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Accurate project duration estimation is crucial for effective scheduling, budgeting, resource allocation, and overall construction management. Leveraging historical data from completed projects is an effective strategy to achieve this. In heavy industrial projects, where scaffolding activities can span from thousands to millions of hours, refining the estimation of scaffolding time is vital during the planning phase. This study undertook the analysis of data from a completed heavy industrial scaffolding project, aiming to propose a methodology and models for predicting future projects durations. The proposed methodology not only aids in improved duration but also contributes to cost estimation, scheduling, and project delivery of similar future endeavors. Commencing with data cleaning and categorizing the data based on activity types, the scatter plots of person-hours versus task weight within each category revealed a linear relationship. Consequently, linear models for each category were developed. Statistical factors such as data size, coefficient of determination, and mean absolute error were then utilized to calculate a score for each model, guiding the model selection process which substituted low score models with a parent category with a higher score. The data analysis and modeling were performed five times to ensure robustness and consistency in the results. On average, the initial models yielded a project duration estimate of only 0.36% higher than the actual duration, while the selected models increased this deviation to 4.14%. The scoring and selection process enhances estimation accuracy while maintaining proximity to actual project durations. This research makes three significant contributions: (1) introducing a categorical linear regression approach for scaffolding activity duration prediction, (2) presenting a novel normalization and scoring method that scores models based on statistical factors, and (3) implementing a practical model selection process to substitute weaker models with stronger ones, ultimately strengthening the reliability of activity and project duration predictions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the development of a simplified protocol for the large-scale preparation of 4CzIPN and 3DPA2FBN, two photocatalysts used in organic synthesis. The traditional methods for synthesizing these photocatalysts have been expensive and impractical for large-scale production. The authors of this study optimized the original protocol, using a base and a solvent switch to improve efficiency and simplify the process. The resulting protocol allows for the production of 4CzIPN and 3DPA2FBN on a large scale, making them more accessible for use in the pharmaceutical industry. The article also includes information on the crystal structure of 4CzIPN and the synthesis of 3DPA2FBN. Overall, this research provides a valuable contribution to the field of photocatalysis and offers potential applications for these photocatalysts in academia and industry. [Extracted from the article]

Geospatial data conflation is the process of identifying and merging the corresponding features in two datasets that represent the same objects in reality. Conflation is needed in a wide range of geospatial analyses, yet it is a difficult task, often considered too unreliable and costly due to various discrepancies between GIS data sources. This study addresses the reliability issue of computerized conflation by developing stronger optimization-based conflation models for matching two network datasets with minimum discrepancy. Conventional models match roads on a feature-by-feature basis. By comparison, we propose a new node-arc conflation model that simultaneously matches road-center lines and junctions in a topologically consistent manner. Enforcing this topological consistency increases the reliability of conflation and reduces false matches. Similar to the well-known rubber-sheeting method, our model allows for the use of network junctions as "control" points for matching network edges. Unlike rubber sheeting, the new model is automatic and matches all junctions (and edges) in one pass. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first optimized conflation model that can match nodes and edges in one model. Computational experiments using six road networks in Santa Barbara, CA, showed that the new model is selective and reduces false matches more than existing optimized conflation models. On average, it achieves a precision of 94.7% with over 81% recall and achieves a 99.4% precision when enhanced with string distances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polarized terahertz (THz) wave generation is of great significance for chiral and anisotropic sensing applications. However, how to manipulate amplitude, polarization, and ellipticity of the THz generation is still a fundamental challenge. Herein, polarized THz wave generation is achieved from a bilayer metamaterial consisting of T‐shaped structure (TSS) and split resonator rings (SRRs) by combining Maxwell and hydrodynamic equations. The elliptically polarized THz wave can be synthetized directly from horizontally and vertically polarized THz components due to the orthogonal nonlinear photocurrents along the arm‐directions of TSS and SRRs, respectively. Besides, the ellipticity and the orientation angle of the THz polarization ellipse can be modulated by the twist angle between the SRRs and TSS layers. The maximum ellipticity can reach 0.34 while the orientation angle is tunable from −0.45 to 0.48π by tuning the twist angle. This work proposes an interlayer coupling method for the polarized THz sources based on metamaterials in potential circular dichroism and chiral sensing applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Offsite construction, also known as industrialized/prefabricated construction, is an alternative approach to delivering construction projects, compared to the on-site stick-built/built-on-site construction approach. Today's offsite construction processes often use technology systems (e.g., digital design tools and automated machinery) to increase productivity and improve product quality. These systems operate collectively and rely on information generated in different operating environments. Therefore, information interoperability is critical to achieving overall construction efficiency and economics. This creates a need to study the impacts of information loss and transfer due to information interoperability, specifically for offsite construction processes. Given this, the paper uses a qualitative (case study) approach to document the offsite construction processes and the information requirements for each process. The efforts spent on information generation and transfer are taken as inputs for calculating the information loss and transfer impact using a quantitative (Monte Carlo simulation) approach. It contributes to the body of knowledge with (1) documentation of the current offsite construction processes based on wood panelized construction and the information requirements for all involved technology systems; (2) a case study approach that can be generically applied in other offsite construction companies to capture the information efficiency due to information interoperability; and (3) a generic simulation-based approach to measure the impacts of information loss and transfer between processes. As a result, the paper proposes phases of technology adoption and strategies for offsite construction companies. This research proposes some practical implications specifically for the offsite construction industry that intends to adopt new technology systems and/or evaluate the efficiency of information handling in their existing practice, through a case study. For example, offsite construction firms can develop their own evaluation metrics to assess the information loss and transfer before investing in new technology systems, by following a similar approach to this case study. This may include comparing different technology systems from the perspective of return on investment. The approach can also be used to evaluate existing technology systems and set a baseline/benchmark. This will help management to understand the potential losses in effort due to poor information interoperability and set targets for enhancing these systems. Lastly, the proposed phases of technology adoption and strategies can help the offsite construction industry to set targets for progressive technology transformation and serve as a reference for setting expectations from a business perspective. It also helps the company to identify the required talents and know-how in the technology transformation process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To investigate the efficacy and safety of unfractionated heparin (UFH) anticoagulant administered upstream in the ambulance or emergency room during primary percutaneous coronary intervention (pPCI) for patients with acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Methods: The study included STEMI patients who received either early UFH subcutaneously (SC) (n = 163) or intraoperative UFH (SC) during pPCI (n = 476) between January 2017 to August 2018. Baseline characteristics, infarct-related artery (IRA) status, and procedural characteristics were analyzed. The primary endpoint was thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) flow grade 2 - 3 before intervention. The secondary endpoints were time from first medical contact to guidewire passage, postoperative TIMI 3 flow grade, acute stent thrombosis, and in-hospital bleeding events. Results: Baseline characteristics were similar between the groups, with no significant difference in IRA location. Both groups underwent coronary angiography, with most patients receiving pPCI. The primary endpoint occurred in 18.1 % of patients in intraoperative UFH group and 27.6 % in the early UFH group, with a significant difference between the groups (p < 0.0Acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction; Primary percutaneous coronary intervention; Heparin5). There was no significant difference in postoperative TIMI 3 flow grade or acute stent thrombosis, but bleeding events (BARC 2-5) were similar between groups (1.1 % in intraoperative group and 1.8 % in early UFH group, p > 0.05) Conclusion: Early upstream administration of UFH anticoagulation in STEMI patients improves coronary artery potency before pPCI, and early use of fixed-dose UFH is safe and does not increase major bleeding complications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Geospatial data conflation is the process of combining multiple datasets about a geographic phenomenon to produce a single, richer dataset. It has received increased research attention due to its many applications in map making, transportation, planning, and temporal geospatial analyses, among many others. One approach to conflation, attempted from the outset in the literature, is the use of optimization‐based conflation methods. Conflation is treated as a natural optimization problem of minimizing the total number of discrepancies while finding corresponding features from two datasets. Optimization‐based conflation has several advantages over traditional methods including conciseness, being able to find an optimal solution, and ease of implementation. However, current optimization‐based conflation methods are also limited. A main shortcoming with current optimized conflation models (and other traditional methods as well) is that they are often too weak and cannot utilize the spatial context in each dataset while matching corresponding features. In particular, current optimal conflation models match a feature to targets independently from other features and therefore treat each GIS dataset as a collection of unrelated elements, reminiscent of the spaghetti GIS data model. Important contextual information such as the connectivity between adjacent elements (such as roads) is neglected during the matching. Consequently, such models may produce topologically inconsistent results. In this article, we address this issue by introducing new optimization‐based conflation models with structural constraints to preserve the connectivity and contiguity relation among features. The model is implemented using integer linear programming and compared with traditional spaghetti‐style models on multiple test datasets. Experimental results show that the new element connectivity (ec‐bimatching) model reduces false matches and consistently outperforms traditional models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Population has significant application value and scientific significance in resource use, public health, public transportation, disaster assessment, and environmental management. However, traditional census data can not show the population density difference within census units. Furthermore, census data are not uniform across countries, and reconciling these differences when using data from multiple countries require considerable effort. Finally, there are scale differences between census and geospatial data (e.g., land use/cover), making data analysis and needed research difficult. These challenges significantly limit the applications of census data. The advent of gridded population mapping (GPM) technology has overcome these challenges. GPM technology has developed rapidly in recent years. The research data and models are rich and diverse, and many achievements have been made. A systematic review of the current state of GPM research will help relevant researchers and data users. This article begins by summarizing the core elements of GPM research in four aspects: auxiliary data, models, accuracy, and products. It will then go on to four problems prevalent in GPM research that have direct or indirect effects on the accuracy of GPM. Finally, the article prospects GPM research from four different aspects based on the current state of research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nanopolymer was developed in order to solve the problem that the micron-scale plugging agent cannot effectively plug nanopores, which leads to instability of the wellbore. The oil-based nano plugging agent poly (MMA-BA-ST) was synthesized by Michael addition reaction using styrene, methyl methacrylate and butyl acrylate compounds as raw materials. Poly (MMA-BA-ST) has a particle size distribution of 43.98–248.80 nm, with an average particle size of 108.70 nm, and can resist high temperatures of up to 364 °C. Poly (MMA-BA-ST) has little effect on the rheological performance parameters of drilling fluids, no significant change in the emulsion breaking voltage, significant improvement in the yield point of drilling fluids and good stability of drilling fluids. The mud cake experiment, and artificial rock properties of poly (MMA-BA-ST), showed that the best-plugging effect was achieved at 0.5% addition, with a mud cake permeability of 6.3 × 10−5 mD, a plugging rate of 72.12%, an artificial core permeability of 4.1 × 10−4 mD and a plugging rate of 88.41%. The nano plugging agent poly (MMA-BA-ST) can enter the nanopore joints under the action of formation pressure to form an effective seal, thus reducing the effect of filtrate intrusion on well wall stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ag nanoparticle–decorated Ti3C2 nanosheets (AgNPs@Ti3C2 NSs) were facilely synthesized via a self-reduction approach, in which Ti3C2 NSs acted as both reductant and supporter. The AgNPs@Ti3C2 NS nanocomposite exhibited excellent peroxidase-like activity with o-phenylenediamine (OPD) and H2O2 as substrates. The catalytic behavior followed the typical Michaelis–Menten kinetics; Michaelis constant (Km) and maximum initial velocity (Vmax) for OPD were 0.263 mM and 43.2 × 10–8 M−1 s, indicating high affinity and high catalytic efficiency towards OPD. The catalytic mechanism was revealed to be an accelerated electron transfer process. Based on the inhibition effect on the peroxidase-like activity of AgNPs@Ti3C2 NSs, a simple, fast, and sensitive colorimetric method for detection of low-weight biothiols (cysteine (Cys), homocysteine (Hcy), and glutathione (GSH)) was developed by measuring the absorbance at 425 nm. The colorimetric method displayed wide linear range (50 nM to 50 μM for Cys, 10 nM to 250 μM for Hcy, 10 nM to 50 μM for GSH), low limit of detection (48.5 nM for Cys, 5.5 nM for Hcy, 7.0 nM for GSH), and good selectivity and short assay time (3 min). Moreover, the feasibility of this colorimetric sensor was demonstrated by accurately determining Cys in diluted human serum samples; good recovery (95.9–101.0%) and low relative standard deviations (2.8–4.9%) were obtained, showing great promise for point-of-care test in clinical samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Faddeev model is a fundamental model in relativistic quantum field theory used to model elementary particles. The Faddeev model can be regarded as a system of non-linear wave equations with both quasi-linear and semi-linear non-linearities, which is particularly challenging in two space dimensions. A key feature of the system is that there exist undifferentiated wave components in the non-linearities, which somehow causes extra difficulties. Nevertheless, the Cauchy problem in two space dimenions was tackled by Lei-Lin-Zhou (2011) with small, regular, and compactly supported initial data, using Klainerman's vector field method enhanced by a novel angular-radial anisotropic technique. In the present paper, the authors revisit the Faddeev model and remove the compactness assumptions on the initial data by Lei-Lin-Zhou (2011). The proof relies on an improved L2 norm estimate of the wave components in Theorem 3.1 and a decomposition technique for non-linearities of divergence form. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we consider the free boundary problem of incompressible elastodynamics, a coupling system of the Euler equations for the fluid motion with a transport equation for the deformation tensor. Under a natural force balance law on the free boundary with surface tension, we establish the well-posedness theory for a short time interval. Our method uses the vanishing viscosity limit by establishing a uniform a priori estimate with respect to the viscosity. As a byproduct, the inviscid limit of the incompressible viscoelasticity (the system coupled with the Navier-Stokes equations) is also justified. We point out that the framework of establishing the well-posedness for water wave equations simply does not apply here, even for obtaining a priori estimates. Based on a crucial new observation about the inherent structure of the elastic term on the free boundary, we successfully develop a new estimate for the pressure and then manage to apply an induction method to control normal derivatives. This strategy also allows us to establish the vanishing viscosity limit in standard Sobolev spaces, rather than only in the conormal ones (cf. Masmoudi and Rousset in Arch Ration Mech Anal 223(1):301–417, 2017; Wang and Xin in Vanishing viscosity and surface tension limits of incompressible viscous surface waves, 2015). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The durability of epoxy-concrete interface is a crucial factor for practical application of externally bonded fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) retrofit systems, particularly when the strengthened structure is subjected to severe environmental conditions. Given the demonstrated potential of nanoclays in enhancing engineering performance of polymers, this work assesses the beneficial effect of organic montmorillonite (OMMT) nano-modification of epoxy resin on the axial compressive properties of FRP-reinforced concrete under a 10 wt% sodium sulfate wet/dry (W/D) cycling environment. Three types of concrete samples were fabricated and tested: plain concrete cylinders, CFRP-reinforced concrete cylinders using unmodified vs. OMMT-modified epoxy resin as the adhesive, respectively. The optimal dosage of OMMT was determined to be 2 wt% through tensile and lap shear tests, as well as microscopic characterization of the fractured cross-section of the molded resin samples. This optimal dosage of OMMT allows the epoxy adhesive to achieve the highest values in the tensile strength (90.4 MPa), lap shear strength (80.0 MPa), T g (280.5°C) and water contact angle (115.1°). In the fracture section of epoxy resin with a 2 wt% OMMT, multiple microcracks developed and the OMMT nanoplatelets were well dispersed in the epoxy matrix. The laboratory testing program explored various W/D cycle periods. The experimental results indicate that the OMMT-modified epoxy resin significantly improved the mechanical properties and deformation resistance, altered the failure mode, and effectively delayed the strength degradation of the protected concrete. After 150 W/D cycling days, the OMMT-modified CFRP-confined concrete samples maintained their ductility coefficient and axial compressive strength at 3.58 and 123.5 MPa, respectively, 12.6 % and 9.1 % better than the common CFRP-confined samples. Combining these results with the residual axial compressive strength ratio, we propose an improved design model for calculating the axial compressive strength of CFRP-retrofitted concrete structures in sulfate-laden environments. This study demonstrates the beneficial role of OMMT in enhancing the epoxy adhesive and provides insights into the reinforcement of concrete structures by externally bonded CFRP in sulfate-rich environments. • Nano-OMMT enhances the microstructure and strength of epoxy adhesive. • Nano-modification increases the lap shear strength of CFRP-adhesive joints. • 2 wt% OMMT is the optimal dosage to enhance the epoxy resin in this study. • Nanomodification effectively delays the sulfate degradation of CFRP-concrete. • Developedn improved design model for CFRP-retrofitted concrete structures in sulfate-rich environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As operating temperatures and times continue to increase for solder joints with Ni pads, large voids inevitably form at the intermetallic compound (IMC) – solder interface when the IMC thickness nears 5 μm. This leads to a significant reduction of strength, thermal conductivity, and fatigue resistance, and in small joints, also to electromigration life degradation. We have identified the voiding root cause as the breakdown and subsequent outgassing of deposition-related Ni-oxo-hydroxide impurities, impractical to avoid during Ni commercial electroplating. This work takes as the starting point a successful post-deposition voiding-mitigation treatment with 24-hour annealing at 450 °C. It then explores the possibility of rendering this routine more practical by lowering the annealing temperature down to 250 °C. While that approach shows relatively limited success, an alternative strategy, involving treatment with hydrogen evolution reaction for one hour at room temperature, alone or in combination with thermal, leads to a substantial reduction in the voiding propensity. [Display omitted] • Ni-solder interfacial-void mitigation work reaffirms a hypothesized voiding mechanism. • Ni annealing for 24 h at temperatures 300–450 °C yields satisfactory void-elimination. • One-hour hydrogen evolution (HE) treatment at 25 °C leads to nearly void-free joints. • A combined thermal and HE treatment leads to completely void-free joints. • The void elimination outcome is assessed by optical microscopy, TGA, and XPS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phononic crystals (PnCs) are a kind of structural metamaterials characterized by unprecedented properties, such as elastic bandgaps and wave filtering. The properties of PnCs are decided by the structure of their periodic microstructural cells, making the design of the unit cell crucial. This paper proposes an efficient numerical approach named the condensed wave isogeometric analysis method (CWIGA) to accelerate the calculation of band structures. It combines the advantages of component mode synthesis (CMS) and isogeometric analysis (IGA) and fully exploits the periodicity of the structure by modeling just a unit cell. The incorporation of CMS expedites the computation of eigen − problems by reducing the inner degrees of freedom of the cell. And IGA enables accurately describing the geometry of the cell in analysis. The effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed approach are demonstrated through the classic benchmark problem. In the two − dimensional phononic crystals, the dimension of problem is reduced by 80%, and the CPU time for slowness surfaces is decreased by 90%. It accelerates the design of new PnCs, supporting the invention of innovative metamaterials. • CWIGA is proposed to accelerate the calculation of band structures. • It combines the advantages of component mode synthesis and isogeometric analysis. • It fully exploits the periodicity of the structure by modeling just a single cell. • In the 2D phononic crystals, the dimension of the problem is reduced by 80%. • The CPU time for slowness surfaces is decreased by 90%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Inventing a high efficiency hot wire narrow-gap dual beam laser welding (HW-NGDBLW). • NGDBLW changes the solidification behavior of weld pool and suppresses solidification cracks. • Laser plume fluctuates violently and directly heating the wire affects the feeding stability. • Laser plume heating special tungsten wire feeding nozzle to achieve hot wire welding. • HW-NGDBLW significantly improves the efficiency of deposited metal. Porosity, incomplete fusion, and solidification cracks are frequently encountered defects in narrow gap laser welding. How to effectively inhibit welding defects while significantly improving welding efficiency has become the key technical challenge of narrow gap laser welding. In this paper, a new method of high-efficiency narrow gap dual-beam laser welding utilizing laser plume energy radiation to achieve "quasi-hot wire" filling is proposed. The solidification behavior of the molten pool was controlled by dual-beam to realize the reliable suppression of welding solidification cracks. The wire feeding speed and stability of the filler wire were improved by developing a high temperature resistant tungsten wire feeding nozzle. The "quasi-hot wire" filling was realized by the heating effect of laser plume energy radiation on the tungsten wire feeding nozzle. The wire feeding stability, thermal radiation characteristics, laser plume characteristics and weld formation during the welding process were studied. The high-efficiency welding of 120 mm high-strength steel was realized and the micro-structure and mechanical properties of the joints were tested and analyzed. The results showed that the method could effectively suppress the defects of porosity, incomplete fusion and solidification cracks in narrow gap laser welding. Compared with the traditional narrow gap laser welding (NGLW), the laser power was reduced by 10%. The welding speed was doubled, and the wire filling efficiency was increased by more than 1 time. The mechanical properties of the welded joint were comparable to those of the traditional narrow gap welded joints, which solved the prominent contradiction between the quality and efficiency of narrow gap laser welding of thick-wall components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• HLOMPs could be removed by EPS, while HBOMPs could not. • EPS provided abundant binding sites for HLOMPs adsorption. • HLOMPs bound to EPS by hydrogen bonds, hydrophobic interactions and water bridges. • c -Cyts in EPS aided HLOMPs biotransformation. Extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) participate in the removal of organic micropollutants (OMPs), but the primary pathways of removal and detailed mechanisms remain elusive. We evaluated the effect of EPS on removal for 16 distinct chemical classes of OMPs during anaerobic digestion (AD). The results showed that hydrophobic OMPs (HBOMPs) could not be removed by EPS, while hydrophilic OMPs (HLOMPs) were amenable to removal via adsorption and biotransformation of EPS. The adsorption and biotransformation of HLOMPs by EPS accounted up to 19.4 ± 0.9 % and 6.0 ± 0.8 % of total removal, respectively. Further investigations into the adsorption and biotransformation mechanisms of HLOMPs by EPS were conducted utilizing spectral, molecular dynamics simulation, and electrochemical analysis. The results suggested that EPS provided abundant binding sites for the adsorption of HLOMPs. The binding of HLOMPs to tryptophan-like proteins in EPS formed nonfluorescent complexes. Hydrogen bonds, hydrophobic interactions and water bridges were key to the binding processes and helped stabilize the complexes. The biotransformation of HLOMPs by EPS may be attributed to the presence of extracellular redox active components (c -type cytochromes (c -Cyts), c -Cyts-bound flavins). This study enhanced the comprehension for the role of EPS on the OMPs removal in anaerobic wastewater treatment. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We prove a logarithmic improvement of the Caffarelli-Kohn-Nirenberg partial regularity theorem for the Navier-Stokes equations. The key idea is to find a quantitative counterpart for the absolute continuity of the dissipation energy using a pigeonholing argument. Based on the same method, for any suitable weak solution, we show the existence of intervals of regularity in one spatial direction with length depending exponentially on the natural local energies. Then, we give two applications of the latter result in the axially symmetric case. The first one is a local regularity criterion for suitable weak solutions with small swirl. The second one is a slightly improved one-point CKN criterion which implies all known (slightly supercritical) Type I regularity results in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The damage self-diagnosis function puts forward higher requirements for the research and development of intelligent structural health monitoring, and in most cases, it is necessary to monitor the load first, especially the monitoring of the impact load. The development of smart materials and structures is based on advanced sensing systems. In order to achieve this purpose, a high-speed demodulation system based on fiber grating with double long period grating is studied, and then, a damage self-diagnosis system based on fiber grating is constructed. The system can realize the strain distribution and impact load monitoring of the structure. After quantitative analysis of the signal, an advanced information identification method is used to realize the impact load location. This paper focuses on the data preprocessing process of bridge health monitoring. In view of the characteristics of high data complexity, large amount of data, and many noise components in the process of structural monitoring, this paper adopts basic data cleaning for the original data set, including data dimensionless and missing value processing. Based on the digital twin technology, the composition of the digital twin KNN model of bridge swivel construction monitoring and management is analyzed, and the digital twin system architecture of bridge swivel construction monitoring and management is built. The function display of the monitoring platform, including setting a variety of permission login modes, displaying BIM model, geographic information, and weather environment; monitoring data entry and addition, deletion, and modification; data chart analysis and export; and email warning, to verify the feasibility of the application of digital twin technology in bridge monitoring, and the advantages of the intelligent monitoring system are obtained. The strain error is found to be less than 15.48 μℇ in the research, which is within the range of the fiber grating. This method can effectively monitor and forecast these distributed, nonlinear, strongly coupled, multivariable, and time-varying complex structures. By monitoring bridges, the original monitoring data of bridges can be obtained, and scientific research data and analysis services can be provided. In particular, the damage caused by shock and vibration is monitored, so that the accumulation of damage can be detected before it threatens the safety of the structure, so that the damaged structure can be repaired in time to ensure the safe operation of the structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spatial data conflation is aimed at matching and merging objects in two datasets into a more comprehensive one. Starting from the "map assignment problem" in the 1980s, optimized conflation models treat feature matching as a natural optimization problem of minimizing certain metrics, such as the total discrepancy. One complication in optimized conflation is that heterogeneous datasets can represent geographic features differently. Features can correspond to target features in the other dataset either on a one-to-one basis (forming full matches) or on a many-to-one basis (forming partial matches). Traditional models consider either full matching or partial matches exclusively. This dichotomy has several issues. Firstly, full matching models are limited and cannot capture any partial match. Secondly, partial matching models treat full matches just as partial matches, and they are more prone to admit false matches. Thirdly, existing conflation models may introduce conflicting directional matches. This paper presents a new model that captures both full and partial matches simultaneously. This allows us to impose structural constraints differently on full/partial matches and enforce the consistency between directional matches. Experimental results show that the new model outperforms conventional optimized conflation models in terms of precision (89.2%), while achieving a similar recall (93.2%). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Muskmelon pedicel is the fruit stalk of muskmelon and one of the traditional Chinese medicines, which can be used to treat jaundice, diabetes and neuropathy. However, in recent years, agricultural soil heavy metal cadmium (Cd) pollution has become serious, coupled with the imperfect sales management of herbal medicine, increasing the potential health risk of contaminated herbal medicine in the human body. In this paper, the comprehensive quality of contaminated muskmelon was tested. The results showed that Cd stress significantly inhibited the growth of muskmelon plants, reduced the anthocyanin and chlorophyll contents, and increased the fruit size and sweetness of muskmelon. In addition, heavy metal Cd can also cause oxidative stress in plants, resulting in a series of changes in antioxidant enzyme activities. In the experimental group, the content of polyphenols and saponins increased by 27.02% and 23.92%, respectively, after high-concentration Cd treatment, which may be a mechanism of plant resistance to stress. This paper reveals that the content of bioactive substances in Chinese herbal medicine is high, but the harm in heavy metals cannot be underestimated, which should be paid attention to by relevant departments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The welding solidification crack is a common welding defect occurring in the narrow gap laser welded high-strength steel joint, which poses a detrimental effect in reducing the weld quality. However, the relationship between the weld geometric characteristics and the metallurgical characteristics with the solidification crack of the narrow gap laser weld is still unclear. In this study, a 20-mm-thick 10Ni5CrMoV high-strength steel with a root gap of 3 mm and groove angle of 1º was used to analyze the single-pass welding process of narrow gap laser welding using high-frequency beam oscillation. The correlation between the weld form factor and the welding solidification crack was discussed, alongside with the clarification on the influence of the welding process parameter on the welding solidification crack, the aim of which was to analyze the causes for the formation of welding solidification crack and explore the effective ways to suppress it. The results showed that the influence of welding process parameters on welding solidification crack could be attributed to change in the form factor of the weld and weld metal solidification crystallization characteristics. The smaller the weld form factor, the larger the area of the opposite crystal growth in the upper part of the weld cross section, and the higher the tendency toward solidification crack formation. Furthermore, the higher welding speed was also likely to have columnar grains with a larger angle of crystallization direction with the centerline. This resulted in a higher tendency of solidification crack formation. Under the test conditions used in this study, a weld form factor φ = 0.8 was considered effective for controlling welding solidification crack. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Welding solidification cracks are considered as critical defects in narrow gap laser welding, and it is of utmost importance to develop reliable measures to suppress them. The fundamental approach to curbing solidification cracks lies in controlling the solidification behavior of the weld. A novel narrow gap laser welding technology is proposed to address this issue by controlling the solidification of the weld with double laser beam in this paper. The influence of process parameters on the suppression of welding solidification cracks is explored. Additionally, the mechanism behind the dual-beam laser's ability to suppress solidification cracks are comprehensively examined through weld formation, molten pool solidification behavior and microstructure evolution. The findings demonstrate that the energy matching of the dual-beam and the spacing between the beams are crucial factors that impact the effectiveness of welding crack suppression. When the beam spacing is greater than 6 mm, this method begins to work on suppressing welding solidification cracks. Three distinct effective modes of crack suppression are identified, namely molten pool expansion, gradient solidification, and weld remelting. Among these, the gradient solidification mode proves to be the most reliable method for suppressing welding solidification cracks, as it facilitates a transformation in the molten pool's solidification mode from "enclosed" solidification to "sequential" solidification. Compared to conventional single-beam Narrow Gap Laser Welding, this approach not only effectively suppresses welding solidification cracks but also improves welding efficiency by nearly doubling the filling speed. [Display omitted] • Inventing a narrow gap laser welding method based on dual-beam gradient control of weld solidification (NGDBLW). • Developing an in-situ observation method for molten pool solidification in weld cross-section. • NGDBLW has three effective modes to inhibit welding solidification cracks. • NGDBLW changes the growth mode of columnar crystals and enhances the tendency of growth along the y-axis. • NGDBLW significantly improves the efficiency of deposited metal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Offsite construction involves the prefabrication of construction components in a factory environment, followed by transportation to the construction site for assembly. In planning the sequences for construction tasks, a push approach can maximize the offsite manufacturing capacity, while a pull approach can achieve just-in-time delivery. Both approaches need to consider the logical constraints and resources of offsite construction processes. This complexity fuels a debate of the effectiveness of push- and pull-based planning, highlighting the necessity to study the impacts of these approaches on planning. This study utilizes Discrete-Event Simulation (DES) and Agent-Based Modeling (ABM) approaches to compare planning outcomes for offsite construction. The results demonstrate that the pull-based planning approach resulted in an overall 12.6% reduction in project completion time and an 80.3% reduction in product waiting time, demonstrating pull-based planning as a more efficient solution for offsite construction planning. • A comparison of the impacts of push- and pull-based planning in offsite construction. • A hybrid DES and ABM simulation modeling of the offsite construction supply chains. • Discussions on how to incorporate pull-based planning in the offsite construction industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SUMMARY: Gene expression can be modulated by epigenetic mechanisms, including chromatin modifications and small regulatory RNAs. These pathways are unevenly distributed within a cell and usually take place in specific intracellular regions. Unfortunately, the fundamental driving force and biological relevance of such spatial differentiation is largely unknown. Liquid–liquid phase separation (LLPS) is a natural propensity of demixing liquid phases and has been recently suggested to mediate the formation of biomolecular condensates that are relevant to diverse cellular processes. LLPS provides a mechanistic explanation for the self‐assembly of subcellular structures by which the efficiency and specificity of certain cellular reactions are achieved. In plants, LLPS has been observed for several key factors in the chromatin and small RNA pathways. For example, the formation of facultative and obligate heterochromatin involves the LLPS of multiple relevant factors. In addition, phase separation is observed in a set of proteins acting in microRNA biogenesis and the small interfering RNA pathway. In this Focused Review, we highlight and discuss the recent findings regarding phase separation in the epigenetic mechanisms of plants. Significance Statement: Biomolecular condensate formation is mediated by liquid–liquid phase separation and is critical for various biological processes in both plants and animals. We review phase separation occurring in plants with a specific focus on the chromatin and small RNA pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study of the seasonality and overall quantity and quality of Chinese patenting, including international comparisons, suggests that government planning and annual targets encouraged gaming of the system, which increased patent counts but negatively affected patent quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In northern Canada, due to the harsh weather and high labor cost, contractors prefer to using modular construction approach to complete heavy industrial projects, where mobile crane are used for onsite module installations. In current practice, module lifts are often planned manually by rigging engineers. With a large number of heavy lifts to be analyzed per project, the planning process is tedious and error prone. This paper represents a data-driven crane management system with three features: (1) identification of design errors in lifting planning; (2) responses to design changes; and (3) dynamic 3D trajectory-based lifting visualization. It covers two types of crane operations: pick from a fixed location, and pick and walking operation. This developed system helps reduce lifting time and improves safety and quality, where various lifting scenarios need to be analyzed. The system has been implemented at a collaborator company for demonstration and validation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To study the effects of Yiqi Huoxue (YQHX) granules on platelet activation and aggregation induced by thrombin. Methods. The effect of YQHX on platelet aggregation rate was detected by platelet aggregation instrument; the effect of YQHX on thrombosis time was observed by the mouse mesentery thrombosis model. DAMI cells were induced to transform into platelet-like granules using PMA, and the effects of SCH (PAR-1 inhibitor) on thrombin-induced changes in platelet intracellular calcium concentration, PAR-1 protein expression, and phosphorylation of MAPK were examined. Results. Compared with the control group, the platelet aggregation rate, PAR-1 protein expression, phosphorylation of ERK1/2, and p38 protein in the YQHX group decreased (P < 0.05), and there was no significant difference between the YQHX + SCH group and YQHX group (P > 0.05). Conclusion. YQHX suppresses the platelet activation induced by thrombin by inhibiting PAR-1 expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High‐yield and large‐scale synthesis are highly demanded for the studies of gold nanoclusters. We developed a "cluster from cluster" approach to assemble gold nanoclusters with preformed atomically precise Au13 precursors. This facile approach has proved to be very effective in the synthesis of the well‐known magic cluster [Au25(SR)18]−, which could prepare the target cluster in high yield (overall yield up to ≈100 %) at large scale (gram‐scale based on gold). This method can be applied in the synthesis of 10 Au25 clusters with different R groups. This work presents an important approach that may be extended to high‐yield and large‐scale synthesis of other metal nanoclusters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High‐yield and large‐scale synthesis are highly demanded for the studies of gold nanoclusters. We developed a "cluster from cluster" approach to assemble gold nanoclusters with preformed atomically precise Au13 precursors. This facile approach has proved to be very effective in the synthesis of the well‐known magic cluster [Au25(SR)18]−, which could prepare the target cluster in high yield (overall yield up to ≈100 %) at large scale (gram‐scale based on gold). This method can be applied in the synthesis of 10 Au25 clusters with different R groups. This work presents an important approach that may be extended to high‐yield and large‐scale synthesis of other metal nanoclusters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: To address the problem of data missing caused by equipment faults, abnormal transmission, and improper storage in data acquisition systems of photovoltaic (PV) power plants, we hereby propose a method for PV power missing data filling based on multiple matching and a long short‐term memory network. First, test samples were divided into three different weather sequences according to the weather type. According to the missing data types, the test samples were divided into two major categories, namely partial missing and complete missing. Each resulting set continued to be divided into four subsets according to the missing proportion. Then, a 450‐day data source with 15‐minutes intervals was established. The maximal information coefficient was used to reduce the data source and the redundant data space. Finally, coupling meteorological factors were eliminated according to the mutual information theory. A relationship between meteorological factors and short‐wave radiation was developed to improve multiple matching accuracy. The correctness of the proposed method and its validity were verified by filling missing power data from a PV power station in Jilin, China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gold nanoclusters with surface open sites are crucial for practical applications in catalysis. We have developed a surface geometric mismatch strategy by using mixed ligands of different type of hindrance. When bulky phosphine Ph3P and planar dipyridyl amine (Hdpa) are simultaneously used, steric repulsion between the ligands will reduce the ligand coverage of gold clusters. A well‐defined access granted gold nanocluster [Au23(Ph3P)10(dpa)2Cl](SO3CF3)2 (Au23, dpa=dipyridylamido) has been successfully synthesized. Single crystal structural determination reveals that Au23 has eight uncoordinated gold atoms in the shape of a distorted bicapped triangular prism. The accessibility of the exposed Au atoms has been confirmed quantitatively by luminescent titration with 2‐naphthalenethiol. This cluster has excellent performance toward selective oxidation of benzyl alcohol to benzaldehyde and demonstrates excellent stability due to the protection of negatively charged multidentate ligand dpa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gold nanoclusters with surface open sites are crucial for practical applications in catalysis. We have developed a surface geometric mismatch strategy by using mixed ligands of different type of hindrance. When bulky phosphine Ph3P and planar dipyridyl amine (Hdpa) are simultaneously used, steric repulsion between the ligands will reduce the ligand coverage of gold clusters. A well‐defined access granted gold nanocluster [Au23(Ph3P)10(dpa)2Cl](SO3CF3)2 (Au23, dpa=dipyridylamido) has been successfully synthesized. Single crystal structural determination reveals that Au23 has eight uncoordinated gold atoms in the shape of a distorted bicapped triangular prism. The accessibility of the exposed Au atoms has been confirmed quantitatively by luminescent titration with 2‐naphthalenethiol. This cluster has excellent performance toward selective oxidation of benzyl alcohol to benzaldehyde and demonstrates excellent stability due to the protection of negatively charged multidentate ligand dpa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Beta-blocker (BB) is suggested to have anticancer efficacy. However, the potential influence of BB use on overall survival (OS) in patients with lung cancer remains undetermined. We aimed to evaluate the above relationship in an updated meta-analysis. Methods: Observational studies comparing OS between users and non-users of BB with lung cancer were identified by search of PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane's Library. A random-effect model was used to pool the results. Results: Ten retrospective cohort studies with 30870 patients were included. Overall, BB use was not associated with significantly improved OS in lung cancer (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.02, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.98 to 1.06, p = 0.33) with moderate heterogeneity (I2 = 29%). Stratified analyses showed similar results in patients with non-small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer, in studies with BB use before and after the diagnosis of lung cancer, and in studies with or without adjustment of smoking. Use of BB was associated with improved OS in patients with stage III lung cancer (HR = 0.91, 95% CI: 0.85 to 0.98, p = 0.02) and in patients that did not receive surgery resection (HR = 0.78, 95% CI: 0.64 to 0.96, p = 0.02), while use of non-selective BB was associated with worse OS (HR = 1.14, 95% CI: 1.01 to 1.28, p = 0.03). Conclusions: This meta-analysis of retrospective cohort studies does not support a significant association between BB use and improved OS in lung cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To ensure the safe and efficient excavation of ultradeep foundation pits in a complex urban environment, the ultradeep foundation pit excavation project of Liuguangmen Urban Complex in Guiyang City was taken as the study point. A high-efficiency blasting method was proposed for the excavation of vibration-isolating slot and electronic detonators, and a three-dimensional spatial calculation model of the foundation pit structure was established. In addition, the field test and numerical simulation of the blasting vibration were developed. The feasibility of the high-efficiency blasting method was demonstrated, and the propagation law of the dynamic response characteristic parameters of the structure was explored using an electronic detonator and vibration-isolating slot. The results show that the electronic detonator carried out peak shaving within the group, unloading waves between the groups, and the blocking effect of the vibration-isolating slot, and all these effectively reduced the peak stress and peak particle vibration velocity, evenly distributed the vibration velocity, and guaranteed the safety of the surrounding existing buildings, proving the feasibility of the efficient blasting method. There is a "wall effect" at the supporting pile, whose propagation velocity is lower than that inside the rock mass, and the PPV is radial X > tangential Y > vertical Z. The peak values of stress, strain, and PPV all decrease with increasing supporting pile height, and there is an inflection point at 20 m. The internal nodes of the pile reciprocate without sharp change and failure in displacement. The peak displacement of different nodes is in the order X > Y > Z with increasing pile height, and the maximum peak value is 0.08 mm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To ensure the safe and efficient excavation of ultradeep foundation pits in a complex urban environment, the ultradeep foundation pit excavation project of Liuguangmen Urban Complex in Guiyang City was taken as the study point. A high-efficiency blasting method was proposed for the excavation of vibration-isolating slot and electronic detonators, and a three-dimensional spatial calculation model of the foundation pit structure was established. In addition, the field test and numerical simulation of the blasting vibration were developed. The feasibility of the high-efficiency blasting method was demonstrated, and the propagation law of the dynamic response characteristic parameters of the structure was explored using an electronic detonator and vibration-isolating slot. The results show that the electronic detonator carried out peak shaving within the group, unloading waves between the groups, and the blocking effect of the vibration-isolating slot, and all these effectively reduced the peak stress and peak particle vibration velocity, evenly distributed the vibration velocity, and guaranteed the safety of the surrounding existing buildings, proving the feasibility of the efficient blasting method. There is a "wall effect" at the supporting pile, whose propagation velocity is lower than that inside the rock mass, and the PPV is radial X > tangential Y > vertical Z. The peak values of stress, strain, and PPV all decrease with increasing supporting pile height, and there is an inflection point at 20 m. The internal nodes of the pile reciprocate without sharp change and failure in displacement. The peak displacement of different nodes is in the order X > Y > Z with increasing pile height, and the maximum peak value is 0.08 mm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the synchronizable system is defined and studied for a coupled system of wave equations with the same wave speed or with different wave speeds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pattern recognition technology is applied to bridge health monitoring to solve abnormalities in bridge health monitoring data. Testing is of great significance. For abnormal data detection, this paper proposes a single variable pattern anomaly detection method based on KNN distance and a multivariate time series anomaly detection method based on the covariance matrix and singular value decomposition. This method first performs compression and segmentation on the original data sequence based on important points to obtain multiple time subsequences, then calculates the pattern distance between each time subsequence according to the similarity measure of the time series, and finally selects the abnormal mode according to the KNN method. In this paper, the reliability of the method is verified through experiments. The experimental results in this paper show that the 5/7/9 / 11-nearest neighbors point to a specific number of nodes. Combined with the original time series diagram corresponding to the time zone view, in this paragraph in the time, the value of the temperature sensor No. 6 stays at 32.5 degrees Celsius for up to one month. The detection algorithm controls the number of MTS subsequences through sliding windows and sliding intervals. The execution time is not large, and the value of K is different. Although the calculated results are different, most of the most obvious abnormal sequences can be detected. The results of this paper provide a certain reference value for the study of abnormal detection of bridge health monitoring data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Diagnosis of metastatic castrate resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) with current biomarkers is difficult and often results in unnecessary invasive procedures as well as over-diagnosis and over-treatment. There are a number of prognostic biomarkers for CRPC, but there are no validated predictive biomarkers to guide in clinical decision-making. Specific biomarkers are needed that enable to understand the natural history and complex biology of this heterogeneous malignancy, identify early response to treatment outcomes and to identify the population of men most likely to benefit from the treatment. In this systematic review, we discuss the existing literature for the role of biomarkers in CRPC and how they aid in the prognosis, treatment selection and survival outcomes. Methods: We performed a literature search on PubMed and EMBASE databases from January 2015 through February 2020 in accordance to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis guidelines. Articles were assessed to identify relevant observational studies and randomized controlled trials regarding biomarkers which aid in identifying progression to mCRPC as well as predictive biomarkers which help in treatment selection. Results: We identified 3640 number of hits of which 58 articles were found to be relevant. Here we addressed biomarkers in the context of prognosis, prediction and patient selection of therapy. These biomarkers were found to be effective as prognostic or predictive factors under variety of conditions. The higher levels for all these biomarkers were associated with shorter median OS and sometimes PFS. Lower amounts of biomarkers in serum or urine were associated with prolonged survival outcomes, longer time to CRPC development or CRPC progression and longer median follow-up irrespective of any therapy. Conclusion: We observed that the biomarkers included in our study predicted clinically relevant survival outcomes and treatment exposure. Though the current biomarkers are prognostic when measured prior to initiating treatment, not all are validated as predictive markers in post treatment setting. A greater understanding of biomarkers in CRPC is need of the hour for development of more personalized approach to maximize benefit and minimize harm in men with CRPC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aspartate transcarbamoylase (ATCase) is a key enzyme which regulates and catalyzes the second step of de novo pyrimidine synthesis in all organisms. Escherichia coli ATCase is a prototypic enzyme regulated by both product feedback and substrate cooperativity, whereas human ATCase is a potential anticancer target. Through structural and biochemical analyses, we revealed that R167/130's loop region in ATCase serves as a gatekeeper for the active site, playing a new and unappreciated regulatory role in the catalytic cycle of ATCase. Based on virtual compound screening simultaneously targeting the new regulatory region and active site of human ATCase, two compounds were identified to exhibit strong inhibition of ATCase activity, proliferation of multiple cancer cell lines, and growth of xenograft tumors. Our work has not only revealed a previously unknown regulatory region of ATCase that helps uncover the catalytic and regulatory mechanism of ATCase, but also successfully guided the identification of new ATCase inhibitors for anticancer drug development using a dual‐targeting strategy. Database: Structure data are available in Protein Data Bank under the accession numbers: 6KJ7 (G166P ecATCase), 6KJ8 (G166P ecATCase‐holo), 6KJ9 (G128/130A ecATCase), and 6KJA (G128/130A ecATCase‐holo). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Transposable elements (TEs) are mobile genetic elements that can impair the host genome stability and integrity. It has been well documented that activated transposons in plants are suppressed by small interfering (si) RNAs. However, transposon repression by the cytoplasmic RNA surveillance system is unknown.Here, we show that mRNA deadenylation is critical for controlling transposons in Arabidopsis. Trimming of poly(A) tail is a rate‐limiting step that precedes the RNA decay and is primarily mediated by the CARBON CATABOLITE REPRESSION 4 (CCR4)‐NEGATIVE ON TATA‐LESS (NOT) complex.We found that the loss of CCR4a leads to strong derepression and mobilization of TEs in Arabidopsis. Intriguingly, CCR4a regulates a largely distinct set of TEs from those controlled by RNA‐dependent RNA Polymerase 6 (RDR6), a key enzyme that produces cytoplasmic siRNAs. This indicates that the cytoplasmic RNA quality control mechanism targets the TEs that are poorly recognized by the previously well‐characterized RDR6‐mediated pathway, and thereby augments the host genome stability.Our study suggests a hitherto unknown mechanism for transposon repression mediated by RNA deadenylation and unveils a complex nature of the host's strategy to maintain the genome integrity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the terahertz (THz) radiation mechanism of the layered tin sulfide (SnS2) crystal via THz emission spectroscopy. Under non-resonant excitation, THz generation from SnS2 is mainly due to the optical rectification effect, which is verified by the azimuthal angle, polarization angle, and pump fluence dependence of the THz signals. Further incident angle dependent THz signals suggest that the optical progress happened at the surface of SnS2 with both in-plane and out-of-plane photon-induced dipoles. This work puts forward THz emission spectroscopy as a noninvasive characterization tool for the in-plane and out-of-plane photon-induced dipoles in layered materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The well-known Constantin–Lax–Majda (CLM) equation, an important toy model of the 3D Euler equations without convection, can develop finite time singularities (Constantin et al. in Commun Pure Appl Math 38:715–724, 1985). De Gregorio modified the CLM model by adding a convective term (De Gregorio in Math Methods Appl Sci 19(15):1233–1255, 1996), which is known important for fluid dynamics (Hou and Lei in Commun Pure Appl Math 62(4):501–564, 2009; Okamoto in J Math Soc Jpn 65(4):1079–1099, 2013). Presented are two results on the De Gregorio model. The first one is the global well-posedness of such a model for general initial data with non-negative (or non-positive) vorticity which is based on a newly discovered conserved quantity. This verifies the numerical observations for such class of initial data. The second one is an exponential stability result of ground states, which is similar to the recent significant work of Jia et al. (Ration Mech Anal, 231:1269–1304, 2019), with the zero mean constraint on the initial data being removable. The novelty of the method is the introduction of the new solution space H DW together with a new basis and an effective inner product of H DW . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the caustics method and the experimental system of digital laser dynamic caustics, the model experiment of drop hammer impact loading was carried out, and the effect of the defect shape (circular and rectangular) and the filling material (air, epoxy, and silicone rubber) on the propagation behavior of the running crack was investigated. The experimental results show that, under the impact loading, the running crack initiates at the end of precrack and propagates toward the defect. After the running crack connects to the defect, it accumulates energy within a certain period before initiating again at the upper edge of the defect. Subsequently, only one running crack is formed at the upper edge of the circular defect, but two running cracks are formed at the upper edge of the rectangular defect. The defect shape and the filling material have a significant effect not only on the energy accumulation time of the running crack at the defect but also on the stress intensity factor when initiating at the defect. The effect degree of the defect shape on the running crack propagation behavior is in the following order: circular defect > rectangular defect, whereas the effect degree of the filling material on the running crack propagation behavior follows this order: air > silicone rubber > epoxy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, an array-based in situ fluorescence assay is proposed for high-throughput analysis and localization of multiplex matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) activities in cell monolayers and tissue sections. Five specific MMPs (MMP-2, -3, -7, -9, and -14) peptide substrates containing FAM/Dabcyl fluorescent resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair are directly spotted on the surface of cell monolayers or tissue sections, and hydrolyzed by localized MMPs, resulting in fluorescence recovery of FAM. MMPs activities are determined by the fluorescence intensity of stained cells/tissues due to the cellular internalization of peptide fragments with FAM moiety. We demonstrate that the array-based in situ fluorescence assay is suitable for identifying the MMPs expression patterns of cells, as well as determining the secreted MMPs activities in cell monolayer with high sensitivity (as low as hundreds of cells per square centimeter). The feasibility of the assay is further confirmed by evaluating inhibition potencies of six compounds toward five MMPs. Profiling of five MMPs activities in the localized parts of 32 thyroid tissues is performed without separation or extraction procedures, demonstrating the good practicality of the method. Image 1 • An array-based in situ fluorescence assay is proposed for profiling multiplex matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) activities. • Five secreted MMPs activities can be determined with high sensitivity. • Inhibition potencies of MMPs inhibitors can be evaluated at cell level. • Relative activities of five MMPs in 32 thyroid tissues were well profiled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the inviscid limit of the two‐dimensional incompressible viscoelasticity, which is a system coupling a Navier‐Stokes equation with a transport equation for the deformation tensor. The existence of global smooth solutions near the equilibrium with a fixed positive viscosity was known since the work of [35]. The inviscid case was solved recently by the second author [28]. While the latter was solely based on the techniques from the studies of hyperbolic equations, and hence the two‐dimensional problem is in general more challenging than that in higher dimensions, the former was relied crucially upon a dissipative mechanism. Indeed, after a symmetrization and a linearization around the equilibrium, the system of the incompressible viscoelasticity reduces to an incompressible system of damped wave equations for both the fluid velocity and the deformation tensor. These two approaches are not compatible. In this paper, we prove global existence of solutions, uniformly in both time t ∈ [0, +∞) and viscosity μ ≥ 0. This allows us to justify in particular the vanishing viscosity limit for all time. In order to overcome difficulties coming from the incompatibility between the purely hyperbolic limiting system and the systems with additional parabolic viscous perturbations, we introduce in this paper a rather robust method that may apply to a wide class of physical systems of similar nature. Roughly speaking, the method works in the two‐dimensional case whenever the hyperbolic system satisfies intrinsically a "strong null condition." For dimensions not less than three, the usual null condition is sufficient for this method to work. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spatial data conflation involves the matching and merging of counterpart features in multiple datasets. It has applications in practical spatial analysis in a variety of fields. Conceptually, the feature‐matching problem can be viewed as an optimization problem of seeking a match plan that minimizes the total discrepancy between datasets. In this article, we propose a powerful yet efficient optimization model for feature matching based on the classic network flow problem in operations research. We begin with a review of the existing optimization‐based methods and point out limitations of current models. We then demonstrate how to utilize the structure of the network‐flow model to approach the feature‐matching problem, as well as the important factors for designing optimization‐based conflation models. The proposed model can be solved by general linear programming solvers or network flow solvers. Due to the network flow formulation we adopt, the proposed model can be solved in polynomial time. Computational experiments show that the proposed model significantly outperforms existing optimization‐based conflation models. We conclude with a summary of findings and point out directions of future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of the microbial community and dynamics on the efficiency of a methanogenic co-digestion system that treats canned coffee processing wastewater and waste activated sludge by means of an anaerobic membrane bioreactor, were investigated and analyzed. The co-digestion system had a chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiency ≥90%, and a COD to methane ratio ≥85%. Phyla Synergistetes , Firmicutes , Proteobacteria and Ca. OP9 were dominant bacteria throughout the investigation, and the main contributors to the hydrolysis and fermentation processes. The degradation paths and functional microbes indicated that genera Caldicoprobacter and Clostridium were the main contributors in the hydrolysis process, while genus Anaerobaculum dominated the acidogenesis and acetogenesis at the most efficient hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 10 d (HRT10). The dominant methanogenesis varied from genus Methanosarcina (71.1%, HRT10) to Methanothermobacter (56.4%, HRT3), indicating a transition from acetic methanogenesis to hydrogen-dependent methanogenesis. Furthermore, a microbial analysis indicated that Acinetobacter was the main contributor to caffeine degradation in this system. This also appears to be the first time that Acinetobacter is reported to be capable of degrading caffeine in the anaerobic condition. Image 1 • Canned coffee wastewater and waste activated sludge were used for co-digestion. • Efficient methanation was sustained at a high OLR of 9.18 g COD/L/d • Functional microbes for specific organics degradation were identified. • Anaerobaculum is the dominant bacteria at the acidogenesis and acetogenesis stages. • Acinetobacter is capable of degrading caffeine in the anaerobic condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]