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The prediction of fatigue strength for metallic materials in a wide range of stress ratios is a crucial engineering challenge. To pursue a more accurate method, the dependence of fatigue strength on stress ratio for 35CrMo steel and other materials was investigated in detail. It was found that as the stress ratio increases, the damage mechanism changes, and the errors of the conventional models in predicting the fatigue strength increase. The reason is that those models fail to describe the fatigue damage evolution of metallic materials under some special conditions. Based on the variational fatigue damage, a new prediction method was proposed by introducing the damage parameter. Through the validation with fatigue strength covering a variety of metallic materials and loading conditions, the method exhibits higher universality. And then the corresponding parameter of the formula is further analyzed to elucidate the influences of various loading conditions on fatigue damage of materials. Highlights: The new method exhibits good generality and accuracy.The new method greatly improves the prediction efficiency.The optimized method can offer theoretical support to enhance fatigue properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gallium oxide crystal materials has enormous potential in the fields of power devices and optoelectronics due to its excellent performance and the advantage of being able to grow by melt method. In recent years, numerous experts at home and abroad have also started researching gallium oxide single crystal materials. High quality and low defect gallium oxide single crystal materials are extremely important for subsequent epitaxy and device preparation. At present, the mainstream growth method internationally is edge-defined film-fed growth method (EFG), which has advantages such as short growth cycle, large size, and stable growth. However, there is still great room for progress in crystal defect control. This article focuses on the morphology of corrosion pits in gallium oxide single crystals, and processes samples of gallium oxide single crystals grown by EFG. Corrosion experiments were conducted under different acid and alkali conditions. A detailed introduction was given to the different observed corrosion pit morphologies, and the impact of crystal defects on the corrosion pit morphologies was analyzed. This is of great significance for the future research on the growth mechanism of gallium oxide single crystals and crystal defects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, general population's mental health may be influenced by their perceptions of major pandemic issues. Therefore, a systematic search was conducted to screen out those concerns and analyse the impacts. EBSCO, Scopus and Web of Science were searched for publications from inception to 1 February 2023. Nineteen articles were extracted and four issues were screened out as general population's major concerns, namely "Risk perception", "Government trust", "Media coverage and authenticity", and "Conspiracy theory". The population's perceptions of those issues could affect their mental health by arousing emotional reactions, which vary in different countries, social classes and groups, and would change in different stages of virus outbreak. The findings suggest that the general population's attitudes towards COVID-19-related social issues could affect their psychological health and should receive more concerns. As different issues are related to one another, an integrated solution system is in need, which would be helpful for coping with similar public emergencies in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, an extended state observer (ESO)-based nonsingular fast terminal sliding mode (NFTSM) control method is proposed for the speed tracking system of permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) in the present of unknown parameters and time-varying load. Firstly, three finite time convergence ESO (FTCESO) are employed to estimate the lumped disturbances in one speed loop and two current loops, respectively, and the estimates are fed forward to controllers for compensation. Secondly, a NFTSM controller is designed, which can drive the speed of PMSM track in desired speed in finite time. The stability of resulting closed-loop system is proved by using Lyapunov theory. Finally, the simulation and experimental results are compared with the existing methods, and the results show that the proposed method has better performance in tracking different kind of desired speed curves, and also performs better in reducing the chattering phenomenon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Permittivity is critical for analyzing electromagnetic propagation in the substrate. The differential phase method is desirable to measure the permittivity of the substrate. The actual measurement is usually required to be started at a low frequency to avoid the S21-phase ambiguity problem. To get rid of this problem, the unwrapped S21-phase is calculated accurately at any measurement frequency range. In the classical method of calculating the real permittivity from the effective permittivity, the calculation error increases gradually with increasing frequency, especially in an ultra-wide frequency range. To effectively reduce the error, the ratio of the calculated and real permittivity is used in the permittivity correction, which is a function with respect to frequency, dimension, and permittivity of the microstrip line. A two-step fitting process is proposed to reduce the dimension of the ratio function from three-dimension to two-dimension. Furthermore, a quick-press test fixture is designed for a more convenient measurement, which is characterized by no soldering requirement and ultra-wide frequency range. Compared with the stripline resonant method, in the proposed method, the maximum deviations of the four substrates are 0.035, −0.04, 0.07, and 0.13, in the frequency range of 1–40 GHz. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The virtual reward model is firstly suggested in the reinforcement learning (RL) algorithm, making the optimum CFD study of AF-PCHE based on RL algorithm feasible. • The thermal hydraulics performance of AF-PCHE from reinforcement learning is significantly improved. • The Q-learning algorithm converges faster than that of DQN with a small number of optimum parameters. • The comprehensive performance of the heat exchanger derived from the DQN optimum algorithm is better than that of Q-learning algorithm. As the Gen IV nuclear reactors, the lead-based reactor employs the S-CO 2 Brayton cycle. As the intermediate heat exchangers, high or low temperature regenerators and precoolers, the thermal hydraulic characteristics of the PCHEs directly affect the efficiency of S-CO 2 power cycle efficiency. In this work, two reinforcement learning algorithms, namely the Q-learning and DQN are used to optimize the key geometric parameters that affects the thermal hydraulics performance of the airfoil fin PCHE (AF-PCHE) with the S-CO 2 as the working fluid. Furthermore, the thermal hydraulic performance of the optimal designs derived from these two reinforcement learning algorithms is compared with that of the original design. The results demonstrate that the two reinforcement learning algorithms significantly improve the optimization efficiency of AF-PCHE design. Specifically, the ΔQ/ΔP of the optimized AF-PCHEs are improved by 173.89% and 189.38%, respectively. In addition, the Nu/Eu of optimized AF-PCHEs are increased by 129.15% and 141.94%, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Homomorphic encryption (HE) schemes, such as fully homomorphic encryption (FHE), support a number of useful computations on ciphertext in a broad range of applications, such as e-voting, private information retrieval, cloud security, and privacy protection. While FHE schemes do not require any interaction during computation, the key limitations are large ciphertext expansion and inefficiency. Thus, to overcome these limitations, we develop a novel cryptographic tool, MAS-Encryption (MASE), to support real-value input and secure computation on the multiply-add structure. The multiply-add structures exist in many important protocols, such as classifiers and outsourced protocols, and we will explain how MASE can be used to protect the privacy of these protocols, using two case study examples. Specifically, the first case study example is the privacy-preserving Naive Bayes classifier that can achieve minimal Bayes risk, and the other example is the privacy-preserving support vector machine. We prove that the constructed classifiers are secure and evaluate their performance using real-world datasets. Experiments show that our proposed MASE scheme and MASE based classifiers are efficient, in the sense that we achieve an optimal tradeoff between computation efficiency and communication interactions. Thus, we avoid the inefficiency of FHE based paradigm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A phase boundary engineering strategy is proposed to enhance d 33 × g 33 value. • An enhanced d 33 ×g 33 of 13,000 × 10−15 m2/N was achieved in 0.8BT-0.1CT-0.1BZ ceramic. • Large d 33 × g 33 stems from non-synergistic variation of d 33 and ε r performance. Transduction coefficient (d 33 × g 33) is the core parameter for evaluating piezoelectric energy harvesting materials. However, due to the thermodynamic constraints, the synergistic variation between piezoelectric charge constant (d 33) and dielectric constant (ε r) indeed hinder the further increase of d 33 × g 33. Herein, an enhanced d 33 ×g 33 of 13,000 × 10−15 m2/N was achieved in 0.80BaTiO 3 -0.10CaTiO 3 -0.10BaZrO 3 (BC 0.1 ZT) lead-free solid solution for the first time through a phase boundary engineering strategy. The high d 33 × g 33 mainly stems from non-synergistic variation of dielectric and piezoelectric performance in the rhombohedral-orthorhombic (R-O) phase boundary, in which the low ε r comes from the increased domain size and reduced domain wall density; while the high configurational sensitivity of the unique domains to external electric field contributed to the high d 33. Our findings provide an alternative approach for enhanced energy harvesting performance by tracing the strategy of designing phase boundary to decouple d 33 and ε r. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rapid growth of distributed energy resources integrated in distribution systems leads to an increasing need of continuously and automatically changing the system topology to realize the economic operation of distribution networks. This paper proposes an optimization model of dynamic reconfiguration for distribution networks based on a new method of time series analysis. Equivalent daily curve considering time‐varying nature of distributed generator and load demands is divided by an improved fuzzy C‐means clustering algorithm, where the indicator of section function is set to find the optimal reconfiguration time intervals. The uncertainty of distributed generator outputs and load demands is described by the interval algorithm. Then the affine Taylor expansion is adopted to solve the interval power flow equations. The reconfiguration optimization model is solved with decimal particle swarm optimization algorithm based on loop search. The optimal dynamic reconfiguration of a modified 70‐bus test system with distributed generators is carried out and the simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness and superiority of the proposed method. © 2021 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by Wiley Periodicals LLC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The interlocked core-sheath triboelectric yarns are manufactured by large-scale braiding process. • The unique structure design enables enhanced electrical output performance and excellent thermal adaptability over wide temperature ranges. • It can work as self-powered fire-rescue system for motion monitoring, location acquisition, and escape warnings. Self-powered flexible electronic textiles designed for fire-rescue functions, especially in high-temperature environments, have attracted considerable attention. However, their practical applications are hindered by limited electrical output and poor thermal adaptability. In this study, we develop an interlocked core-sheath triboelectric yarn (ICSTY) employing a well-established braiding process, which comprises an inner layer of braided conductive yarn and an outer layer of loop-piled polyimide yarn. This unique structural design resulted in the ICSTY exhibiting an enhanced electrical output performance of 16.3 V per length of 15 cm and excellent thermal adaptability across a wide temperature range of 25–250 °C. The woven ICSTY fabric demonstrates outstanding thermal insulation and biomechanical energy harvesting compared with existing firefighting uniforms. Furthermore, it can be seamlessly integrated into a self-powered fire-rescue system for motion monitoring, location acquisition, and escape warnings for trapped firefighters. This exceptional ICSTY holds the potential to significantly impact the future development of intelligent firefighting uniforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The integration of source-grid-load-storage greatly improves the energy managing flexibility of regional integrated energy systems (RIES). Considering the conflicting interests of multi-operator, this paper divides RIES into 1) energy supply center (ESC); 2) load aggregator (LA); 3) energy storage aggregator (ESA), and establishes a multi-operator two-layer optimal scheduling model by combining 1) the Stackelbelberg-Nash asymmetric bargaining game based on the genetic algorithm; and 2) the alternating direction method of multipliers algorithm (GA-ADMM). Firstly, considering the absence of historical data, trapezoidal fuzzy parameters are introduced to construct fuzzy chance constraints based on credibility theory to simulate the source-load uncertainties. Secondly, the uncertainty of demand response behavior, real-time carbon credits trading within RIES, and cooperation-competition behavior of followers (LA and ESA) are considered to simulate the asymmetric relationship between followers and leaders (ESC) based on GA. Then, based on the ADMM algorithm, a Nash asymmetric bargaining game considering energy dependency and energy supply-reception status is proposed to realize the revenue allocation between followers. Finally, simulations are implemented to verify the validity and reliability of the proposed model. Results show that: 1) Cooperation improves the energy-managing flexibility of followers, reduces their dependence on ESC, and thus enhances their game ability. 2) The real-time carbon credits trading enables zero-carbon energy interactions and natural gas replenishment within RIES. 3) Increases in the price of various energy and carbon credits can enhance cooperation between followers. • Source-load uncertainties are considered by FCCP. • Regional carbon credits trading based on sharing CCS is established. • The asymmetric game relationship of multi-operator is simulated. • A revenue allocation considering consumption features and efficiency is proposed. • The stability of followers' competition-cooperation relationship is explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• It successfully detects the fracture initiation time by using DCPD and DIC methods. • The maximum stress exhibits a positive strain rate dependency, and the maximum strain exhibits a negative strain rate dependency. • The fracture toughness can be evaluated by J -integral and shows negative strain rate dependency. • SZD and θ show negative strain rate dependencies, while SZW shows positive strain rate dependency. • Mixed-mode fracture can be found near the crack for impact tension. Utilizing transformation-induced plasticity (TRIP) steel with strain-induced martensitic transformation (SIMT) on automotive steel plates and developing products which have exceptional energy absorption capabilities can be used to reduce weight. For this purpose, it is important to clarify the fracture toughness of TRIP steels and its strain rate dependency to ensure the use of impact-absorbing members over a wide range of deformation rates. However, inconsistent rate dependent trends were observed in the previous studies, possibly as a result of the transition of the fracture mode. Therefore, the effect of fracture modes and strain rate on the fracture toughness values needs to be examined sufficiently. In the present study, the fracture toughness of the specimens made of SUS304 metastable austenitic stainless steel, which is a kind of TRIP steel, is evaluated by tensile tests at various strain rates. Direct current potential difference and digital image correlation methods are introduced to detect the time of fracture initiation during deformation, especially at high deformation rates by using the developed impact tensile tests based on the split Hopkinson pressure bar. The fracture surfaces of the fractured specimens are observed by using an electron scanning electron microscopy to determine not only the fracture modes and their rate dependent effects but also the reinforcement mechanism of SIMT in mixed modes. The results demonstrate that fracture toughness shows negative strain rate dependency, and mixed-mode fracture can be found near the crack in the case of the impact tensile test. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The stress–strain curve in Taylor impact test is captured by DIC technique. • The time period to calculate the stress–strain curve is significantly extended. • Measurement of stress–strain curve with a higher accuracy is realized. The digital image correlation (DIC) technique is widely used to capture several kinematical quantities fields including displacement, velocity, strain, strain rate and acceleration in various kinds of the mechanical tests with the deformation of specimen. Considering the nature of nonuniform deformation in Taylor impact test, except the mentioned fields, the axial stress distribution is also required to evaluate the deformation behavior of materials. Recently, a measurement method for axial stress distribution is proposed based on an assumption of bilinear internal force distribution in specimen. However, the measured result only gives an approximate result. Besides, because the satisfaction of the assumption limits to several conditions, only the result obtained at a particular moment and position region is reliable. On the other hand, it is possible to calculate the axial stress distribution from the momentum balance law to avoid the mentioned assumption if the axial acceleration distribution is captured by the DIC technique. Unfortunately, the feasibility and accuracy for the method has not been discussed yet, even though some challenges on introducing DIC technique to Taylor impact test has already been done. Here, a method based on momentum balance law and axial acceleration distribution is newly proposed to obtain the axial stress distribution. The stress–strain curve in Taylor impact test is obtained by a simultaneously spatial combination between the stress and strain distributions. Then, the feasibility of the proposed method is discussed computationally and experimentally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Guangzhou's dynamic time-honoured businesses, commonly known as laozihao 老字号, while grounded in a locality, have nevertheless been caught up in the economic and cultural flowscapes of their times as they have followed the migration trajectories of the mainland Chinese. As these traders, businesspeople and migrants have moved and relocated from their hometown to overseas locations, they have also brought along their understanding of their culture, including the cultural elements that are associated with the businesses that they are involved in. This paper will explore the flowscapes and transformation of Guangzhou's laozihao that involved the mainland Chinese and Chinese diaspora communities during two periods. The first period stretched from the 19th century through to 1949 when mainland China came under Communist rule. The second phase started after the 1978 Open Door Policy and has continued through the introduction of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in 2013 till today. The Belt and Road Initiative has provided a strategic and opportunistic moment for these time-honoured businesses to reinvent and realign their business to suit the modern needs of the 21st century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, we report the first example of controllable magnetoresistance in a semiconducting carbonized phthalonitrile resin. This special phenomenon is explained using the different ratios of graphite-like (sp2) and diamond-like (sp3) bonds and localization length (a0) as well as the density of states at the Fermi-level (N(EF)). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In most measurement models of the cylindrical cavity, concentricity between the rod-like sample and cylindrical cavity is a basic premise of an accurate calculation model. Once a sample is randomly placed in the off-axis position in the sample hole of the cavity, the real will not conform to the established calculation model and the off-axis position should be taken into account to the measurement error. In this article, a measurement method to calculate permittivity of the sample placed at the off-axis position in the sample hole is presented. The actual location of the sample in a cylindrical cavity is first obtained in the application of vision measurement. Field distribution in the cavity is calculated by using the mode-matching method. The measured sample in the cavity is divided into finite small elements with arc shapes, and permittivity calculation expression is established by using the perturbation theory. A TM-mode cylindrical cavity that installed two miniature camera probes around the cavity wall is designed and used to measure permittivity of the material. Teflon and fused silica with different off-axis positions are measured and compared with the published results at several resonance frequencies. The maximum permittivity errors of Teflon and fused silica are 1.6% (at around 2 GHz) and 0.68% (at around 10.8 GHz), respectively. The maximum loss tan $\delta $ errors are 5.8e−5 (at around 12.5 GHz) and 1.44e−4 (at around 9.9 GHz), respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sudden increases in the dc-link voltage, caused by ac grid side voltage drops, can lead to potential damage in the equipment. Therefore, dc choppers are widely used in offshore wind power links to absorb the excess energy and keep the voltage within safe margins. This article investigates the existing chopper topologies and summarizes their advantages and disadvantages. On this basis, a novel dc chopper topology with both centralized and distributed resistances is proposed. It is a combination of two mainstream chopper topologies and gives the flexibility to tradeoff among the pros and cons of them. In this way, the proposed topology achieves great electromagnetic interference performance, precise power control, and very small system disturbance. In addition, the maximum power dissipation of the distributed resistance is reduced by 75%. The switching frequency and the loss of insulated gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs) are also decreased. Finally, the claimed attributes of the proposed topology are verified by test and simulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A thin film is often coated on the dielectric rods used in traveling wave tubes to provide microwave attenuation. The quality of the thin film will affect the performance of the traveling wave tube. To evaluate the quality of the thin-film by measuring the attenuation performance of the dielectric rod, modified parallel strips with a sample hole are designed to provide a relatively reasonable field working environment for the attenuation evaluation. After analyzing the field distribution of the parallel strips, a sample hole is designed on the side of parallel strips, which is tangent with the outer edge of the strip. An arcuate taper is introduced into the parallel strips to reduce the impedance mismatching. Finally, two unqualified and qualified dielectric rods are measured using the modified parallel strips at frequencies 12 GHz and 18 GHz. The measured results indicate that it is feasible to evaluate whether the thin-film coated on the dielectric rod is qualified or not. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate the effects of human activity on contaminants in regional soil, hydroxylated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (OH-PAHs) were measured in 187 surface soil samples of different land-use types collected from the Pearl River Delta (PRD), South China. The concentrations of Σ 9 OH-PAH (sum of nine target analytes) ranged from 0.36 to 252 ng/g (median: 5.98 ng/g), with phenanthrene derivatives as the dominant components, accounting for ~70%. Among different land-use types, residency soil contained the highest levels of Σ 9 OH-PAH (median: 11.3 ng/g), followed by landfill soil (9.28 ng/g), industry soil (7.51 ng/g), agriculture soil (6.04 ng/g), forestry soil (4.28 ng/g) and drinking water source soil (4.20 ng/g). A higher value was also observed in soil from the central PRD (6.94 ng/g) than the surrounding areas (5.94 ng/g), which indicated a significant impact of human activity on OH-PAH contamination in soil. Correlation and principal component analysis indicated that OH-PAHs in PRD soil are likely derived from the degradation of their parent PAHs in the atmosphere and/or soil and not directly from the same source as the parent PAHs. The ratios of OH-PAHs to their parent PAHs also varied among different land-use types, which may be partly attributed to the different populations of microorganisms in different soil types or the different chemical properties of PAHs and their metabolites. Unlabelled Image • High levels of OH-PAHs were mainly concentrated in area with heavy human activities. • OH-PAHs are likely from degradation, not the same source together with parent-PAHs. • High concentration ratio of OH-PAHs/parent-PAHs was found in some soil samples. • Easier to get high above ratio for light PAHs in area with heavy human activities [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The synergistic effects of combining arsenic compounds with imatinib against chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) have been established using in vitro data. We conducted a clinical trial to compare the efficacy of the arsenic realgar–indigo naturalis formula (RIF) plus imatinib with that of imatinib monotherapy in patients with newly diagnosed chronic phase CML (CP-CML). Methods: In this multicenter, randomized, double-blind, phase 3 trial, 191 outpatients with newly diagnosed CP-CML were randomly assigned to receive oral RIF plus imatinib (n = 96) or placebo plus imatinib (n = 95). The primary end point was the major molecular response (MMR) at 6 months. Secondary end points include molecular response 4 (MR4), molecular response 4.5 (MR4.5), progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and adverse events. Results: The median follow-up duration was 51 months. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the recruitment to this study had to be terminated early, on May 28, 2020. The rates of MMR had no significant statistical difference between combination and imatinib arms at 6 months and any other time during the trial. MR4 rates were similar in both arms. However, the 12-month cumulative rates of MR4.5 in the combination and imatinib arms were 20.8% and 10.5%, respectively (p = 0.043). In core treatment since the 2-year analysis, the frequency of MR4.5 was 55.6% in the combination arm and 38.6% in the imatinib arm (p = 0.063). PFS and OS were similar at five years. The safety profiles were similar and serious adverse events were uncommon in both groups. Conclusion: The results of imatinib plus RIF as a first-line treatment of CP-CML compared with imatinib might be more effective for achieving a deeper molecular response (Chinadrugtrials number, CTR20170221). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A retrofit specimen with the pulse-shaping technique on the impact surface is newly-introduced to an instrumented Taylor impact test. • The unavoidable excessive local deformation which makes the result worse is suppressed successfully. • The unmeasured stress-strain curve over a higher strain level at a higher strain rate is obtained. In the previous studies, an instrumented Taylor impact test was established to measure the stress-strain curve at an ultrahigh strain rate. To calculate the axial stress distribution in the specimen, a bi-linearity of the internal force distribution in both the elasticity- and plasticity-dominant regions was assumed. However, the unavoidably generated excessive local deformation (ELD) near the impact surface results in early unloading and a strong nonlinear distribution of the internal force in the region near the impact surface. Consequently, the measurable stress-strain curve was limited to 0.1 of the axial strain. On the other hand, the pulse-shaping technique, which is widely used in split Hopkinson pressure bar tests, can be employed to increase the strain until the stress-strain curve is measurable through Taylor impact tests because the short rise time is considered to be a possible reason of ELD generation. For the first time, this study introduced the pulse-shaping technique to the instrumented Taylor impact test to expand the measurability of the stress-strain curve to a higher strain range. To suppress the ELD, the dimensions of the pulse shaper are determined through finite element analyses after a discussion of the mechanism to suppress ELD. Then, the proposed method with a newly designed specimen is validated conducting the real Taylor impact test. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphical abstract Dividing sample into multi-subsample, further improving distribution measurement resolution. Highlights • The established multisection model for measuring the permittivity distribution. • Field analysis and the perturbation technology is combined to analyze and calculate the permittivity in the slotted cylindrical cavity. • Measuring the sample horizontally, and designing the corresponding test setup for more stable measurement. • Analyzing the results by the established partial error equations. Abstract There are few papers to introduce the distribution measurement of material's permittivity in the previous work, but the measurement is an important effort to effectively evaluate the inhomogeneity of material's permittivity. In order to measure the distribution of the relative permittivity with small interval along sample rod, a multisection measurement model has been introduced. The sample is horizontally inserted into the slotted cylindrical cavity with TM 0 n 0 working modes and passes through it to improve the measurement stability. During the measurement, the sample is divided into many sections, and each section is treated as a subsample for the distribution measurement of the permittivity. The traditional perturbation technology is combined with the field analysis of two subsamples in the cavity to calculate the permittivity of all subsamples from the effective permittivity. Based on the theoretical analysis of the simulation results from HFSS, partial error equation is established, and the absolute error of the multisection measurement model is less than 0.1. Besides, the horizontal movement device for the sample movement, support platform with a groove for the sample placement, and vertical cylindrical cavity for the measurement are employed to make up the test setup. Meanwhile, it can provide a stable and rapid measurement. Thus, a fiber reinforced plastic rod has been measured to verify the feasibility of the developed test setup. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Making new friends by measuring the proximity of people's profile is a crucial service in mobile social networks. With the rapid development of cloud computing, outsourcing computing and storage to the cloud is now an effective way to relieve the heavy burden on users for managing and processing data. To prevent privacy leakage, data owners tend to encrypt their private data before outsourcing. However, current solutions either have heavy interactions or require users to encrypt private data with a single key. In this paper, we propose a novel cloud-assisted privacy-preserving profile-matching scheme under multiple keys based on a proxy re-encryption scheme with additive homomorphism. Our scheme is secure under the honest-but-curious (HBC) model given two non-colluding cloud servers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, we demonstrate the preparation of CBS glass-ceramics by using chemically pure CaO, SiO 2 and B 2 O 3 as raw materials. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and electrical measurements have been carried out to explore the effect of boron addition on crystallization, microstructure and dielectric properties of CBS glass-ceramics. Furthermore, the influence of sintering temperature and sintering schemes has been systematically investigated. Results show that the increase of boron content reduces crystallization temperature of CBS glass-ceramics. For instance, with the increase of boron oxide from 10.8 wt% to 19.4 wt%, crystallization temperature decreased by 130 °C. However, excessive boron affects the precipitation of wollastonite crystal phase, destroys crystal structure and damages close arrangement of crystal grains. Moreover, higher boron content weakens dielectric properties of CBS glass-ceramics. In this study, the best molar ratio of ingredients, meeting the ideal target material, is n(Ca): n(Si): n(B) = 1:1:0.6. After optimal sintering procedure, dielectric constant of the best sample was 6 (1 MHz), 6 (10 MHz), and dielectric loss was 2.27 × 10 −3 (1 MHz) and 3.37 × 10 −3 (10 MHz). We demonstrate that the optimal boron content and sintering procedure is required to attain desired dielectric properties of CBS glass-ceramics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chromium leaching from stainless steel tailings is an urgent problem risking of the environments, calcite integument of tailings by accelerated direct gas-solid carbonation process can be formed and the inhibition factor of carbonation degree on chromium leaching rate is discussed in detail. Stainless steel tailings accelerated direct gas-solid carbonation process is investigated at 300 °C–700 °C and 0.2–0.4 MPa, and the effect of temperature, reaction time, particle size and CO 2 pressure on carbonation degree are analyzed by TGA-DSC, FTIR, SEM-EDS analysis. The results show that the maximum CO 2 uptake obtained (8.2%), corresponding to 16% carbonation degree can be obtained when 48–75 μm stainless steel tailings are carbonated for 90 min at 300 °C and 0.4 MPa. Tailings particle size, carbonation time, and carbon dioxide pressure display a positive relationship with carbonation degree, but carbonation temperature has a negative relationship. 48–75 μm carbonated tailings with varied carbonation degree and original tailings are investigated for the inhibitory factor between carbonation degree and Cr leaching rate, when leaching process is at 60 °C for 90min on the condition that L / S ratio equals 20 ml/g. The results show the inhibitory factor is fitted by random function better, and the value decreases from 31.5% to 9.7%, when carbonation degree is from 2% to 8%, and then keeps stable, when carbonation degree is still increases from 8% to 14%, which illustrates that carbonation process as a better strategy of tailings innocuous treatment at high temperature is valid for restricting Cr leaching behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces a new rapid detection model with multi-row crossed antenna pairs and a corresponding algorithm for online rapid detection. The way of multi-row crossed antennas leads to data offset of adjacent columns, so a method of magnitude and phase restoration is discussed in the case of material movement. For reducing the effective testing scope and improving the resolution, a modified Vivaldi antenna with more concentrated E-field distribution was designed and fabricated, which operates at a ultra-wideband range from 3.9 to 40 GHz with S11 less than -10 dB for covering the detection frequency. To measure the dimension and accurately locate the positions of material defects, a proposed algorithm that combines 2-D cubic spline interpolation together with Laplace of Gaussian is introduced. This algorithm can extract the dimension of defects (5 mm minimum) from the original magnitudes and phases of materials. To evaluate the proposed method, the cystosepiment with a high-loss dielectric piece (5, 10, and 15 mm in diameter) inside was fabricated and an experimental testing system was established to achieve the rapid detection. Compared with the existed method with a-row antennas to detect, the proposed detection model of the multi-row antennas and corresponding algorithm are effective to locate the defect with a offset less than 0.5 cm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Poly (styrene-co-acrylonitrile) (SAN)/chemically reduced graphene oxide (CRG) nanocomposites were prepared using a coagulation method. Due to the presence of SAN molecules that prevented CRG sheets from aggregation during reduction, CRG sheets were dispersed homogeneously in SAN. The electrical and rheological properties of the nanocomposites were systematically investigated to elucidate the structure of CRG electrical and rheological networks. With the incorporation of CRG sheets, both the electrical and rheological properties of the nanocomposites were remarkably changed. At higher CRG concentrations, the nanocomposites became electrically conductive and exhibited solid-like behaviors. According to the scaling power law, the electrical networks were constructed at a percolation threshold of 0.17 vol % compared to the rheological networks at 0.10 vol %. This discordance is attributed to the intrinsic difference in the network structure. Though both electrical and rheological networks were constructed through a non-contact mode, the rheological networks required SAN chains as bridges, while electrical networks did not. The CRG networks showed instabilities in both physical and chemical structure. Upon thermal annealing at 190 °C, the networks underwent self-improvement through disordering and thermal reduction of CRG sheets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because of the low content of TiO 2 , the utilization of low and medium Ti-bearing blast furnace slag is a difficult problem. In this study, glass-ceramics with diopside as the main crystalline phase was made by using TiO 2 in the blast furnace slag as the nucleating agent and adding additional elements of TiO 2 , Fe 2 O 3 and Cr 2 O 3. The effects of these three nucleating agents on the phase composition and structural properties of the prepared glass-ceramics were evaluated by DSC, XRD, and SEM to determine their optimal dosage. Research results show that the suitable mass percentages of the TiO 2 , Fe 2 O 3 and Cr 2 O 3 crystal nucleation agents of the glass-ceramics are 7.69%, 0.96%, and 2.88%, respectively. The prepared glass-ceramics have excellent physical and chemical properties, e.g., a bending strength of 114.74 MPa, a bulk density of 2.77 g/cm 3 , a water absorption rate of 0, and a mass-loss rate of only 0.085%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A novel structure to improve the directivity of the Vivaldi antenna by adding three metal patches on the end‐fire is introduced. The two side patches that were close to the radiator change the E‐field distribution of the traveling wave, and the middle patch was a director. The strong coupling between the radiator and side patches led to the constraint of much E‐field energy between the side coupling patches, and this structure reduces the current on the end of radiation aperture. Compared with the other antennas, the Vivaldi antenna with the two side coupling patches did not compromise the frequency range, but decreased the radiation of the side lobes especially at high frequencies. The measured results showed that this proposed antenna operated in an ultra‐wide frequency range of 2 GHz to 18.7 GHz. The directivity of the proposed antenna has been greatly improved, with a maximum increment of 4 dB at 15 GHz. This enhanced structure showed good universality for the other Vivaldi antennas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To study the influence of organic montmorillonite (OMMT) on the yield stress of the model waxy oil (LMO) under dynamic cooling, OMMT was prepared through ion exchange of the sodium montmorillonite with dimethyldioctadecylammonium chloride (DOAC). The incorporation of OMMT lead to a great reduction of the yield stress, which could be explained by the inhibition effect of OMMT on the wax gelation. For 100 ppm OMMT loading, the yield stress reduced by 74.1% at 36 °C. The inhibition effect was realized through decreasing the wax crystallinity, reducing the crystal dimension and introducing the electrostatic repulsion between the crystal particles. The role of thermal history on the yield stress was also studied. Compared with the pure LMO, the OMMT-doped LMO showed different dependence level on the thermal history, but similar trend with that. High testing temperature and short holding time facilitated a lower yield stress. Due to the presence of different shear stress during cooling, the cooling rate showed a complicated effect on the yielding process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Biodegradable bacterial Polypyrrole strain sensor encapsulated with EcoFlex. • In-situ fermentation shows uniform nanofiller dispersion and 3D conductive networks. • Crack-based strain sensing has a working range of 0.05–90% maximal strain. • ΔR/R 0 readings are consistent under different loading rates and strain ranges. • Strain sensor accurately detects minute pulses, applicable to monitor vital signs. Microbial production of biopolymers are non-standard materials in wearable resistive-strain sensors, despite established and desirable scale-up, rheological, ecological and economical properties. In this study, we report a biodegradable bacterial cellulose (BC) crack-based strain sensor prepared by in-situ fermentation with polypyrrole (PPy) and encapsulation with Ecoflex (EF) for human-interactive sensing. In-situ microbial fermentation method not only optimizes the distribution state of PPy but also constructs the three-dimensional conductive network, which contributing to the formation of crack-based sensing mechanism. The as-prepared BC/Ppy@EF strain sensor exhibits high sensitivity (gauge factor of 3.21–4.86), large strain ranges (up to 90% strain), ultralow strain detection limit (0.05%) and remarkable long-term stability without any distinct decline in sensitivity after a constant applied stretching of 90% for 1000 cycles. The strain sensor accurately detected a full range of body motions, including subtle vital signs like pulse, respiration and vocalizations, and was successfully integrated into textiles for human–computer interactions. Consequently, this study provides empirical value for the bio-fabrication and all-green construction design of wearable devices, as well as the development of human–computer interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metabolic disorders like diabetes and obesity are commonly companied with neurological diseases and psychiatric disorders. Accumulating evidences indicated that cellular metabolic factors affect adult neurogenesis and have modulating effects on neurodegenerative disorders and psychiatric diseases. Adult neurogenesis contains multiple steps including proliferation of neural stem cells, lineage commitments of neural progenitor cells, maturation into functional neurons, and integration into neuronal network. Many intrinsic and extrinsic factors produced from neural stem/progenitor cells and their microenvironment or neurogenic niche take roles in modulating neurogenesis and contribute to the brain repair and functional recoveries in many neurological diseases and psychiatric disorders. In this article, we review current progress about how different growth factors, neurotrophin, neurotransmitters and transcriptional factors work on regulating neurogenic process. In particular, we emphasize the roles of the cellular metabolic factors, such as insulin/IGF signaling, incretins, and lipid metabolic signaling molecules in modulating adult neurogenesis, and discuss their impacts on neurological behaviors. We propose that the metabolic factors could be the new therapeutic targets for adult neurogenesis. Plus, the metabolism-regulating drugs have the potentials for treatment of neurodegenerative diseases and mental disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The microstructure and mechanical properties of friction spot welding (FSpW) 2198-T8 alloy during aging treatment were studied. Whereafter, the fracture process before and after aging treatment was observed by using the in-situ straining transmission electron microscopy method. The results show that fined equiaxed grains remained with predominant T 1 phase re-precipitated in the microstrucuture of FSpW 2198-T8 Al-Li alloy after aging treatment. With the extension of holding time (12 h –48 h), grains gradually grew up in the range of 9.2–13.2 μm and the size and volume fraction of T 1 phases were also increased. Tensile strengths of thermal-mechanical coupling zone (TMCZ) of FSpW 2198-T8 alloy first increased and then decreased after aging treatment. When aging at 175 °C for 36 h, the strength reached the maximum (435 MPa) with the elongation decreased to 11.4%. Meanwhile, the fracture mode of TMCZ zone transformed from ductile brittle mixed fracture to brittle fracture after aging treatment. And cracks initiated at and propagated along precipitate-free zones (PFZs) after aging treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on the semiglobal stabilization for a class of nonlinear systems with nonstrict feedback form. Based on a generalized scaling technique, an adaptive control algorithm with dynamic high gain is developed for a class of nonstrict feedback nonlinear systems. It can be proved that, under some appropriate design parameters, all signals of the resulting closed-loop system are bounded semiglobally, and the system state will be convergent to origin exponentially. Finally, a numerical simulation is provided to confirm the effectiveness of the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Hydrogen industry chain is integrated into complex integrated energy system. • Wasserstein distance is introduced in the optimal copula selection. • CCS technology consider time lag between carbon capture and natural gas synthesis. • CO 2 emission rate and clean energy consuming rate are improved by the proposed system. • The margin of P2H under different seasons are explored by the simulations. The application of hydrogen is promising for achieving carbon neutrality. To promote hydrogen utilization and carbon emission reduction, this paper attempts to integrate the hydrogen industry chain, carbon capture and storage (CCS) into a regional integrated energy system (forming a complex regional integrated energy system (CRIES)) and proposes an energy scheduling model for optimizing CRIES operation considering wind and photovoltaic co-generation (WT-PV) uncertainties. Firstly, to measure the uncertainties of WT-PV, the Wasserstein distance with better geometric properties is introduced to select the best Copula to model the correlation between wind and photovoltaic generation and to generate a typical scenario of WT-PV for each season. Secondly, based on MILP, the system is modularly modeled considering the pressure difference of various gases, the time interval of carbon capture and natural gas synthesis, and the energy coupling relationship. Finally, based on the above WT-PV prediction and modeling, the energy dispatch status in each season is investigated, and the economics of the proposed system is verified in the minimum hydrogen demand variation of hydrogen metallurgy plant, hydrogen blending ratio, and uncertainties of electric vehicles and hydrogen vehicles loads. Results show that 1) hydrogen-rich natural gas improves system's energy use efficiency, CCS weakens system's dependence on the upstream natural gas network, and the multi-energy coupling improves system's arbitrage ability under different prices; 2) hydrogen is richest in the summer, causing system's revenue to be 8.54%–32.17% and 29.29%–244.21% higher than in the transition season and winter. 3) zero-carbon energy interaction with the outside world and fully accommodating WT-PV are achieved by integrating the hydrogen industry chain; 4) the proposed CRIES operates reliably and economically under multiple uncertainties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cotton-based photochromic textiles have emerged as a representative smart textile, yet constrained by the complicated process, deep original color and limited durability in practical applications. Here, spiropyran (SP) with a simple carboxy linking group was directly covalently immobilized onto cotton fabric through a facile and effective esterification strategy. Benefit from the simple structure, this modification process does not affect the basic properties and color of the fabric. In addition, the SP-cotton fabrics exhibited excellent reversible photochromic properties from colorless to violet and allowed to print exquisite patterns with long-distance control by switching light resource and photomasks. Moreover, the stable ester covalent bond endowed these SP-cotton fabrics with appropriate washing fastness and photo fatigue resistance. This study not only added value to cotton, but also paved a rational and general approach for the construction of durable and original color constancy photochromic textiles, providing a potential candidate for brand protection, anti-counterfeiting, and fashion textiles. [Display omitted] • A novel photochromic fabric was prepared by directly covalently immobilizing spiropyran (SP) contained carboxy linking group. • A simple and extensible immobilized strategy was proposed for constructing original color constancy photochromic textiles. • SP cotton with photochromic performance from colorless to violet and allowed to print patterns with long-distance control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A low carbon-low alloy steel was processed by warm rolling with reductions range from ~30% to ~70% followed by annealing at 450°C. Then, the microstructural evolution was characterized by Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM), Electron Backscatter Diffraction (EBSD), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), X-ray Diffraction (XRD) and compressive testing under strain rates of 1.0 × 10−3–2.0 × 103 s−1 was carried out. Microscopy analyses showed that ultrafine-grained structures with high-density dislocations and more and finer M 3 C carbides by comparison with the tempered steel were achieved after warm rolling. Subsequent annealing promoted the further precipitation of finer carbides and led to dislocation recovery as well as a slight coarsening of grains. Compressive testing results indicated that the yield strengths of the warm rolled steels at different strain rates were significantly increased by ~40–70% compared with the as-received sample, which was mainly attributed to a combination of dislocation strengthening, grain boundary strengthening and precipitation strengthening. After annealing, the yield strength decreased slightly due to a dislocation recovery and a slight increment of the grain sizes. In addition, the influence of microstructure evolutions including dislocation densities, grain sizes and carbide precipitations during warm rolling and subsequent annealing on the strain rate dependence of strength for steels was also analyzed. • Ultrafine-grained structures with high-density dislocations and finer dispersed M 3 C carbides were achieved after rolling at 500°C and subsequent annealing at 450°C. • ND//〈111〉 and ND//〈100〉 textures were dominant in the warm rolled and subsequent annealed steels. • The increased yield strengths of the processed steels were attributed to the dislocation strengthening, grain boundary strengthening and precipitation strengthening. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phthalates are widely used in consumer products. People are frequently exposed to phthalates due to their applications in daily life. In this study, 14 phthalate metabolites were analyzed in 108 urine samples collected from Chinese young adults using high-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. The total concentrations of 14 phthalate metabolites ranged from 71.3 to 2670 ng/mL, with the geometric mean concentration of 306 ng/mL. mBP and miBP were the two most abundant compounds, accounting for 48% of the total concentrations. Principal component analysis suggested two major sources of phthalates: one dominated by the DEHP metabolites and one by the group of mCPP, mBP and miBP metabolites. The estimated daily intakes of DMP, DEP, DBP, DiBP and DEHP were 1.68, 2.14, 4.12, 3.52 and 1.26–2.98 μg/kg-bw/day, respectively. In a sensitivity analysis, urinary concentration and body weight were the most influential variables for human exposure estimation. Furthermore, cumulative risk for hazard quotient (HQ) and hazard index (HI) were evaluated. Nearly half of Chinese young adults had high HI values exceeding the safe threshold. This is the first study on the occurrence and human exposure to urinary phthalate metabolites with Chinese young adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A cellular segregated graphene network within poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) was constructed through hot compression of PVDF/graphene core–shell particles, which were fabricated via assembly of graphene oxide nanosheets (GrONs) on acrylamide-grafted PVDF particles and succeeding reduction of GrONs. The assembly was achieved by flocculation of GrONs, utilizing the salting-out effect of GrONs aqueous colloid. After reduction of the GrONs and the following hot compression of PVDF/graphene core–shell particles, the final composites exhibited an ultralow percolation threshold of 0.031 vol%, which can be attributed to the excellent construction of the cellular segregated graphene networks and exclusion effect of the bulky PVDF zones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dynamic ground subsidence due to mining is a complicated time-dependent process. Based on the theory of rock rheology, a theoretical model for the prediction and analysis of the dynamic subsidence due to deep underground mining is developed. The model is used for Chengjiao mine, an underground iron ore mine using pillarless sublevel caving method, to predict and analyse the subsidence in West and North mining areas. The theoretical results obtained were compared with actual subsidence data from West and North mining areas in Chengjiao Iron mine, eastern China. The agreement of the theoretical results with the filed measurements shows that the model is satisfactory and the formulae obtained are valid and thus can be effectively used for predicting the ground movement due to deep underground mining by pillarless sublevel caving method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The tempered low carbon-low alloy steel achieves excellent strength, plasticity, local deformability and toughness. The impressive local deformability and impact toughness are mainly due to the impediment to crack propagations of multilevel boundaries and dispersed fine carbides, demonstrating the intrinsic relationships between the toughness and local formability in tensile testing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An investigation was conducted to evaluate the effect of dynamic plastic deformation (DPD) and post-DPD annealing on the microstructural and mechanical properties of a tempered low carbon steel. The results showed that ultrafine-grained structures consisting of elongated martensitic laths and sub-grains are achieved after DPD processing. The amounts and sizes of carbides in the steels, identified as (Fe,Cr,Mn,Mo) 3 C, decreased markedly with DPD straining due to their fragmentation and dissolution but a large number of finer carbides appeared due to re-precipitation during subsequent annealing. A simultaneous improvement in the strength and plasticity was obtained at DPD strains below ∼0.8. This increase in strength by ∼30–60% is mainly attributed to grain boundary strengthening, dislocation strengthening while the good plasticity is due to more active sliding systems, a reduction in the stress concentration during loading because of the amount decreasing of M 3 C distributed along the interfaces, the increase of crack propagation resistance by more grain boundaries and the energy released through the occurrence of delamination fracture. After post-DPD annealing both the strength and plasticity improved compared with the as-received steel. Strengths higher by ∼20–39% were attributed to a combination of grain boundary strengthening, dislocation strengthening and precipitation strengthening derived from the re-precipitation of fine and dispersed carbides. The dislocation recovery occurring during annealing led to a decrease in strength compared with that before annealing. The incremental increase in plasticity is attributed to a combination of further active slip systems, a decreasing dislocation density and a dispersed distribution of finer carbides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the 1.8 mm thick cold-rolled sheets of 2198-T8 Al–Li alloy were manufactured by friction stir welding (FSW) at a rotation rate of 800 rpm and a travel speed of 300 mm/min. The microstructure and mechanical properties of different regions of the produced joint were evaluated by means of optical microscopy (OM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), hardness testing and tensile testing. Results show that the original “pancake” grains became coarser in the heat affected zone (HAZ), transformed into equiaxed grains in the stir shoulder zone (SsZ) and stir pin zone (SpZ), and formed mixed grains with both “pancake” and equiaxed shapes in the thermo-mechanical affected zone (TMAZ). The hardness distribution in the cross-section of the FSW joint exhibited a “basin” shape. When approaching the weld centre, the hardness gradually decreased compared to the base metal (BM). The BM exhibited the highest strength due to the presence of fine T1 phase. In the HAZ, the strength decreased as T1 phase was partially dissolved. In the SsZ and SpZ, in spite of strength contribution from grain refinement, the strength further decreased as T1 phase was fully dissolved. The minimum strength in the TMAZ was related to the reduced amount of T1 phase and the presence of transition layer with sharp gradient of grain size. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to the movement mechanism of strip and rollers in tandem mill, the strip between two stands was simplified to axially moving Euler beam and the rollers were simplified to the inertial component on the fixed axis rotation, namely, inertial boundary. Nonlinear vibration mechanical model of Euler beam with inertial boundary conditions was established. The transverse and longitudinal motion equations were derived based on Hamilton’s principle. Kantorovich averaging method was employed to discretize the motion equations and the inertial boundary equations, and the solutions were obtained using the modified iteration method. Depending on numerical calculation, the amplitude-frequency responses of Euler beam were determined. The axial velocity, tension, and rotational inertia have strong influences on the vibration characteristics. The results would provide an important theoretical reference to control and analyze the vertical vibration of moving strip in continuous rolling process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SUMMARY Path diversity of different concurrent paths inevitably introduces out-of-order packet delivery, which leads to unnecessary retransmissions and a severely lowered data throughput. In order to analyze the fundamental behavior and influencing factors of packet reordering, several sets of simulation-based multipath experiments are conducted with different aggregating paths. In addition, the relationship between reordering and number of paths are discussed. Furthermore, an end-to-end measurement study of packet reordering in concurrent multipath transfer is presented. To simply the analysis process, a cumulative distribution function of transmission delay for each packet is used. The model is proved to be an effective one by contrastive analysis. Finally, some solutions to handle it are provided with a further discussion. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intracerebral-ventricular ( ICV) injection of streptozotocin ( STZ) induces an insulin-resistant brain state that may underlie the neural pathogenesis of sporadic Alzheimer disease ( AD). Our previous work showed that prior ICV treatment of glucagon-like peptide-1 ( GLP-1) could prevent STZ-induced learning memory impairment and tau hyperphosphorylation in the rat brain. The Chinese herbal medicine geniposide is known to relieve symptoms of type 2 diabetes. Because geniposide is thought to act as a GLP-1 receptor agonist, we investigated the potential therapeutic effect of geniposide on STZ-induced AD model in rats. Our result showed that a single injection of geniposide (50 μM, 10 μL) to the lateral ventricle prevented STZ-induced spatial learning deficit by about 40% and reduced tau phosphorylation by about 30% with Morris water maze test and quantitative immunohistochemical analysis, respectively. It has been known that tau protein can be phosphorylated by glycogen synthase kinase-3 ( GSK3) and STZ can increase the activity of GSK3β. Our result with Western blot analysis showed that central administration of geniposide resulted in an elevated expression of GSK3β( pS-9) but suppressed GSK3β( pY-216) indicating that geniposide reduced STZ-induced GSK3β hyperactivity. In addition, ultrastructure analysis showed that geniposide averted STZ-induced neural pathology, including paired helical filament ( PHF)-like structures, accumulation of vesicles in synaptic terminal, abnormalities of endoplasmic reticulum ( ER) and early stage of apoptosis. In summary, our study suggests that the water soluble and orally active monomer of Chinese herbal medicine geniposide may serve as a novel therapeutic agent for the treatment of sporadic AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The instrumented apparatus based on Taylor impact test is developed actually. • Obtaining the stress-strain curve at only single trial of the test is successful. • The unproven method for stress-strain curves is verified computationally and experimentally. • The intrinsic time to obtain the stress-strain curve is discussed. In our previous study, a modified Taylor impact test instrumented using a Hopkinson pressure bar and high-speed imaging was proposed to obtain the stress-strain curve at any moment. In this method, only a linear change in the internal force with respect to the axial position in the plasticity-dominant region of the specimens was assumed. Basically, the Taylor impact test measures the impact yield stress through large non-uniform plasticity in deformed specimens and has been widely expanded, such as verifying the models used to express the mechanical behavior. However, there are no crucial methods for obtaining the stress-strain curve although the proposed method is more effective. This is because the method has not been verified experimentally or discussed sufficiently. In this study, the validity of the proposed method and the intrinsic time for obtaining the stress-strain curve are discussed through an experiment and finite element simulation at different impact velocities. The intrinsic time can be selected from the time period of phase 2 after the three phases deformation is confirmed via high-speed imaging. The reliable stress-strain curve in a low strain range at the intrinsic time can be obtained successfully using an actual experiment based on the proposed method without repeating the tests many times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Stem cell factor SALL4 is a zinc finger transcription factor. It plays vital roles in the maintenance of embryonic stem cell properties, functions as an oncogene in leukemia, and has been recently proposed to use for cord blood expansion. The mechanism(s) by which SALL4 functions in normal human hematopoiesis, including identification of its target genes, still need to be explored. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by microarray hybridization (ChIP-chip) was used for mapping SALL4 global gene targets in normal primary CD34+ cells. The results were then correlated with SALL4 functional studies in the CD34+ cells. RESULTS: More than 1000 potential SALL4 downstream target genes have been identified, and validation of binding by ChIP-quantitative polymerase chain reaction was performed for 5% of potential targets. These include genes that are involving in hematopoietic differentiation and self-renewal, such as HOXA9, RUNX1, CD34, and PTEN. Down regulation of SALL4 expression using small-hairpin RNA in these cells led to decreased in vitro myeloid colony-forming abilities and impaired in vivo engraftment. Furthermore, HOXA9 was identified to be a major SALL4 target in normal human hematopoiesis and the loss of either SALL4 or HOXA9 expression in CD34+ cells shared a similar phenotype. CONCLUSION: Taken together, SALL4 is a key regulator in normal human hematopoiesis and the mechanism of its function is at least in part through the HOXA9. Future study will determine whether modulating the SALL4/HOXA9 pathway can be used in cellular therapy such as cord blood expansion and/or myeloid engraftment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]