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Hospitality businesses might achieve a competitive advantage by adopting cryptocurrency payments. This study provides insight into the factors that influence hospitality businesses’ intention to use new digital payments based on a conceptual approach. One of the contributions to the literature is in integrating an external variable – perceived security – into the Technology Acceptance Model. Perceived security is considered a strong predictor for a new payment technology adoption. This study also contributes to the academic research by illuminating potential directions for future empirical research.

Electrodeposition of zinc-rich ternary ZnCuNi alloys were potentiostatically studied from an Ethaline deep eutectic solvent (DES) (having a molar ratio of 1:2 choline chloride-ethylene glycol) containing ZnCl2, CuCl2 and NiCl2. Voltammetry was conducted to understand the cathodic deposition and anodic stripping occurred in this system as a function of potential before the deposition of the ternary alloys. Selective anodic dissolution of Zn from the as-deposited alloys in a NaOH aqueous solution produced porous structures; however, Cu was also dissolved from the alloys if the alloys are overoxidized. Alternatively, porous structures were also produced via cathodic dealloying of the Zn when the as-deposited alloy was subjected to the electroreduction of NaNO3. When used as electrode, both kinds of porous structure showed enhanced activities towards nitrate reduction. Because the cathodic dealloying did not consume Cu, the electrodes produced by cathodic dealloying exhibited activity and stability superior to the electrodes produced by anodic dealloying. More importantly, because the dealloying process and electrode activation could be simultaneously achieved in one step during the cathodic electrolysis of nitrate, the term “self-enhancing electrode formed by in-situ cathodic dealloying” was used in this study. The XPS analysis indicated that Ni-rich surfaces of ZnCuNi electrodes were produced with the anodic dealloying in contrast to the Cu-rich surfaces produced with the cathodic dealloying. This study demonstrates a facile approach to control the electrode surface compositions in dealloying zinc alloys. Although the application of the porous electrodes prepared in this study was tested for electroreduction of nitrate, this approach can be extended to the electrocatalysis of other systems.

Compact crystalline zinc was electrodeposited on stainless-steel electrode (SS) via potentiostatic/galvanostatic electrolysis from the hydrophobic Bronsted acidic ionic liquid, protonated betaine bis((trifluoromethyl)sulfonyl)imide (IL [Hbet][TFSI]), −based electrolytes containing ZnCl2 or ZnO under argon or ambient air atmosphere. Approximate 10 wt% of propylene carbonate and water, respectively, were used as the co-solvents for [Hbet][TFSI] to form the IL-based electrolytes. The efficiency of zinc deposition/stripping, which is significantly affected by the Bronsted acidity of the IL-based electrolytes, was studied at glassy carbon electrode (GC) to evaluate the stability of the zinc electrodeposits along with the electrolyte acidity. The stability is very poor for the zinc electrodeposits obtained from ZnCl2 solution. However, it increases with increasing the quantity of ZnO or urea in the electrolytes; the former neutralize the dissociable protons in [Hbet] cations to form water, and the latter may form H-bonding with [Hbet] or be protonated to form the weakly acidic cations [HUrea]. Both suppress the reaction between the Zn electrodeposits and protons. The stability of the Zn electrodeposits, therefore, can be improved via the manipulation of the IL acidity.

The risks of thyroid dysfunction after iodinated contrast media exposure in patients with euthyroid nodular goiter are largely unknown.This observational, retrospective cohort study included a random selection of one million people in Taiwan. All patients with iodinated contrast media exposure during this study period were selected. Patients with euthyroid nodular goiter were identified as cases, while patients without thyroid nodule were selected as controls. We followed these patients until the first event of thyroid dysfunction including hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism after iodinated contrast media exposure.A total of 334 cases and 2672 matched controls were selected in this study. The mean age of cases and controls were 58.6 and 58.4 years old, and mean follow-up durations were 2.1 and 2 years respectively. After adjustment, patients with euthyroid nodular goiter had a higher risk of thyroid dysfunction (hazard ratio 5.43, [confidence interval (CI) 3.01-9.80]) compared with controls after iodinated contrast media exposure. In the subgroup analysis, the risks of hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism in cases compared with controls were 5.77 [CI 2.64-12.62] and 4.95 [CI 2.15-11.40] respectively. Half of the euthyroid nodular goiter cases developed thyroid dysfunction within one year after iodinated contrast media exposure. Interestingly, all thyroid-related comorbidities and drug prescriptions did not increase the risk of thyroid dysfunction.Presence of euthyroid nodular goiter was associated with higher risk of thyroid dysfunction including hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism after iodinated contrast media exposure.

The air-water two-phase flow model is developed to study the transformation of monochromatic waves passing over the submerged structure. The level set method is employed to describe the motion of the interface while the effect of the immersed object on the fluid is resolved using the ghost-cell immersed boundary method. The computational domain integrated with the air-water and fluid-solid phases allows the use of uniform Cartesian grids. The model simulates the wave generation, wave decomposition over a submerged trapezoidal breakwater, and the formation of the vortices as well as the drag and lift forces caused by the surface waves over three different configurations of the submerged structures. The numerical results show the capability of the present model to accurately track the deformation of the free surface. In addition, the variation of the drag and lift forces depend on the wavelength and wave induced vortices around the submerged object. Hence, the study observes that the triangular structure experiences the relatively small wave force.

The frequency shift of a shear-horizontal surface-acoustic-wave (SH-SAW) biosensor in which the concentration of biomolecule is determined by the amount of its adsorption on the sensing film was studied. Simulation results were compared with experimental results to investigate its sensitivity and to develop a model to estimate the concentration of a cancer-related biomarker antigen epidermal growth factor (EGF) in the sample, with two types of sensing films, 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) and glutaraldehyde. With the concentration of the targeted biomarker varying from 0.2 to 5 ng/mL, a typical exponential relationship was found between the concentration and the frequency shift of the SH-SAW sensor. Measurement results showed a clear response of this immunosensor to the mass-loading effects of the antibody&ndash, antigen. The sensitivity of the glutaraldehyde film is greater than that of the APTES film owing to the chemisorption of the antibody. In the simulation, a shift of the SH-SAW resonant frequency due to added mass occurred on applying an incremental surface mass density on the sensing film, while in real applications, the concentration of the targeted biomarker to be absorbed in the sensing film is demanded. An empirical model was proposed to calculate the frequency shift in the simulation of the SH-SAW biosensor, corresponding to the concentration of specific biomolecules absorbed on a specific film. From the semi-empirical model, the sensitivity level is found to be 0.641 and 1.709 kHz/(ng/mL) for APTES and glutaraldehyde sensing films, respectively, at a biomarker concentration of less than 1 ng/mL. The developed method is useful for quickly estimating the frequency shift with respect to the concentration of the target molecules in the simulation for SH-SAW sensors.

Background Conflicting data exist regarding the relationship between dual infection of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). We assessed dual infection of HBV and HCV with the levels of blood glucose and development of DM. Methods A total of 9621 participants in a community-based study were enrolled from 18 towns in Maoli county of Taiwan. Blood samples were collected and tested for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and antibodies (HBsAb), antibodies against hepatitis C virus (anti-HCV) and fasting plasma glucose. DM was defined as fasting plasma glucose≥126 mg per 100 ml. Results Only 0.7% of total participants had HBV/HCV coinfection. The prevalence of HBV and HCV monoinfection were 9.9 and 5.7%, respectively. Adjusted blood glucose levels and development risk of T2DM (odds ratio [OR], 2.55; p Conclusions Our study shows HBV/HCV coinfection was significantly correlated with blood glucose levels. A significant proportion (28%) of participants with HBV/HCV coinfection developed T2DM. Although the precise mechanisms of dual positive infection of HBV and HCV are unclear, there is increasing evidence that dual infection of HCV and HBV is strongly associated with the development of T2DM.

We report a silicon photonic tunable laser for coherent communication, with output power reaching 140 mW across the C-band, linewidth narrower than 80 kHz, SMSR larger than 50 dB, and precise gridless frequency tuning.

Aims Severe hypoglycaemia is associated with a high risk of cardiovascular events in patient with diabetes. The aim of this study was to clarify the temporal relationship between hypoglycaemia and cardiovascular events. Materials and methods This observational cohort study was conducted using Taiwan's Longitudinal Cohort of Diabetes Patients Database, which included 360 000 patients with newly diagnosed diabetes during the period 1999 to 2001. Patients with the first severe hypoglycaemia after 2002 served as the study cohort. Each patient in the study cohort was matched with two control patients without severe hypoglycaemia, based on a propensity score. A joinpoint regression model was used to determine trends in all-cause mortality and incidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) events in both cohorts. Results A total of 10 157 patients with severe hypoglycaemia and 20 314 matched controls were recruited. Patients with severe hypoglycaemia had a significantly higher risk of CVD (HR, 7.28; 95% CI, 5.19-10.20) and all-cause mortality (HR, 19.92; 95% CI, 13.42-29.56) during the first month compared with those without. In patients with severe hypoglycaemia, the incidence of CVDs dropped by 17.29% monthly during the first 4 months and slowly decreased (-0.67%) during subsequent months. All-cause mortality decreased by 16.55% and 3.24% monthly during months 0-6 and months 6-17, respectively. Conclusions Severe hypoglycaemia is associated with a greater risk of cardiovascular events and death, especially during the first month following a hypoglycaemic episode. Patients prone to severe hypoglycaemia should be made aware of the elevated risk of subsequent cardiovascular events.

With the advent of an aging society, the number of people suffering from degenerative diseases, which often lead to communication disorders such as motor speech disorders (MSDs). Intensive and repeated practice is essential for individuals with MSDs. Because of work overload, speech and language therapists (SLTs) might cope with the excess load of treatment, which may lead to reduce of rehabilitation effects. Nowadays smart mobile devices such as the iPad and tablet PC have changed the way of therapy. Therefore, this study proposes the feasibility of assistive technology intervention through the user-centered design process in MSDs treatment. First, it uses Delphi expert assessment interviewing the SLTs to realize how they work about MSDs. Second, the SLTs define the weighting of requirements using the analytic hierarchy process. The most two important two criteria are: evaluate willing to practice, and easy to review the home exercises. Third, it transfers the requirements into design criteria and develop the assistive APP, MOUTH EXERCISE. SLTs can select and demonstrate correct video to the individuals instead of exercising their oral muscles. Finally, SLTs participate the usability evaluation to validate the APP. They suggest that MOUTH EXERCISE can not only as an assistive manner of speech therapy, but also reduce the workload of them. It concludes that the developed APP is a useful tool for STLs. In the future, it will develop home practice mode to enhance the rehabilitation motivation of individuals.

We describe a mechanochemical and percolation cascade that augments myosin’s regulatory network to tune cytoskeletal forces. Actomyosin forces collectively generate cytoskeletal forces during cell oscillations and ingression, which we quantify by elastic percolation of the internally-driven, cross-linked actin network. Contractile units can produce relatively large, oscillatory forces that disrupt crosslinks to reduce cytoskeletal forces. A (reverse) Hopf bifurcation switches contractile units to produce smaller, steady forces that enhance crosslinking and consequently boost cytoskeletal forces to promote ingression. We describe cell-shape changes and cell ingression in terms of inter-cellular force imbalances along common cell junctions.

We study the dynamics of self-propelled chains with the excluded volume interaction via the Brownian dynamics simulation, in which the bending elasticity of chains is varied. The changes of the bending elasticity lead to various characteristics of the clustering behavior in the short-chain-only system. When a long self-propelled chain is mixed with these short chains, it can fold into the spiral-coil, a steadily rotating spiral conformation, either at a high density of short chains or at a low density if the long chain itself is sufficiently flexible. Our results qualitatively support the speculation on that the formation of the spiral-coil in the swarm of Vibrio alginolyticus is triggered by collisions from the clusters of the shorter bacteria., 11 pages, 7 figures, comments are welcome. Accepted for Physical Review E

The bacterial flagellum is a large extracellular protein organelle that extrudes from the cell surface. The flagellar filament is assembled from tens of thousands of flagellin subunits that are exported through the flagellar type III secretion system. Here, we measure the growth of Escherichia coli flagella in real time and find that, although the growth rate displays large variations at similar lengths, it decays on average as flagella lengthen. By tracking single flagella, we show that the large variations in growth rate occur as a result of frequent pauses. Furthermore, different flagella on the same cell show variable growth rates with correlation. Our observations are consistent with an injection-diffusion model, and we propose that an insufficient cytoplasmic flagellin supply is responsible for the pauses in flagellar growth in E. coli., The bacterial flagellar filament is assembled from tens of thousands of flagellin subunits that are exported by a dedicated secretion system. Here, the authors show that, on average, the growth rate of flagella in E. coli decays as flagella lengthen, with large variations due to frequent pauses.

The association between the progression of diabetes severity and risk of severe hypoglycemia is unknown. This study aimed to evaluate the association between the progression of diabetes severity and severe hypoglycemia in patients with diabetes.A 13-year population-based retrospective cohort study of patients with diabetes in Taiwan.Diabetes progression was evaluated by the adapted Diabetes Complications Severity Index (aDCSI) score from index date to end of follow-up. The progression of diabetes severity was divided into 3 categories: slow, moderate, and rapid increase in aDSCI score. We further compared those 3 categories and evaluated the risk of first hospitalization due to severe hypoglycemia.A total of 330,831 patients with diabetes were recruited. The mean age of patients in this study was 56.8 years, and mean follow-up duration was 9.3 years. The mean initial aDCSI score was 0.7, whereas the mean aDCSI score at the event date or end date was 2.9. A rapid increase in aDCSI score was associated with higher risk of severe hypoglycemia compared with a slow increase (hazard ratio, 4.91; 95% CI, 4.65-5.18). The incidence densities of severe hypoglycemia (per 1000 person-years) for slow, moderate, and rapid increase in aDCSI score were 2.3, 2.5, and 11.4, respectively.This study demonstrated that rapid progression of diabetes complications was associated with higher risk of severe hypoglycemia. It is imperative that treating physicians identify patients with acute worsening of diabetes severity and provide proper hypoglycemia education and prevention care.

The issues of metacognitive scaffolding in science education (MSiSE) have become increasingly popular and important. Differing from previous content reviews, this study proposes a series of quantitative computer-based analyses by integrating document co-citation analysis, social network analysis, and exploratory factor analysis to explore the intellectual structure of the MSiSE literature (i.e. the relationships within and between subfields of MSiSE). Co-citation refers to any two articles that are jointly referenced in other articles. After the computation of co-citation analysis, 27 articles that have been co-cited at least once by follow-up studies as references were identified as the final set of core articles. The whole co-citation profile of 27 cores with the 434 links was then visualized in a network through social network analysis, representing an overview for the intellectual structure of core MSiSE studies. The most cross-referenced underpinnings in the network focused on adaptive scaffolding for self-regulated learning to enhance students’ conceptual understanding and on younger students’ metacognition in online science inquiry learning environments. Furthermore, two emerging topics in the network were identified through an exploratory factor analysis as “non-technological metacognitive scaffolding media,” and “behavior patterns & task analysis in technology-infused environments.” Overall, the study provides an innovative review method of scholarly communication in the MSiSE literature.

Ni(II) was introduced into four room-temperature ionic liquids (RTILs), namely 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium salicylate (BMI-SAL), BMI hexafluorophosphate (BMI-PF 6 ), 1-butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium dicyanamide (BMP-DCA), and BMP bis((trifluoromethyl)sulfonyl) imide (BMP-TFSI), via the addition of NiCl 2 or the anodic dissolution of Ni metal. The RTILs containing different Ni(II) species were mixed with pure and fine graphite (GP) powder to form RTIL/Ni(II)/GP composites, which were used to prepare composite electrodes for the electrocatalytic oxidation of urea, alcohols (methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, butanol, and glycerol), and glucose. Ni(II) produced from the anodic dissolution of Ni metal in BMP-TFSI showed the best activity. The BMP-TFSI/Ni(II) anodization /GP composite thus has potential as an easy-to-prepare electrochemical platform for the electrochemical oxidation of the above-mentioned compounds. The oxidation and determination of urea using the BMP-TFSI/Ni(II) anodization /GP composite electrode was thoroughly studied. A very high sensitivity of 517 μA·mM −1 ·cm −2 was obtained. This electrode also showed good stability during the anodic electrolysis of the aforementioned compounds, indicating that it may be appropriate as an anode for the electrolysis of urea, alcohols, and glucose.

This paper presents artificial neural network (ANN)-based models for forecasting precipitation, in which the training parameters are adjusted using a parameter automatic calibration (PAC) approach. A classical ANN-based model, the multilayer perceptron (MLP) neural network, was used to verify the utility of the proposed ANN–PAC approach. The MLP-based ANN used the learning rate, momentum, and number of neurons in the hidden layer as its major parameters. The Dawu gauge station in Taitung, Taiwan, was the study site, and observed typhoon characteristics and ground weather data were the study data. The traditional multiple linear regression model was selected as the benchmark for comparing the accuracy of the ANN–PAC model. In addition, two MLP ANN models based on a trial-and-error calibration method, ANN–TRI1 and ANN–TRI2, were realized by manually tuning the parameters. We found the results yielded by the ANN–PAC model were more reliable than those yielded by the ANN–TRI1, ANN–TRI2, and traditional regression models. In addition, the computing efficiency of the ANN–PAC model decreased with an increase in the number of increments within the parameter ranges because of the considerably increased computational time, whereas the prediction errors decreased because of the model’s increased capability of identifying optimal solutions.

Soy sauce is an indispensable seasoning sauce in East and Southeast Asian countries, and its umami taste and functional compounds were studied. Four soy sauce products were grade A products with varied pH values (pH = 4.90–5.09), specific gravities (1.112–1.186), total solids (29.23–30.74 g/100 mL) and protein contents (8.34–9.51 g/100 mL). The equivalent umami concentrations differed and varied from 15.34 to 285.83 g monosodium glutamate/100 mL. Product A contained higher amounts of total isoflavones (14.58 μg/mL), but product B contained no isoflavone. Besides, four products contained high contents of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA; 210.34–514.36 μg/mL) and two ranges of ergothioneine (1.98–2.04 and 10.57–10.61 μg/mL). Principal component analysis showed that four kinds of soy sauce products had entirely different profiles of parameters and compounds. Overall, these four products would give rise to different umami perception and would provide with certain beneficial amounts of GABA and ergothioneine. Practical Applications Soy sauce is an indispensable seasoning sauce in East and Southeast Asian countries. Usually, soy sauce contained taste components such as glutamic and aspartic acids and 5′-nucleotides to show an umami taste. Because soy sauce is a fungus-fermented product, it may contain several functional compounds such as isoflavones, lovastatin, γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and ergothioneine. In this research, we analyzed taste and functional compounds in four kinds of commercial products. Four soy sauce products were grade A products, but their equivalent umami concentrations differed. These four products would give rise to different umami perception and would provide with certain amounts of beneficial GABA and ergothioneine. Principal component analysis showed that four kinds of soy sauce products had entirely different profiles of parameters and compounds. These results could be added to establish a databank for identifying and distinguishing the kind of soy sauce products.

The miniaturization of a gully for building drainage system is attempted by installing a streamlined bump in the discharge pipe to maintain the minimum water trap height of 50 mm. The hydrodynamic performances of the air–water flows with or without glass balls through the two types of four-entry gullies with beveled or vertical nozzle flows are experimentally and numerically studied. The images of air–water–solid flow, maximum flow rates, self-purification properties and sustainable water traps subject to static and dynamic loadings are experimentally detected. The predictions of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) unravel the characteristic flow structures to assist the interpretation of experimental results. In this respect, the observed entrained air bubbles and clustered glass balls in each gully correspond favorably to the regions with negative static pressures and weak flow momentums as disclosed by the CFD predictions. The measured ratios between discharged and supplied glass balls are consistently higher for the gully with beveled nozzle flows. The less efficient transportation of glass balls out of the drum for the gully with downward nozzle flow is attributed to the larger pressure gradients with considerable air entrainments. The relaxations of the form and friction drags over the nozzle-tip region and the reductions of air entrainments are essential for upgrading the maximum flow rate and the self-purification performance of a miniaturized gully.

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive and incurable neurodegenerative disease. If PD can be diagnosed and treated as early as possible, not only can it effectively delay the degeneration of the brain, but also further maintain the follow-up quality of patients’ life. This study focuses on developing an early vocal screening service of PD to detecting the stage of PD and helps healthy people to do an early screening of the possibility of developing PD. There are four patients with PD and three neurology physicians that were interviewed. In addition, a questionnaire survey of the healthy people on the acceptance of early screening services. For patients, they have to spend a long time to confirm the diagnosis during the observation period of suspected PD. The existing diagnosis is very dependent on the physician’s expertise and clinical experience, especially the initial diagnosis. Thus, it delays the golden period of delaying correction, and early administration and treatment. Healthy people with the condition of PD likely possess little knowledge about it. But, they were willing to try the service of early screening to see whether they are suffering from suspected PD symptoms in a few minutes. According to the results, an early vocal screening service model is developed. The possibility of contracting PD can be detected as early as possible by subtle changes in speech as shown in the voice recording of 3 to 5 minutes left by healthy people, such as trembling, breathing pause, and other factors that are not easily identified by voice detection analysis.

As an attempt to improve the performances of multi-entry gullies with applications to drainage system of a building, the hydrodynamic characteristics of air-water flows through the gullies with and without swirl generation vanes (SGV) are experimentally and numerically examined. With the aid of present Charge Coupled Device (CCD) image and optical systems for experimental study, the mechanism of air entrainment by vortex, the temporal variations of airflow pressure, the trajectories of drifting air bubbles and the self-depuration process for the gullies with and without SGV are disclosed. The numerical simulations adopt Flow-3D commercial code to attack the unsteady two-phase bubbly flows for resolving the transient fields of fluid velocity, vorticity and pressure in the gullies with and without SGV. In the twin-entry gully without SGV, air bubbles entrained by the entry vortex interact chaotically in the agitating bubbly flow region. With SGV to trip near-wall flows that stratify the drifting trajectories of the air bubbles, the air-bubble interactions are stabilized with the discharge rate increasing more than 7%. The reduction of the self-depuration period by increasing discharge rate is observed for the test gullies without and with SGV. Based on the experimental and numerical results, the characteristic hydrodynamic properties of the air-water flows through the test gullies with and without SGV are disclosed to assist the design applications of a modern drainage system in a building.

The objective of this study is to evaluate the healthy and unhealthy behaviors as risk factors for chronic constipation and self-rated health status. Eight hundred tenth students enrolled from a university in Miaoli city, Taiwan. Chronic constipation was assessed using Chinese questionnaire. Information of unhealthy and healthy lifestyles was interviewed by constructed questionnaire. Thirty-six percentage of university students were assessed as chronic constipation. Using multivariate logistic regression adjusted for age, sex, race and BMI, we found chronic constipation significantly correlated with frequency of consumption from snack, fast food, fried food, daily consumption of water, physical activity and junk food used as regular food. Moreover, these unhealthy behaviors significantly correlated with self-rated health status. Students with chronic constipation had poor self-rated health status. It is urgent to create healthy behaviors to reduce the risk for chronic constipation or upgrade self-rated health status in university students.

Mask technology, for 0.25gm lithography and beyond, presents a significant challenge to both the mask industry and silicon industry. It is expected that optical lithography will continue to be the predominant approach, and the exposure wavelength of lithography tools will be pushed down from 365nm to 248nm and 193nm. It becomes inevitable that optical enhancements are required to provide necessary capabilities for achieving resolution at 0.2i.tm or below in manufacturing mode. However, most optical enhancement techniques such as phase shifting mask (PSM), optical proximity correction (OPC), off-axis illumination, and some combination of these methods, require substantial mask development efforts. The mask industry as a whole needs to deal with new modules, new materials, new pattern designs, sub-micron resolution, CD non- linearity effects, and high data volume, and then figure out a way to integrate solutions into silicon technology at a pace no slower than that required for silicon technology development. In many cases, a unique process or solution needs to be developed which is specific to one particular layer or one particular lithography option. In addition, in order to achieve high lithography productivity output, serious considerations need to be given for a possible increase in mask size, which by itself will have tremendous impact to the entire mask industry on tool set and material development. There is no doubt that mask technology has become a crucial and integral part of silicon technology. Its role is becoming increasingly important at 0.2511m lithography and beyond. In this presentation, we will first describe the role of mask technology by examining its significance to silicon technology. Secondly we will describe the major challenges facing mask technology. In the mask fabrication section, a few examples will be given to highlight major progress and key issues. Next, phase shifting mask technology and its challenges will be summarized. Lastly, a conclusion will be given.

Aims The association of blood glucose in advanced diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is unclear. This study investigated the association between blood glucose and renal endpoints in DKD patients. Methods This retrospective cohort study enrolled type 2 diabetic patients with advanced DKD with an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) between 30 and 90 ml/min/1.73 m2 and urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UACR) of 300–5000 mg/g. We classified patients into 2 groups according to their 1-year average HbA1c: 7%. We followed up the patients until the occurrence of primary renal endpoints. Results A total of 345 patients were included in the analysis for the period 2012–2018. Mean baseline eGFR was 58 ml/min/1.73 m2 and mean albuminuria levels were 1146 and 1313 mg/g, respectively. Median study duration was 3 years. The risk of primary renal endpoints was not decreased in patients with HbA1c less than 7% with an adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) of 0.62, 95% CI 0.26–1.45. The risks of persistent eGFR lower than 15 ml/min/1.73 m2 and doubling of serum creatinine level were similar between 2 group with aHR of 0.58 (95% CI 0.19–1.83) and 0.61 (95% CI 0.26–1.44), respectively. Conclusions Intensive blood sugar control did not prevent renal failure in advanced DKD.

In this study, an ionic liquid-Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles-graphite composite electrode (IL-Fe 3 O 4 NPs-GP) with high sensitivity was fabricated using easy-to-made materials and convenient techniques. A hydrophobic ionic liquid 1-butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium bis((trifluoromethyl)sulfonyl)amide (IL BMP-TFSA) was used to substitute paraffin oil that is conventionally used as the organic binder for preparing carbon paste electrodes. Fe 3 O 4 NPs show pseudo-peroxidase activity toward hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) that was electrocatalytically reduced at the electrode. This electrode shows the synergistic effect from the combination of IL and Fe 3 O 4 NPs, exhibiting a high sensitivity of 200.7 μA mM −1 cm −2 but a narrower dynamic range of 1–25 μM with a detection limit of 0.5 μM. This electrode also shows good stability and several common interferents show negligible effect on the determination of H 2 O 2 .

The cathodic limit of the electrochemical window in the second-generation ionic liquids (composed of air- and water-stable metal-free cations and anions) is traditionally believed to be determined by the reduction of the cation. More and more exceptions, however, were found in various ionic liquids. In this study, the cathodic limit of the electrochemical window in 1-butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium salicylate ionic liquid (BMP-SAL IL) was studied. It has been found that the cathodic limit of BMP-SAL is determined by the reduction of SAL(-) anion rather than the reduction of BMP(+) cation. The cyclic voltammetric behavior, NMR spectra, and MALDI-TOF MS spectra of BMP-SAL recorded before and after the IL was electrolyzed at the cathodic limit provide sufficient evidence that the major reaction at the cathodic limit of BMP-SAL is the reduction of SAL(-) anion. The theoretical calculations support the experimental data, and the results indicate that anion reduction dominated cathodic limit should be a common phenomenon in ionic liquids.

In order to bring Ebook reader to the next stage, we have developed a prototype and concept design that combine flexible color electrophoretic display (EPD), flexible projected capacitive touch panel (TP) and amorphous-silicon gate driver circuit on array (GOA) technologies. This prototype has been fabricated successfully with the white reflectivity of 23.5%, contrast ratio of 16:1 and 16 gray-level color images. In terms of the flexible TP, it is capable of detecting multi-touch events and transmittance is more than 73.2%. GOA circuit operation is also verified with a 9-inch flexible color EPD.

Objective This study was undertaken to explore the association of estimated glomerular filtration rate (GFR) with exposure to aristolochic acids (ALAs) and nephrotoxic metals in herbalists after the ban of herbs containing ALAs in Taiwan. Methods This cross-sectional study recruited a total of 138 herbalists without end-stage renal disease or urothelial carcinoma from the Occupational Union of Chinese Herbalists in Taiwan in 2007. Aristolochic acid I (ALA-I) was measured by ultra-high-pressure liquid chromatography/ tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/ MS) and heavy metals in blood samples were analysed by Agilent 7500C inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. Renal function was assessed by using a simplified Modification of Diet in Renal Disease Study equation to estimate GFR. Results Blood lead was higher in herbal dispensing procedures (p=0.053) and in subjects who self-prescribe herbal medicine (p=0.057); mercury was also higher in subjects living in the workplace (p=0.03). Lower estimated GFR was significantly associated with lead (β=−10.66, 95% CI −18.7 to −2.6) and mercury (β=−12.52, 95% CI −24.3 to −0.8) with a significant interaction (p=0.01) between mercury and lead; however, estimated GFR was not significantly associated with high ALA-I level groups, arsenic and cadmium after adjusting for other confounding factors. Conclusions We found that lower estimated GFR was associated with blood lead and mercury in herbalists after the ban of herbs containing ALAs in Taiwan. The ALA-I exposure did not show a significant negative association of estimated GFR, which might due to herbalists having known how to distinguish ALA herbs after the banning policy. Rigorous monitoring is still needed to protect herbalists and the general population who take herbs.

Similar to many other countries in the world, the elderly population in Taiwan is now growing rapidly. Some older adults are found to have difficulty controlling their emotion, which may later develop into psychological diseases such as anxiety disorder. Therefore, emotional control is an important issue for elderly citizens. This study proposed a wearable biofeedback emotional control device, FeelVest, which integrates electrocardiography acquisition with heart rate variability analyzing techniques to detect user’s emotion. When a user is nervous and unstable, FeelVest would analyze the emotional state of the user. If the user’s emotional condition is judged as abnormal, the control module would remind the user to relax through vocal notification, or broadcast relaxation melodies to ease the user’s nerve. With this vest, older adults are able to monitor and regulate their own emotion and have a healthier life style.