a risk prediction assessment model. Methods and reults: Data for the derivation cohort were obtained from three databases, PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane. The validation cohort was obtained from the Chinese Heart Failure Center database. The β‐coefficient was calculated based on the risk ratio (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) corresponding to each risk factor to construct a mortality risk assessment model. A total of 30 studies were included in the meta‐analysis: 22 prospective cohort studies and 8 retrospective cohort studies, including 34 196 HFpEF patients. Seven predictors of all‐cause mortality in HFpEF patients were derived. Considering the need for feasibility in clinical practice, we performed subgroup and sensitivity analyses and determined the following cutoff values: age > 75 years (RR: 2.07, 95% CI: 1.83–2.35; P < 0.001), male sex (RR: 1.36, 95% CI: 1.17–1.59; P < 0.001), DM (RR: 1.23, 95% CI: 1.11–1.36; P < 0.001), anaemia (RR: 1.53, 95% CI: 1.41–1.67; P < 0.001), albumin concentration < 3.2 g/dL (RR: 1.29, 95% CI: 1.14–1.47; P < 0.001), AF (RR: 1.27, 95% CI: 1.12–1.43; P < 0.001), and NYHA class III/IV (RR: 1.63, 95% CI: 1.43–1.87; P < 0.001). The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) for this model was 71.3% (95% CI: 0.696–0.736), with an optimal cut‐off value of 10.75. The sensitivity and specificity were 0.778 and 0.566, respectively. According to this risk score, we divided patients into three risk classes (low, moderate, and high risk), the numbers of patients who died by the end of the 1‐year follow‐up were 23 (1.87%), 82 (5.62%), and 382 (15.52%) in these three groups, and the 5‐year mortality rates were 9.82%, 20.68%, and 43.28%, respectively. Conclusions: This study developed an HF‐DANAS scoring system for the HFpEF mortality risk containing seven predictors, providing clinicians with a simple assessment tool that can help improve clinical management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is essential to intensify research on the strike-slip tectonic system in West and Central Africa to better understand regional tectonic evolution and achieve future breakthroughs in oil and gas exploration. Based on the structural interpretation of extensive seismic data and stratigraphic paleontological analysis of more than 50 wells, this study investigated the tectonic history, sedimentary filling, and evolution of the rift basins in the West and Central Africa, and identified a novel type of intraplate strike-slip tectonic system. It exhibits the following characteristics: (i) the strike-slip tectonic system in the West and Central Africa consists of the Central African Shear Zone (CASZ) and two rift branches, manifesting as an N-shape; (ii) most of basins and rifts are characterized by rapid subsidence at one end and substantial sedimentary thickness; (iii) two types of strike-slip basins are developed, namely the transform-normal extensional basin (TEB) along CASZ and the strike-slip-induced extensional basin (SEB) at each end of CASZ; (iv) two types of basins display their own temporal and spatial evolution history. TEBs underwent two rifting stages during the Early and Late Cretaceous, with a strong inversion at the end of the Late Cretaceous. SEBs experienced three rifting stages, i.e., the Early Cretaceous, Late Cretaceous, and Paleogene, with a weak inversion; and (v) this strike-slip tectonic system was formed under intraplate divergent field, indicating a new type of system. This discovery enhances understanding of the breakup of Gondwana and provides valuable guidance for future oil and gas exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Organolithium reagents, known for their low cost, ready availability, and high reactivity, allow fast cross‐coupling under ambient conditions. However, their direct cross‐coupling with fluoroalkyl electrophiles remains a formidable challenge due to the easy formation of thermo‐unstable fluoroalkyl lithium species during the reaction, which are prone to decomposition via rapid α/β‐fluoride elimination. Here, we exploit heteroatom‐stabilized allylic anions to harness the exceptional reactivity of organolithium reagents, enabling the compatibility of difluoroalkyl halides and facilitating versatile and precise fluorine functionality introduction under mild conditions. In this process, a nickel‐catalyzed difluoroalkylation of β,γ‐unsaturated α‐amino nitrile derived lithium reagents (N‐stabilized allyl lithium reagents) with various difluoroalkyl bromides has been developed, opening a new avenue to access fluorinated compounds through catalytic cross‐coupling of organolithium reagents with fluoroalkyl electrophiles. This approach allows for the efficient and precise construction of secondary C(sp3)−CF2R bonds, previously challenging in transition‐metal‐catalyzed fluoroalkylation reactions due to β‐hydride elimination. The rapid fluorine‐editing of drugs demonstrates the synthetic versatility and utility of this protocol, showing the perspective in modern drug discovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of peaking carbon dioxide emissions and carbon neutrality, the construction of hydropower projects has strict regulations on the demand for construction materials, which also puts forward new requirements for design organizations. Several power stations have successfully applied spillway and floodway double-discharge building shared stilling pools as the new requirements of the design program. By the stilling pool, we mean it is an energy dissipation facility that generates a bottom-flow water jump downstream of the discharge structure. However, this type of program will be due to the uneven distribution of the flow of the double building problems, leading to its flow pattern being too complex and stilling pool dissipation characteristics being unclear. For this reason, based on the hydraulic model test method, this paper studies and analyzes the hydraulic characteristics of the new type of stilling pool in the shared stilling pool scheme of the double-drainage structure when the flood relief hole is needed to dominate the flow in particular circumstances. For the problems exposed during the test, three auxiliary dissipation schemes were added to the stilling pool, and their influence on the hydraulic characteristics of the stilling pool was studied. The results show that the baffle block can effectively reduce the stilling pool's bottom flow velocity and improve the stilling pool's water flow pattern compared with other programs. The dissipation effect is better than other schemes. The related research can provide technical support for further engineering applications of the double-drainage structure shared stilling pool program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agricultural water consumption security is crucial for maintaining food production stability. Aiming to investigate water consumption efficiency and objectives in agricultural and non-agricultural sectors, we adopted a Budyko-analogous framework to establish an optimal water allocation model based on the maximum water utilization benefits principle. The proposed Budyko framework was verified through its application in Anhui Province, China, and the difference in water utilization efficiencies among different regions was discussed. The research findings can be concluded as follows: (1) during 2011–2020, the provincial agricultural productive loss caused by per-unit water shortage was lower compared to non-agricultural sectors, and this trend was adaptive in the south but totally opposite in the north; (2) the guaranteed level of agricultural water consumption was higher compared to non-agricultural sectors in the north due to the predominance of agricultural production but totally contrary in the south. Overall, the above findings are consistent with the actual industrial structure of Anhui Province. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The World Health Organization advocated for enhanced integration of traditional medicine and complementary medicine into national healthcare systems across all countries. This study aims to explore the progress and challenges in integrated traditional Chinese and western medicine (ITCWM) in China over 20 years using nationwide data. Methods: This cross-sectional study examined various facets of ITCWM in China in terms of policies, resources, services, and funding. National policy documents from 2009 onwards were retrieved from official websites of the Chinese government. Data on ITCWM resources, services and subsidies from 2002 to 2021 were extracted from the China Statistical Yearbooks of Chinese Medicine and China Health Statistical Yearbooks. Research fund projects with the ITCWM discipline were collected from the database of National Natural Science Foundation of China. A mixed method of both quantitative and qualitative approaches was employed to present a comprehensive overview of the collected data. Results: This study presented five key findings. First, despite the issuance of 17 national policies by the Chinese government since 2009 to promote the development of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), only three of them were specifically tailored for ITCWM. Second, although the average annual growth rates of ITCWM institutions, beds, and practitioners reached 0.35%, 10.56%, and 10.88% from 2002 to 2021, with more equitable allocation of ITCWM resources, the overall proportion of ITCWM remained below 5% in 2021. Third, progress has been made in ITCWM practices, yet service efficiency requires further enhancement. In 2021, ITCWM hospitals accounted for 2% of outpatient and emergency visits and 1.57% of hospital admissions among all hospitals, and 9.82% of delivered services were preventive healthcare services. Fourth, ITCWM served a crucial role in primary healthcare services, but its service capabilities need improvement. From 2007 to 2021, the average growth rates of ITCWM clinics, outpatient departments, and practitioners in outpatient departments were 13.30%, 2.57%, and 12.14%, respectively, while the proportion within TCM hospitals dropped. Lastly, despite the Chinese government's emphasis on financial investment and related project funding for ITCWM, it remained lower than that allocated to TCM and western medicine. Conclusion: ITCWM played a pivotal role in China's healthcare system to advance individuals' health and well-being across the lifespan. In the future, China will provide further support to enhance ITCWM health resources and improve service capability, and the strategic integration of ITCWM into the broader healthcare system will play a crucial role in achieving universal health coverage and the Sustainable Development Goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid localization of ROI (Region of Interest) for tomographic medical images (TMIs) is an important foundation for efficient image reading, computer-aided education, and well-informed rights of patients. However, due to the multimodality of clinical TMIs, the complexity of anatomy, and the deformation of organs caused by diseases, it is difficult to have a universal and low-cost method for ROI organ localization. This article focuses on actual concerns of TMIs from medical students, engineers, interdisciplinary researchers, and patients, exploring a universal registration method between the clinical CT/MRI dataset and CVH (Chinese Visible Human) to locate the organ ROI in a low-cost and lightweight way. The proposed method is called Two-step Progressive Registration (TSPR), where the first registration adopts "eye–nose triangle" features to determine the spatial orientation, and the second registration adopts the circular contour to determine the spatial scale, ultimately achieving CVH anatomical knowledge automated mapping. Through experimentation with representative clinical TMIs, the registration results are capable of labeling the ROI in the images well and can adapt to the deformation problem of ROI, as well as local extremum problems that are prone to occur in inter-subject registration. Unlike the ideal requirements for TMIs' data quality in laboratory research, TSPR has good adaptability to incomplete and non-thin-layer quality in real clinical data in a low-cost and lightweight way. This helps medical students, engineers, and interdisciplinary researchers independently browse images, receive computer-aided education, and provide patients with better access to well-informed services, highlighting the potential of digital public health and medical education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to achieve low-cost scalability, the same-wavelength bidirectional (SWB) fiber communication system is a better solution. We present a detailed investigation of the performance of the different orders Raman amplifiers in same-wavelength bidirectional fiber communication systems. We discuss how to suppress the main factor affecting system performance which is Rayleigh scattering noise (RSN). By using different Raman amplifiers to construct different quasi-lossless transmission, the performance changes in the same-wavelength bidirectional fiber optic communication system were studied. On this basis, multi-channel and same-wavelength single fiber bidirectional system experiments were conducted to compare the performance of second-order Raman systems and first-order Raman systems. The results indicate that the Rayleigh scattering suppression effect of second-order Raman systems is better, and compared to first-order Raman systems, the average signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) can be increased by 2.88 dB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]