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Molecular dynamics simulations have become increasingly important in understanding the microscopic mechanisms of various molecular systems. However, the high energy barriers in complicated molecules often make it difficult to observe events of interest within a reasonable timescale. To address this issue, researchers have developed a variety of enhanced sampling methods to explore configuration space by adding bias potentials along the slowly changing collective variables (CVs). In this study, we have developed a new tool that combines slow feature analysis and biasing-enhanced sampling methods to identify effective CVs and enhance the sampling efficiency of configuration space. We have demonstrated the effectiveness of this tool through three general examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Humans have the ability to rapidly extract summary statistics from object groupings through a specific capability known as ensemble coding. Previous literature has reported that this ability can become biased by prior perceptual experiences at the individual level. However, it remains unknown whether interpersonal prior information could also bias ensemble perception through a co-representation process. Experiment 1 found that participants' summary estimations were biased toward their co-actor's stimuli. Experiment 2 confirmed a causal relationship between the bias effect and the co-representation process by showing a reduction in biased estimation after pairing participants with an out-group partner. These findings extend the sources of prior information exploited by humans during perceptual average from individual-level information (i.e., self-tasks) to interpersonal-level information (i.e., co-actor's tasks). More specifically, interpersonal prior information is shown to act in a top-down and implicit manner, biasing ensemble perception. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Problem: Currently, there is a variety of evidence linking the gut microbiota to changes in sex hormones. In contrast, the causal relationship between SHBG, a carrier of sex hormones, and the gut microbiota is unclear. Method of Study: Bidirectional two‐sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis was used to detect the causal effect between SHBG and the gut microbiome. Summary statistics of genome‐wide association studies (GWASs) for the gut microbiome and SHBG were obtained from public datasets. Inverse‐variance weighting (IVW), weighted median, weighted mode, MR‐Egger and simple mode methods were used to operate the MR analysis. F‐statistics and sensitivity analyses performed to evaluate bias and reliability. Results: When we set gut microbiome as exposure and SHBG as outcome, we identified nine causal relationships. In males, Coprobacter (PIVW = 2.01 × 10−6), Ruminococcus2 (PIVW = 3.40 × 10−5), Barnesiella (PIVW = 2.79 × 10−2), Actinobacteria (PIVW = 3.25 × 10−2) and Eubacterium fissicatena groups (PIVW = 3.64 × 10−2) were associated with lower SHBG levels; Alphaproteobacteria (PIVW = 1.61 × 10−2) is associated with higher SHBG levels. In females, Lachnoclostridium (PIVW = 9.75 × 10−3) and Defluviitaleaceae UCG011 (PIVW = 3.67 × 10−2) were associated with higher SHBG levels; Victivallaceae (PIVW = 2.23 × 10−2) was associated with lower SHBG levels. According to the results of reverse MR analysis, three significant causal effect of SHBG was found on gut microbiota. In males, Dorea (PIVW = 4.17 × 10−2) and Clostridiales (PIVW = 4.36 × 10−2) were associated with higher SHBG levels. In females, Lachnoclostridium (PIVW = 7.44 × 10−4) was associated with higherr SHBG levels. No signifcant heterogeneity of instrumental variables or horizontal pleiotropy was found in bidirectional two‐sample MR analysis. Conclusions: This study may provide new insights into the causal relationship between the gut microbiome and sex hormone‐binding protein levels, as well as new treatment and prevention strategies for diseases such as abnormal changes in sex hormones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silicon carbide (SiC), as a widely used material, has great properties. To improve the flowability of ultrafine silicon carbide slurry, this study used sodium humate, tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH), and N-(β-monoaminoethyl)-γ-aminopropyltrimethyl(ethoxysilane) (KH792) to modify the ultrafine silicon carbide powder produced by Qingzhou Micro Powder Company. The effects of different modifiers on improving the flowability of ultrafine silicon carbide slurry were investigated by means of viscosity tests, sedimentation experiments, and SEM observations. Their modification mechanisms were investigated by means of zeta potential tests, XPS tests, and so on. In this paper, the initial modification of SiC was carried out with KH792, followed by the secondary modification with anionic and cationic modifiers (tetramethylammonium hydroxide and sodium humate), and the optimal modification conditions were investigated by means of a viscosity test, which showed that the lowest viscosity of the modified SiC reached 0.076 Pa·s and that the absolute maximum value of the zeta potential increased from 47.5 at the time of no modification to 63.7 (maximum values) at the time of modification. This means it has an improved surface charge, which improves dispersion. The adsorption results of the modifier on the silicon carbide surface were also demonstrated by the XPS test results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pod shell thickness (PST) is an important agronomic trait of peanut because it affects the ability of shells to resist pest infestations and pathogen attacks, while also influencing the peanut shelling process. However, very few studies have explored the genetic basis of PST. Results: An F2 segregating population derived from a cross between the thick-shelled cultivar Yueyou 18 (YY18) and the thin-shelled cultivar Weihua 8 (WH8) was used to identify the quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for PST. On the basis of a bulked segregant analysis sequencing (BSA-seq), four QTLs were preliminarily mapped to chromosomes 3, 8, 13, and 18. Using the genome resequencing data of YY18 and WH8, 22 kompetitive allele-specific PCR (KASP) markers were designed for the genotyping of the F2 population. Two major QTLs (qPSTA08 and qPSTA18) were identified and finely mapped, with qPSTA08 detected on chromosome 8 (0.69-Mb physical genomic region) and qPSTA18 detected on chromosome 18 (0.15-Mb physical genomic region). Moreover, qPSTA08 and qPSTA18 explained 31.1–32.3% and 16.7–16.8% of the phenotypic variation, respectively. Fifteen genes were detected in the two candidate regions, including three genes with nonsynonymous mutations in the exon region. Two molecular markers (Tif2_A08_31713024 and Tif2_A18_7198124) that were developed for the two major QTL regions effectively distinguished between thick-shelled and thin-shelled materials. Subsequently, the two markers were validated in four F2:3 lines selected. Conclusions: The QTLs identified and molecular markers developed in this study may lay the foundation for breeding cultivars with a shell thickness suitable for mechanized peanut shelling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: There is currently no consensus on the optimal drilling direction of the fibular bone tunnel for anterior talofibular ligament (ATFL) reconstruction, and few studies have investigated the potential injury to the peroneus longus and brevis tendons and the possibility of fibular fractures during the drilling process. The aim of this study was to assess the potential risk of drilling the tunnel from different directions and determine the most appropriate tunnel direction. The hypothesis was that drilling the tunnel in the 45-degree direction would be the safest and most suitable for the fibular tunnel. Methods: Forty-eight fibular tunnels were drilled on fresh ankle specimens using a K-wire guide and a 5.0 mm hollow drill. Three tunnel orientations were created, parallel to the sagittal plane of the long axis of the fibula and angled 30°, 45°, and 60° to the coronal plane. The length of the fibular tunnel and the distances from the outlet of the K-wire to the peroneus longus and brevis tendons were measured. The occurrence of a fibula fracture was also observed. Results: The lengths of the bone tunnels in the three groups were 32.9 ± 6.1 mm (30°), 27.2 ± 4.4 mm (45°) and 23.6 ± 4.0 mm (60°). The length of the tunnel drilled at 30° was the longest when compared with that of the tunnels drilled at 45° and 60° (all p values < 0.05). The distances from the outlet of the K-wire to the peroneus longus tendon were 3.0 ± 3.8 mm (30°), 3.8 ± 3.2 mm (45°) and 5.3 ± 1.8 mm (60°), and the distances to the peroneus brevis tendon were 4.2 ± 4.0 mm (30°), 6.1 ± 3.8 mm (45°), 7.9 ± 3.5 mm (60°). In terms of protecting the peroneus longus and brevis tendons, drilling in the 60° direction was better than drilling in the 30° and 45° directions (all p values < 0.05). The risk of injury to the peroneal longus and brevis tendons was 62.5% (30°), 31.3% (45°), and 0% (60°). Although no fibular fractures were observed in any of the three directions, drilling the bone tunnel in the 60° direction disrupted the lateral cortex of the fibula. Conclusion: This study shows that drilling the tunnel in the 45° direction is less likely to cause injury to the peroneus longus and brevis tendons, while ensuring that the tunnel has a sufficient length and avoiding fracturing the distal fibula. Drilling a fibular bone tunnel in a 45° direction is safer and recommended for ATFL reconstruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Population and genotype data are essential for genetic mapping. The multi-parent advanced generation intercross (MAGIC) population is a permanent mapping population used for precisely mapping quantitative trait loci. Moreover, genotyping-by-target sequencing (GBTS) is a robust high-throughput genotyping technology characterized by its low cost, fexibility, and limited requirements for information management and support. In this study, an 8-way MAGIC population was constructed using eight elite founder lines. In addition, GenoBaits Peanut 40K was developed and utilized for the constructed MAGIC population. A subset (297 lines) of the MAGIC population at the S2 stage was genotyped using GenoBaits Peanut 40K. Furthermore, these lines and the eight parents were analyzed in terms of pod length, width, area, and perimeter. A total of 27 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were revealed to be signifcantly associated with peanut pod size-related traits according to a genome-wide association study. The GenoBaits Peanut 40K provided herein and the constructed MAGIC population will be applicable for future research to identify the key genes responsible for important peanut traits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays marine electromagnetic method is a geophysical method which can effectively explore natural gas hydrate (NGH) resources. This method acquires seafloor structure and distribution laws of mineral resources by transmitting high-power electromagnetic waves to the seafloor, and its detection depth relies on intensity of transmitted electromagnetic waves. At present, marine electromagnetic transmitter is inappropriate for transmission of high-power electromagnetic waves, and therefore, a novel DC/DC controlled-source circuit formed by input-series and output-parallel ZVZCS DC/DC controlled-source circuit units was proposed in this paper, and thus transformation of high-voltage and high-power electric energy was realized by using switching devices with low rated voltage and rated current. Common duty ratio control is adopted to construct small-signal mathematical model of cascading-combination ZVZCS DC/DC controlled-source circuit, influences of parameters on voltage balance at input side and current balance at output side are analyzed. Simulation and experimental results verify that the proposed circuit has favorable voltage and current sharing effect and could satisfy deep exploration requirements of marine electromagnetic transmitter with high transmission voltage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the effects of morphine hydrochloride sustained-release tablets and oxycodone hydrochloride sustained-release tablets on T-cell levels in advanced lung squamous cell carcinoma(LUSC) with moderate to severe cancer pain. Methods: A retrospective study was used, ninety-eight patients who were admitted to The First Affiliated Hospital of Hebei North University for treatment of advanced LUSC with moderate to severe cancer pain between January 2021 and December 2021 were randomized into two groups(n=49 each) using the sealed envelope system. The reference group was treated with morphine hydrochloride sustained-release tablets, while the experimental group received oxycodone hydrochloride sustained-release tablets to compare pain relief rates(PRRs), levels of T cells, pain intensity, et al. Blood samples were collected for lymphocyte levels by flow cytometry. Results: The experimental group had significantly higher level than the reference group(P<0.05). Before administration, the two groups did not differ greatly in levels of T-cell subsets or pain scores on the visual analog scale(P>0.05, respectively). At 15 days of administration, the Treg level in the experimental group was higher than in the reference group; T helper 17 and 22 cells were reduced in both groups, and the decrease was more pronounced in the experimental group. At seven and 15 days of administration, the experimental group had a VAS score significantly lower than the reference group(P<0.05). The total adverse reaction rate was significantly lower in the experimental group as compared with the reference group(P<0.05). Conclusions: Oxycodone hydrochloride sustained-release tablets demonstrate desirable efficacy and safety in advanced LUSC with moderate to severe cancer pain by modulating T-cells in the body and improving the PRR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The polarity of lipid droplets (LDs) plays an important role in pathological processes associated with abnormal lipid metabolism. Monitoring the variation of LDs polarity in cells and tissues is of great importance in biomedical research and clinical diagnosis. However, developing fluorescent LDs‐specific probes with high polarity sensitivity, brightness, and permeability for deep tissue imaging is still challenging. Herein, a push–pull fluorescent luminogen (DPBT) with aggregation‐induced emission, strong solvatochromism, large Stokes shift, high solid‐state fluorescence efficiency and superior two‐photon absorption is facilely developed. The lipophilic DPBT can specifically stain LDs with high biocompatibility and good photostability. The viscosity‐enhanced solvatochromic emission property enables DPBT to visualize LDs polarity with high brightness and imaging contrast, and deep penetration depth under two‐photon microscopy. DPBT can specifically stain lipids in various mouse tissues (atherosclerotic plaque, liver, and mesenteric adipose tissues) and map their polarity distribution to reflect lipid metabolic states within those tissues. It is found that the lipids deposition as well as their polarity distribution in tissues of hyperlipoidemia mouse are clearly different from the tissues of the normal mouse. Its excellent properties make DPBT a promising candidate for investigating LDs‐associated physiological and pathological processes in live biological samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate and economic policy are closely correlated with energy consumption. This study investigates the bi-directional causality between renewable (REC) and non-renewable energy consumption (NEC) and policy uncertainties. The time-varying bootstrap rolling window causality test considers structural changes and parameter instability. The results show that the causality between REC and climate policy uncertainty (CPU) is both negative and positive, which mainly stems from the attitudes of authorities towards climate change. If the Administration is positive for climate change mitigation, the correlation between REC and CPU is positive; otherwise, it is negative. The nexus between NEC and CPU is mainly positive, except during global financial crisis periods. This reflects that climate policies are affected by financial crises due to financial constraints. For comparison, we further analyse the dynamic correlation between energy consumption and economic policy uncertainty (EPU). EPU has a significant negative impact on REC in most subperiods, while it has a positive impact on NEC. This can be explained by the fact that non-renewable energy is cheap and convenient to use during economic downturns. Moreover, crude oil has strategic reserve value, especially in the turmoil periods. Regarding policy implications, harmonious and coherent climate and economic policies are important for energy transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, owing to the development of artificial intelligence technology, human posture recognition has aroused great interest in the academic community. Thus, we designed a triboelectric nanogenerator based on PDMS layer and MXene/PDMS layer (PM-TENG) to obtain mechanical energy and sense human posture. According to the results, the open-circuit voltage ( V oc ) of PM-TENG can arrive at 372 V, and the short-circuit current ( I sc ) of PM-TENG can reach 16.21 μ A, respectively. Due to its highly sensitive sensor to complex human motor states like folding, stretching, squeezing, and tapping, it can not only be used to harvest mechanical energy from its surroundings, but also to monitor human movement and behavior. Thus, human motion behaviors like walking, leg lifting, and light and high jumps may be tracked and identified by reading pulse electrical signal production. This research will provide a new idea for human motion posture monitoring. A triboelectric nanogenerator based on PDMS layer and MXene/PDMS layer (PM-TENG) to obtain mechanical energy and sense human posture was designed. The open-circuit voltage (Voc) of PM-TENG can reach 372 V and the short-circuit current (Isc) of PM-TENG can reach 16.21 μ A, respectively. Human motion behaviors like walking, leg lifting, and light and high jumps may be tracked and identified by reading pulse electrical signal production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the vigorous development of mechanical intelligence in industrial manufacturing, tracking control dynamic systems have been widely applied in many aspects of industry. In this paper, we present one theorem to discuss the validity condition of a ZD model with order-n for solving the tracking control problem of a nonlinear problem by utilizing a Lie derivative. Moreover, we also give the unified formula of the ZD model with order-n and rigorously prove it mathematically. In addition, we present three other theorems to give the global exponential convergence property of the ZD controller u(t), and the steady-state tracking error bound of the ZGD controller u(t), and the radius bound where the steady-state tracking error converges exponentially. Finally, simulations are conducted to demonstrate the validity and parameter influences of the ZD model and ZGD model for solving the tracking control problem with a single linear or nonlinear output of the single-link manipulator with flexible joints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pancreatic cancer (PC) is the most lethal malignant tumor, with average survival period of about 10 months. C-X-C ligand 5 (CXCL5), an important chemokine for immune cell accumulation in tumor tissues, has been reported to be involved in a variety of human cancers. However, the exact role of CXCL5 in PC progression has not been well defined. Methods: The expression of CXCL5 in PC was analyzed based on online databases and clinical specimens immunohistochemical staining, and Western blotting of CXCL5 in PC cell lines and patient samples. The correlation between CXCL5 expression and prognosis in PC was explored. The role of CXCL5 in PC was investigated through in vitro and in vivo experiments. Results: The expression of CXCL5 was significantly increased in PC tissues compared with that in pancreas tissues, and CXCL5 high expression predicts poor prognosis in PC patients. Further analyses demonstrated that overexpression of CXCL5 in PC cells was positively related to higher proliferation rate, higher migration ability, and higher EMT markers including SNAI2 and TWIST1 of tumor cells in vitro. Consistently, the knockdown of CXCL5 in PC cells harmed the proliferation rate, migration ability, and expression of EMT indexes of tumor cells in vitro. Importantly, knockdown of CXCL5 inhibited the growth of xenograft tumors in vivo. Conclusion: CXCL5 high expression predicts poor prognosis in PC patients. CXCL5 promotes PC cell growth and EMT process. Inhibition of CXCL5 may be a potential therapeutic approach for PC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding and predicting types of bugs are of practical importance for developers to improve the testing efficiency and take appropriate steps to address bugs in software releases. However, due to the complex conditions under which faults manifest and the complexity of the classification rules, the automatic classification of Mandelbugs is a difficult task. In this article, we present a deep semantic information-based Mandelbug classification method that combines a semantic model with a deep learning classifier and makes use of both labeled and unlabeled bug reports. By training the bug report semantic model on millions of bug reports, each word in the text of a bug report is represented as a word embedding that preserves the semantic relationship among the words. Then, a convolutional neural network model is designed to capture the high-level features of bug reports to obtain a more accurate classification. Moreover, the effects of the semantic model size and domain on the classification results are investigated, and the quality of word embeddings is evaluated by analyzing several important parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the conditional colour–magnitude distribution (CCMD), namely the colour–magnitude distribution at fixed halo mass, of the central galaxies in semi-analytical galaxy formation model (SAM) and hydrodynamic simulations. We analyse the CCMD of central galaxies in each halo mass bin with the Gaussian mixture model and find that it can be decomposed into red and blue components nearly orthogonal to each other, a red component narrow in colour and extended in magnitude and a blue component narrow in magnitude and extended in colour. We focus on the SAM galaxies to explore the origin of the CCMD components by studying the relation between central galaxy colour and halo or galaxy properties. Central galaxy colour is correlated with halo assembly properties for low-mass haloes and independent of them for high-mass haloes. Galaxy properties such as central supermassive black hole mass, cold gas mass, and gas specific angular momentum can all impact central galaxy colour. These results are corroborated by an alternative machine learning analysis in which we attempt to predict central galaxy colour with halo and galaxy properties. We find that the prediction for colours of central galaxies can be significantly improved using both halo and galaxy properties as input compared to using halo properties alone. With the halo and galaxy properties considered here, we find that subtle discrepancies remain between predicted and original colour distribution for low-mass haloes and that no significant determining properties are identified in massive haloes, suggesting modulations by additional stochastic processes in galaxy formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A sample of 279 massive red spirals was selected optically by Guo et al. among which 166 galaxies have been observed by the ALFALFA survey. In this work, we observe H  i content of the rest 113 massive red spiral galaxies using the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST). 75 of the 113 galaxies have H  i detection with a signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) greater than 4.7. Compared with the red spirals in the same sample that have been observed by the ALFALFA survey, galaxies observed by FAST have on average a higher S/N, and reach to a lower H  i mass. To investigate why many red spirals contain a significant amount of H  i mass, we check colour profiles of the massive red spirals using images observed by the DESI Legacy Imaging Surveys. We find that galaxies with H  i detection have bluer outer discs than the galaxies without H  i detection, for both ALFALFA and FAST samples. For galaxies with H  i detection, there exists a clear correlation between galaxy H  i mass and g-r colour at outer radius: galaxies with higher H  i masses have bluer outer discs. The results indicate that optically selected massive red spirals are not fully quenched, and the H  i gas observed in many of the galaxies may exist in their outer blue discs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to reveal the mechanical response of surrounding rock of karst tunnel under stress-damage-seepage coupling effect, a new damage constitutive mechanical model of surrounding rock of karst tunnel under stress-damage-seepage coupling effect is established, which is calculated by the COMSOL Multiphysics in this paper. When the mechanical parameters are assigned to microelements of rock mass by the Weibull distribution function, the larger the m value is, the more homogeneous the rock mass is. The variation trend of strain energy density with m is similar to equivalent stress, which increases firstly and then decreases. The number of damage points increases with the increase in loading step and decreases rapidly after reaching the peak value and then remains a small number in the later loading stage. With the increase in γ , the stress range expands to the rock mass above the vault and below the floor; the stress value increases significantly, and the surrounding rock of karst tunnel is closer to strength limit, leading to the damage of rock mass. With the increase in γ , the area of the damage area in the upper part of the vault becomes larger, and most of the rock mass below the bottom plate is damaged; the damage area is semicircular, which indicates that both places are damaged by shearing action, resulting in the developed fissures. Besides, there are the distribution characteristics of "high value on both sides with a peak value and low value in the middle position" in the permeability distribution, and high permeability is located at the arch foot, and the low permeability is located at the floor. The larger the value of γ , the larger the permeability. The research achievements provide an important theoretical basis for prediction and treatment for dynamical disaster of karst tunnel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Hypothesis: Constructing a segregated network in electrically conductive polymer composites (ECPCs) is an effective method to lower the electrical percolation threshold. The segregated network structure can be formed naturally via polymerizing Pickering high internal phase emulsions (HIPEs) because solid particles are assembled at water-oil interfaces. However, most Pickering stabilizers show poor electrical conductivity. In this work, we propose a facile method to prepare lightweight ECPCs with well-controlled segregated structure via Ti 3 C 2 T x -stabilized HIPE templating. Experiments: Hydrophilic Ti 3 C 2 T x flakes are delicately hydrophobized with a double-chain cation surfactant. The morphology of Ti 3 C 2 T x flakes is investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and atom force microscopy (AFM). The surface properties of modified Ti 3 C 2 T x are characterized by zeta potential and water contact angle tests. The stability of Ti 3 C 2 T x -stabilized emulsions, and the structure of prepared ECPCs are systematically investigated. Findings: Surface modified Ti 3 C 2 T x flakes are used to stabilize water-in-oil (w/o) HIPEs for the first time. After the polymerization of continuous oil phase, ECPCs are successfully prepared with closed-cell porous structure. The pore size and size distribution of porous composites can be tailored by varying the content of Ti 3 C 2 T x flakes. The Ti 3 C 2 T x flakes are mainly immobilized at the water–oil interface and eventually form the segregated network in composites. Combining the unique segregated network and the outstanding metallic conductivity of Ti 3 C 2 T x , the prepared porous polymer composites exhibit good conductivity even with ultralow Ti 3 C 2 T x content of 0.016 vol%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of web service composition is to satisfy complex requirements by constructing a composite service through loosely coupling web services over the Internet. Services available for composition may experience changes in performance and reliability at any time. Therefore, it is desirable to estimate performance and reliability of the composite service based on the data of atomic services such that it is checked up before service deployment whether the service-level agreement is satisfied. In this article, a phase-type expansion approach to establish an expanded homogeneous continuous time Markov chain of composite web services is proposed. By explicitly including failure states and restart states into the model, both performance and reliability can be computed for the composite service via phase-type fitting method based on the observations on execution times of atomic services. Experimental results based on real-world web services are provided to demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Software defect prediction aims to predict defect-prone code regions automatically before defects are discovered. Accurate prediction helps software practitioners to prioritize their testing efforts. In recent decades, dozens of approaches have been put forward and acquired good results in this field. However, in practical scenarios, many projects have limited labeled instances; more than that, most of these labeled instances are nondefective. The lack of training data and class imbalance problem together bring serious challenges to software defect prediction tasks. So far, few of prevailing approaches can well handle these two difficulties simultaneously. One important reason is that they do not pay adequate attention to several key instances, which are difficult to classify in a small imbalanced dataset. This article introduces the concept of “instance hardness” to integrate various difficulties of imbalance classification tasks. Based on it, a novel imbalance learning framework named self-paced ensemble of ensembles (SPE $^{2}$) is proposed to perform software defect prediction. SPE $^{2}$ aims to generate a strong ensemble of ensembles by self-paced harmonizing instance hardness via undersampling. Finally, SPE $^{2}$ is extensively compared with eight imbalance learning approaches on ten open-source defect datasets. Experiments indicate that SPE $^{2}$ improves the performance and achieves better and more significant F-measure values than its existing counterparts, based on Brunner’s statistical significance test and Cliff’s effect sizes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glioma is the most common malignant brain tumor and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been reported to play an important role in the growth and angiogenesis of glioma. However, the potential mechanisms of lncRNA H19 in glioma remain unclear. In the present study, the effects of lncRNA H19 on glioma cell proliferation, migration, and angiogenesis were evaluated. The expression levels of H19, miR-342, and Wnt5a in glioma tissues and cells were detected by RT-qPCR or Western blotting. Dual luciferase reporter assay confirmed the interaction between H19, miR-342, and Wnt5a. Cell proliferation, migration, and angiogenesis were analyzed by colony formation, transwell, and tube formation assays, respectively. IHC was performed to test the angiogenesis-related factor CD31. H19 and Wnt5a expression were remarkably upregulated in glioma tissues and cells, whereas miR-342 expression was downregulated. Moreover, functional analysis confirmed that knockdown of H19 or overexpression of miR-342 suppressed glioma cell proliferation, migration, and angiogenesis in vitro. Besides, H19 was found to directly target miR-342 to promote Wnt5a expression and activate β-catenin pathway in glioma cells. Moreover, suppression of miR-342 or overexpression of Wnt5a reversed the inhibitory effect of sh-H19 on glioma growth and metastasis. Additionally, we verified that H19 promoted glioma cell proliferation, migration, and angiogenesis via miR-342/Wnt5a/β-catenin axis in vivo. H19 regulates glioma cell growth and metastasis through miR-342 to mediate Wnt5a/β-catenin signaling pathway, which provides new therapeutic targets for glioma treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Blade icing is one of the main problems of wind turbines installed in cold climate regions, resulting in increasing power generation loss and maintenance costs. Traditional blade icing detection methods greatly rely on dedicated sensors, such as vibration and acoustic emission sensors, which require additional installation costs and even reduce reliability due to the degradation and failures of these sensors. To deal with this challenge, this paper aims to develop a cost-effective detection system based on the existing operation data collected from the supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems which are already equipped in large-scale wind turbines. Considering that SCADA data is essentially a multivariate time series with inherent non-stationary and multiscale temporal characteristics, a new wavelet-based multiscale long short-term memory network (WaveletLSTM) approach is proposed for wind turbine blade icing detection. The proposed method incorporates wavelet-based multiscale learning into the traditional LSTM architecture and can simultaneously learn global and local temporal features of multivariate SCADA signals, which improves fault detection ability. A real case study has shown that our proposed WaveletLSTM method achieved better detection performance than the existing methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rapid growth of global energy demand necessitates high-performance water-based drilling fluids (WDFs) with excellent-plugging performance in the deep excavation of shale gas formation. Herein, we report an organic-inorganic nanocomposite (NS-D) as a plugging agent in WDFs to plug the nanoporous of shale and abate the hydration expansion of shale by integrating the advantages of inorganic and polymer nano plugging agents. The results of Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (H-NMR) revealed that NS-D had been successfully obtained. Additionally, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) showed that the thermal degradation temperature of NS-D occurred after 354 °C. The results of plugging theory analysis showed that the presence of rich amide groups and rigid material silica not only made NS-D adhere to shale efficiently by hydrogen bonding, but also firmly blocked the nanoporous of shale. The plugging ability was evaluated by pressure transfer test and nitrogen adsorption test. The results showed that WDFs with NS-D can significantly improve plugging efficiency and reduce fluid invasion. On the other hand, NS-D sharply abated the fluid loss of WDFs due to its positive plugging performance. The filtrate volume of WDFs decreased by 90.5% and 88.3%, respectively, before and after hot rolling at 150°C for 16 h. Moreover, the plugging performance of NS-D for WDFs was significantly better than polymer plugging agent crosslinked polyacrylamide microspheres and inorganic plugging agent silica nanoparticles. This work provides a novel strategy to plug the nanoporous of shale in the process of shale gas exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Janus nanosheets, which have two surfaces of different functionalities, exhibit unique interfacial properties. In this work, we propose a facile and scalable technique for preparation of silica-based Janus nanosheets, which is based on formation of high internal phase water-in-oil emulsions stabilized solely by alkyl-substituted polyethoxysiloxanes due to their hydrolysis-induced interfacial activity. Janus nanosheets are then obtained by crushing the silica foams converted from such emulsions. The morphology of Janus nanosheets is investigated by field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The chemical structure of functional silica materials is characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The asymmetric structure of silica nanosheets is observed by confocal laser scanning microscopy. The resulting nanosheets have a rough hydrophobic surface and a smooth hydrophilic one, and are capable of stabilizing Pickering oil-in-water emulsions. Remarkably, pH-responsiveness of emulsions can be attained using the nanosheets whose hydrophilic surface is substituted with amino groups. Fast oil–water separation is achieved by the Janus nanosheets, which has been demonstrated by the nanosheets with a polystyrene-coated hydrophobic surface. This work paves a new avenue for large-scale production of functional silica-based Janus nanosheets suitable for numerous promising applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

If the formation of central galaxies in dark matter haloes traces the assembly history of their host haloes, in haloes of fixed mass, central galaxy clustering may show dependence on properties indicating their formation history. Such a galaxy assembly bias effect has been investigated previously, with samples of central galaxies constructed in haloes of similar mass and with mean halo mass verified by galaxy lensing measurements, and no significant evidence of assembly bias is found from the analysis of the projected two-point correlation functions of early- and late-forming central galaxies. In this work, we extend the investigation of assembly bias effect from real space to redshift (velocity) space, with an extended construction of early- and late-forming galaxies. We carry out halo occupation distribution modelling to constrain the galaxy–halo connection to see whether there is any sign of the effect of assembly bias. We find largely consistent host halo mass for early- and late-forming central galaxies, corroborated by lensing measurements. The central velocity bias parameters, which are supposed to characterize the mutual relaxation between central galaxies and their host haloes, are inferred to overlap between early- and late-forming central galaxies. However, we find a large amplitude of velocity bias for early-forming central galaxies (e.g. with central galaxies moving at more than 50 per cent that of dark matter velocity dispersion inside host haloes), which may signal an assembly bias effect. A large sample with two-point correlation functions and other clustering measurements and improved modelling will help reach a conclusive result. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to examine the unemployment hysteresis effects from the perspective of the heterogeneity of genders within Asian countries. Design/methodology/approach: The authors use the annual unemployment rate dataset of 12 Asian countries ranging from 1991–2020. Traditional unit root tests are initially employed to investigate the unemployment hysteresis effect. Considering the structural break and cross-section dependence problems, the sequential panel selection method (SPSM) and the Kapetanios–Snell–Shin (KSS) panel unit root test with Fourier functions have proven to be more applicable. Findings: The empirical results indicate that the unemployment rate is stationary in most Asian regions for both females and males, which confirms the mean reversion process of the natural unemployment hypothesis. This suggests that these countries' unemployment rates are flexible to quickly revert to its long-run equilibrium determined by the labor markets. However, only the female unemployment rate in Pakistan and Nepal and adult female unemployment rates in these two economies present non-stationary series. In line with the unemployment hysteresis effect, it means shocks will leave a permanent impact on their labor market. Practical implications: On the one hand, in most of the Asian countries, it can be inferred that the trade-off between inflation and unemployment is temporary because the natural unemployment hypothesis holds. Therefore, policymakers may consider using monetary policy as a tool to control inflation and stimulate growth during a recession. Such policy measures should not have a long-run impact on unemployment or cause a permanent shift in the natural unemployment rate. On the other hand, the government should implement active labor protective programs such as education or training schemes, job search assistance programs and maternity protection, especially for female adults, to reduce the negative shocks in the economic downturn, which is beneficial for them away from being long-term unemployed. It is also necessary to improve the labor unions to reduce the discrimination between female and male labors. Originality/value: This paper innovatively concentrates on the heterogeneity performances between genders about the unemployment hysteresis effect within Asian countries. Furthermore, taking into account the age-specific characteristics, the youth and adult unemployment rates have been investigated. Additionally, the approximation of bootstrap distribution and the advanced panel KSS unit root test with a Fourier function are employed. Thereby, targeted policies for the government can be applied to reduce the discrimination and negative shocks on female adults in the labor market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] The development of stable and efficient heterojunction photocatalysts for wastewater environmental purification exhibits a significant challenge. Herien, a promising binary heterojunction complex comprising boron subphthalocyanine bromide/bismuth oxychloride (SubPc-Br/BiOCl) was successfully synthesized using the hydrothermal method, which involved the self-assembled of SubPc-Br on the surface of BiOCl via intermolecular π-π stacking interactions to compose an electron-transporting layer. The photocatalytic efficiency of SubPc-Br/BiOCl for the degradation of tetracycline and the minocycline exhibited a substantial improvement of 29.14% and 53.72%, respectively, compared to the original BiOCl. Experimental characterization and theoretical calculations elucidated that the enhanced photocatalytic performance of the SubPc-Br/BiOCl composite photocatalysts stemmed from the S-scheme electron transport mechanism at the interface between BiOCl and SubPc-Br supramolecules, which broadened the visible light absorption range, increased the carrier molecular efficiency, and accelerated the carriers. Furthermore, molecular dynamic (MD) simulations provided insights into the action trajectories of the two semiconductors, revealing that the presence of SubPc-Br enhances the water and organic pollutant adsorption capabilities of the BiOCl surface within the supramolecular array system. In conclusion, the synthesis and analysis of the binary heterojunction complex SubPc-Br/BiOCl yield valuable insights into the efficient photocatalytic degradation of antibiotics, holding great promise for diverse environmental applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. According to previous studies, eating disorders and disordered eating behaviors are associated with coping style, anxiety, and sense of security. However, the specific mechanism between them has not been elucidated. The purpose of this study was to explore whether anxiety and sense of security play mediating roles in coping style and disordered eating behaviors among Chinese female college students. Method. Six hundred and ninety-one female college students (mean age = 19.36 ; SD = 1.06) completed the Simple Coping Style Questionnaire, the Eating Disorder Inventory, the Security Questionnaire, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and a brief demographic survey. The percentage bootstrap method of deviation correction was conducted to determine the mediating effect of anxiety and sense of security on coping style and disordered eating behaviors. Results. Coping style had direct and indirect effects on disordered eating behaviors. Anxiety and sense of security were not only independent mediators in the relationship between coping style and disordered eating behaviors but also chain mediators. Conclusions. The results of the current study provide preliminary evidence that preventive interventions targeting anxiety and sense of security may be feasible for young women who develop disordered eating behaviors due to stress in their lives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mandelbug-caused software failures are significant threats to system availability, especially in the context of mission-critical and safety-critical systems. However, there is still no systematic method for keeping the software free from Mandelbugs before release. To guarantee the availability of systems suffering from Mandelbugs, environmental-diversity-based fault tolerance techniques have been proposed to recover from the failures caused by them. In this article, we develop and study an analytic model to assess the availability of systems that utilize a sequence of environmental-diversity-based recovery methods. Improving over previous relevant studies, the availability formula we obtain in this article works for any number of recovery methods the system is equipped with; it is also independent on both the nature of those recovery methods and the order of their utilization. In addition, we consider the problem of how to arrange the set of available recovery methods to achieve the largest system availability. Based on the results of our analysis, we develop an open-source tool, called OPENS, which assists in the calculation of the optimal system availability. We validate the effectiveness of the proposed modeling approach in two ways, namely by comparing our results with those obtained for specific systems considered in relevant studies and by conducting numerical analyses for more general scenarios of its application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By using a mixed-ligand approach, a Co(II) coordination polymer (CP) with the chemical formula of [Co(L)(ip)·H2O]n (1, L = 1,3-bis(benzimidazol-1-yl)-2-propanol, H2ip = isophthalic acid) was synthesized under solvothermal conditions. Furthermore, to develop new candidates for cancer treatment, the treatment effect of the compound on the human cervical carcinoma cell line Hela was evaluated. First, the autophagy level of the Hela cell line after compound treatment was measured by flow cytometry. Then, the autophagic genes expression was detected by the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) determination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collagen-type I alpha 1 chain (COL1A1) and COL1A2 are abnormally expressed in intracranial aneurysm (IA), but their mechanism of action remains unclear. This study was performed to investigate the mechanism of COL1A1 and COL1A2 affecting the occurrence and rupture of IA. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction was used to measure the expression of hsa-miR-513b-5p, COL1A1, COL1A2, TNF-α, IL-6, MMP2, MMP3, MMP9 and TIMP4 in patients with ruptured IA (RA) (n = 100), patients with un-ruptured IA (UA) (n = 100), and controls (n = 100). Then, human vascular smooth muscle cells (HASMCs) were cultured, and dual luciferase reporter assay was performed to analyse the targeting relationship between miR-513b-5p and COL1A1 or COL1A2. The effects of the miR-513b-5p mimic and inhibitor on the proliferation, apoptosis, and death of HASMC and the RIP1-RIP3-MLKL and matrix metalloproteinase pathways were also explored. The effect of silencing and over-expression of COL1A1 and COL1A2 on the role of miR-513b-5p were also evaluated. Finally, the effects of TNF-α on miR-513b-5p targeting COL1A1 and COL1A2 were tested. Compared with those in the control group, the serum mRNA levels of miR-513b-5p, IL-6 and TIMP4 were significantly decreased in the RA and UA groups, but COL1A1, COL1A2, TNF-α, IL-1β, MMP2, MMP3 and MMP9 were significantly increased (p < 0.05). Compared with those in the UA group, the expression of COL1A1, COL1A2, TNF-α, IL-1β and MMP9 was significantly up-regulated in the RA group (p < 0.05). Results from the luciferase reporter assay showed that COL1A1 and COL1A were the direct targets of miR-513b-5p. Further studies demonstrated that miR-513b-5p targeted COL1A1/2 to regulate the RIP1-RIP3-MLKL and MMP pathways, thereby enhancing cell death and apoptosis. Over-expression of COL1A1 or COL1A2, rather than silencing COL1A1/2, could improve the inhibitory effect of miR-513b-5p on cell activity by regulating the RIP1-RIP3-MLKL and MMP pathways. Furthermore, over-expression of miR-513b-5p and/or silencing COL1A1/2 inhibited the TNF-α-induced cell proliferation and enhanced the TNF-α-induced cell death and apoptosis. The mechanism may be related to the inhibition of collagen I and TIMP4 expression and promotion of the expression of RIP1, p-RIP1, p-RIP3, p-MLKL, MMP2 and MMP9. MiR-513b-5p targeted the inhibition of COL1A1/2 expression and affected HASMC viability and extracellular mechanism remodelling by regulating the RIP1-RIP3-MLKL and MMP pathways. This process might be involved in the formation and rupture of IA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fault water inrush is a key factor which leads to tunnel construction in karst regions. Based on the fluid mechanics principles, the paper addresses a numerical coupled model for karst fault tunnel with COMSOL Multiphysics software. Besides, the Darcy law equation, Brinkman equation, and Navier-Stokes equation are inserted to stimulate the steady flow of aquifer, the non-linear seepage of fault and the free flow in tunnel excavating area in software, respectively. Then, the pressure and flow velocity in three flow fields are analyzed under different permeability ratios in numerical model. It is shown that the fault permeability is the key factor affecting water inrush, and that the pressure and flow velocity change visibly in adjacent domains between two flow fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To understand how organisms adapt to their environment, a gene‐environmental association (GEA) analysis is commonly conducted. GEA methods based on mixed models, such as linear latent factor mixed models (LFMM) and LFMM2, have grown in popularity for their robust performance in terms of power and computational speed. However, it is unclear how the assumption of a Gaussian distribution for the response variables influences model performance. In this paper, we develop a generalized linear model (GLM) that allows for non‐Gaussian distribution in the genotypic response variables, and treatment of multiallelic nucleotide polymorphisms. Moreover, this multinomial logistic regression model (MLR) is combined with an admixture‐based model or principal components analysis to correct for population structure (MLR‐ADM and MLR‐PC). Using simulations, we evaluate the type 1 error, false discovery rates (FDR), and power to detect selected SNPs, to guide model choice and best practices. With genomic control, MLR‐PC and LFMM2 have similar type 1 error, FDRs, and power when analysing biallelic SNPs, while dramatically outperforming models not accounting for population structure. Differences in performance occur under continuous population structure where MLR‐PC outperforms LFMM/LFMM2, especially when a larger number of clusters or triallelic SNPs are analysed. The Human Genome Diversity Project (HGDP) data set shows that both MLR‐PC and LFMM2 control the inflation of P‐values. Analysis of the 1,000 Genome Project Phase 3 data set illustrates that MLR‐PC and LFMM2 produce consistent results for most significant SNPs, while MLR‐PC discovered additional SNPs corresponding to certain genes, suggesting MLR‐PC may be a useful alternative to GEA inference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an adhesively bonded structure, utilizing the adhesive itself for monitoring the joint integrity can be beneficial in reduction of labor, time, and potential human errors while avoiding problems associated with introduction of a foreign sensor component. This work started from the examination of effective piezoelectricity of commercial structural adhesives/sealants, and five of them were found to possess effective piezoelectric property, with effective piezoelectric coefficient ${d}_{{33}}$ from −0.11 to −1.77 pm/V depending on frequency under substrate clamping condition. With stable piezoelectric response at least up to megahertz, an epoxy adhesive with inorganic filler was selected for structural health monitoring (SHM) feasibility demonstration via generating or sensing guided ultrasonic Lamb waves. The presence of disbond in the adhesive joint is detectable by comparing the Lamb waves signal with a reference baseline signal associated with an intact structure. The results show that the selected adhesive with piezoelectric response can perform the dual roles of structural bonding and ultrasonic joint integrity monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Our study aimed to investigate the clinical efficacy of argon‐helium cryoablation and its effects on the immune function of patients with neck malignant tumours. Design: Retrospective study. Setting: Single‐institution academic tertiary care centre. Methods: Totally, 180 patients harbouring head and neck malignant tumours were divided into the argon‐helium cryoablation group (n = 150) and the radiotherapy group (n = 50). The efficacy of the two groups was compared, and the immune function was observed. Results: The short‐term clinical effect of the argon‐helium cryoablation group was significantly higher than that of the radiotherapy group (P <.05). After treatment, the CD3+, CD4+, CD8+ and CD4+/CD8+ of the argon‐helium cryoablation group were significantly better than those of the radiotherapy group (P <.001). The results of TNF‐α, IL‐1 β and CRP in the argon‐helium cryoablation group were significantly better than that in the radiotherapy group (P <.001). Conclusion: Argon‐helium cryoablation could effectively improve the immune function, 5‐year survival rate and local remission rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The mechanism of cervical ripening in late pregnancy is still unclear. The vaginal microbiome has been reported to correlate with the preterm birth and short cervix in pregnant women. However, the associations between the cervical maturity and the vaginal microbiome are still poorly understood. We aim to analyze the cervicovaginal microflora in women with ripe cervix and in those who are unripe when delivering at term. Methods: Cervicovaginal swabs were collected between 40 and 41 weeks of gestation from the following 2 different groups of patients: ripe group (n = 25) and unripe group (n = 25). Samples were tested using 16S ribosomal RNA gene high-throughput sequencing and analyzed by bioinformatics platform. Results: This study highlights the relationship between cervical maturity during late pregnancy and the composition of the cervicovaginal microflora. Both α- and β-diversity analyses demonstrated significant differences between women with a ripe cervix and those with an unripe cervix. Notably, the Lactobacillus profile was found to be closely linked to cervical maturity. There was a significant difference in the vaginal community state type, with CST IV being more prevalent in women with an unripe cervix. Furthermore, the association between CST IV and the unripe cervix group, as indicated by the odds ratio of 8.6, underscores its relevance in evaluating cervical maturity, when compared to other Lactobacillus-dominant community state types. Additionally, several bacterial taxa, particularly Lactobacillus, exhibited differential relative abundances between the two groups. Conclusion: This study provided significant evidence regarding the relationship between the vaginal microbiome and cervical maturity, highlighting the differential diversity, community state types, and specific bacterial taxa, such as Lactobacillus, that are associated with cervical maturation status. These findings contributed to our understanding of the dynamics of the cervicovaginal microflora during late pregnancy and its implications for cervical health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gravitational wave (GW) observatories are discovering binary neutron star mergers (BNSMs), and in at least one event we were able to track it down in multiple wavelengths of light, which allowed us to identify the host galaxy. Using a catalogue of local galaxies with inferred star formation histories and adopting a BNSM delay time distribution (DTD) model, we investigate the dependence of BNSM rate on an array of galaxy properties. Compared to the intrinsic property distribution of galaxies, that of BNSM host galaxies is skewed towards galaxies with redder colour, lower specific star formation rate, higher luminosity, and higher stellar mass, reflecting the tendency of higher BNSM rates in more massive galaxies. We introduce a formalism to efficiently make forecast on using host galaxy properties to constrain DTD models. We find comparable constraints from the dependence of BNSM occurrence distribution on galaxy colour, specific star formation rate, and stellar mass, all better than those from dependence on r -band luminosity. The tightest constraints come from using individual star formation histories of host galaxies, which reduces the uncertainties on DTD parameters by a factor of three or more. Substantially different DTD models can be differentiated with about 10 BNSM detections. To constrain DTD parameters at 10 per cent precision level requires about one hundred detections, achievable with GW observations on a decade time-scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OH absorption is currently the only viable way to detect OH molecules in non-masing galaxies at cosmological distances. There have been only six such detections at z > 0.05 to date and so it is hard to put a statistically robust constraint on OH column densities in distant galaxies. We carried out a pilot OH absorption survey towards eight associated and one intervening H  i 21-cm absorbers using the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST). We were able to constrain the OH abundance relative to H  i ([OH]/[H  i ]) to be lower than 10−6 ∼ 10−8 for redshifts z∈ [0.1919, 0.2241]. Although no individual detection was made, stacking three associated absorbers free of RFI provides a sensitive OH column density 3σ upper-limit |$\sim 1.57 \times 10^{14} (T_x^{\rm OH}/10\,\mathrm{ K})(1/f_\mathrm{ c}^{\rm OH})\mathrm{ cm}^{-2}$|⁠ , which corresponds to a [OH]/[H  i ] < 5.45 × 10−8. Combining with archival data, we show that associated absorbers have a slightly lower OH abundance than intervening absorbers. Our results are consistent with a trend of decreasing OH abundance with decreasing redshift. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mass, origin, and evolutionary stage of the binary system LB-1 have been intensely debated, following the claim that it hosts an ∼70M⊙ black hole, in stark contrast with the expectations for Galactic remnants. We conducted a high-resolution, phase-resolved spectroscopic study of its Paschen lines, using the Calar Alto 3.5 m telescope. We find that Paβ and Paγ (after subtraction of the stellar absorption component) are well fitted with a standard double-peaked disk profile. We measured the velocity shifts of the red and blue peaks at 28 orbital phases: the line center has an orbital motion in perfect antiphase with the secondary, and the radial velocity amplitude ranges from 8 to 13 km s−1, for different methods of profile modeling. We interpret this curve as proof that the disk traces the orbital motion of the primary, ruling out the circumbinary disk and the hierarchical triple scenarios. The phase-averaged peak-to-peak half-separation (a proxy for the projected rotational velocity of the outer part of the disk) is ∼70 km s−1, larger than the orbital velocity of the secondary and inconsistent with a circumbinary disk. From those results, we infer a primary mass 4–8 times higher than the secondary mass. Moreover, we show that the intensity ratio of the blue and red peaks has a sinusoidal behavior in phase with the secondary, which we attribute to external irradiation of the outer part of the disk. Finally, we discuss our findings in the context of competing scenarios proposed for LB-1. Further astrometric Gaia data will test between alternative solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Titanium (Ti) has achieved extensive applications due to its excellent biocompatibility and mechanical properties. Plasma can enhance surface hydrophilia of Ti with decreased carbon contamination. The traditional conditions using a single gas plasma was for longer treatment time and more prone to being contaminated. We designed and developed novel and universal apparatus and methods with a special clamping device of non-thermal atmospheric plasma (NTAP) treatment using mixed gas for Ti surface activation. We systematically and quantitatively investigated the effective effects of NTAP-Ti. The surface water contact angle decreased by 100%, the carbon content decreased by 80% and oxygen content increased by 50% in the novel NTAP-Ti surfaces. NTAP treatment accelerated the attachment, spread, proliferation, osteogenic differentiation and mineralization of MC3T3-E1 mouse preosteoblasts in vitro. The percentage of bone-to-implant contact increased by 25–40%, and the osteoclasts and bone resorption were suppressed by 50% in NTAP-Ti in vivo. In conclusion, NTAP-Ti substantially enhanced the physical and biological effects and integration with bone. The novel and universal apparatus and methods with a special clamping device using gas mixtures are promising for implant activation by swiftly and effectively changing the Ti surface to a hydrophilic one to enhance dental and orthopedic applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the non-linear threshold effects between trade openness and female labours to participate in the labour markets. Design/methodology/approach: The authors consider data for nine Asian countries from 1990 to 2016 period and perform the panel threshold regression method. Findings: Empirical results indicate that the threshold value is occurred. With the increase of trade openess, the female labour force participation rate shows a trend of rising first and then declining. Furthermore, exports also have an asymmetric threshold effect on female labour force participation, which is partly in accordance with the discrimination model (Becker, 1957). On the other hand, imports dependency will hinder female labour force participation regardless of a threshold effect. The authors obtain similar results when the authors consider the female employment rate as substitution. Practical implications: Specifically, increased trade openness may contribute positively or negatively towards overall female labour force participation rate (FLFPR), attributed to the relative importance of these opposing effects. Thus, when the cost reduction effect, resulting from intensified competitive pressure and comparative advantages would enhance the participation rate, the technology channel operates in the opposite direction. Therefore, from the perspective of female employment, trade openness is not the more the better. Originality/value: This study innovatively discusses the non-linear correlation between trade openness and FLFPR and distinguishes the different contributions from exports and imports. The advanced threshold regression model assumes the existence of threshold value from trade to female employment. Thereby, targeted policies for the government should be applied to promote active female in the labour market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regression bugs are a type of bugs that cause a feature of software that worked correctly but stop working after a certain software commit. This paper presents a systematic study of regression bug chains, an important but unexplored phenomenon of regression bugs. Our paper is based on the observation that a commit $c1$ , which fixes a regression bug $b1$ , may accidentally introduce another regression bug $b2$. Likewise, commit $c2$ repairing $b2$ may cause another regression bug $b3$ , resulting in a bug chain, i.e., $b1\rightarrow c1\rightarrow b2\rightarrow c2\rightarrow b3$. We have conducted a large-scale study by collecting 1579 regression bugs and 2630 commits from 57 Linux versions (from 2.6.12 to 4.9). The relationships between regression bugs and commits are modeled as a directed bipartite network. Our major contributions and findings are fourfold: 1) a novel concept of regression bug chains and their formulation; 2) compared to an isolated regression bug, a bug on a regression bug chain is much more difficult to repair, costing 2.4× more fixing time, involving 1.3× more developers and 2.8× more comments; 3) 85.8% of bugs on the chains in Linux reside in Drivers, ACPI, Platform Specific/Hardware, and Power Management; and 4) 83% of the chains affect only a single Linux subsystem, while 68% of the chains propagate across Linux versions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deformation is one important failure mode of turbine blades. The quality of a model seriously influences the reliability optimization of turbine blades in turbo machines. To improve the reliability optimization of turbine blades, this paper proposes a novel machine learning-based reliability optimization approach, named improved support vector regression (SR) model (ISRM) method, by fusing artificial bee colony (ABC), traditional SR model, and multipopulation genetic algorithm (MPGA). In this proposed method, the ABC algorithm was applied to find the optimal parameters in the SR model to establish accurate ISRM, following the thought of the surrogate model method and the randomness of constraints. Then the reliability optimization model and procedure with the ISRM method were resolved by the MPGA. Regarding many design parameters (i.e., rotor speed, temperature, and aerodynamic pressure), design objective (i.e., blade deformation), and the randomness constraints of reliability degree and boundary conditions, we performed the reliability optimization of a turbine blade deformation. From the optimization results, we find that the turbine blade deformation is reduced by 0.09329 mm, and the ISRM learning method can improve the reliability optimization design of complex structures with the emphasis on modeling precision and optimization efficiency. The works of this paper provide a machine learning-based reliability optimization approach for the reliability optimization of complex structures and enrich and develop mechanical reliability theory and methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Large aperture towed arrays are widely used underwater to detect weak targets. During maneuvering, the beamformer performance degrades significantly if a wrong array configuration is assumed. Currently, engineering sensors and/or (augmented) acoustic sources are used to estimate the array element positions. The results are often inadequate depending on the number of measurements available. In this paper, an adaptive bow (AB) sparse Bayesian learning (SBL) algorithm is proposed, called ABSBL. Assuming the towed array follows a parabola shape during slow turns and treating the array bow as a hyperparameter in SBL, the bow and directions of arrival (DOAs) of the signals can be jointly estimated from the received acoustic data. Simulations show that ABSBL yields accurate estimates of the bow and target DOAs if the turning direction is known. ABSBL is applied to the MAPEX2000 data. The estimated array bow and DOA agrees with that estimated from relative time delays measured from acoustic pings and SBL, better than that estimated from the GPS data using the water-pulley model. The method can potentially be applied without engineering sensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Software failures caused by data race bugs have always been major concerns in parallel and distributed systems, despite significant efforts spent in software testing. Due to their nondeterministic and hard-to-reproduce features, when evaluating systems’ operational reliability, a rather long period of experimental execution time is expected to be spent on observing failures caused by data race conditions. To address this problem, in this paper, we make two contributions. First, this paper proposes stress testing with influencing factors, in which the system runs under certain workloads for a long time with controlled stress conditions to accelerate the occurrence of data race failures. Second, it explores and formulates mathematical relationship models between data races’ statistical characteristics of time to failure (TTF) or mean TTF (MTTF) and the influencing factors. Such relationship models are used for TTF/MTTF extrapolation under different operational conditions and are essential to reduce systems’ reliability evaluation time. The proposed method is empirically evaluated on six applications suffering from failures caused by real-world data race bugs. Through analysis of the experimental results, we obtain several important findings: First, the reduction in the manifestation time to data race failures achieved by controlling the influencing factors is statistically significant. Second, Power model is the best-fitting model of the relationship between the MTTF and the influencing factors. Third, Power Weibull distribution is the best-fitting probability distribution between the TTF and the influencing factors. Finally, the TTF/MTTF can be accurately estimated with the approach proposed in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Galaxy assembly bias, the correlation between galaxy properties and halo properties at fixed halo mass, could be an important ingredient in halo-based modelling of galaxy clustering. We investigate the central galaxy assembly bias by studying the relation between various galaxy and halo properties in the Illustris hydrodynamic galaxy formation simulation. Galaxy stellar mass M * is found to have a tighter correlation with peak maximum halo circular velocity V peak than with halo mass M h. Once the correlation with V peak is accounted for, M * has nearly no dependence on any other halo assembly variables. The correlations between galaxy properties related to star formation history and halo assembly properties also show a cleaner form as a function of V peak than as a function of M h, with the main correlation being with halo formation time and to a less extent halo concentration. Based on the galaxy–halo relation, we present a simple model to relate the bias factors of a central galaxy sample and the corresponding halo sample, both selected based on assembly-related properties. It is found that they are connected by the correlation coefficient of the galaxy and halo properties used to define the two samples, which provides a reasonable description for the samples in the simulation and suggests a simple prescription to incorporate galaxy assembly bias into the halo model. By applying the model to the local galaxy clustering measurements in Lin et al., we infer that the correlation between star formation history or specific star formation rate and halo formation time is consistent with being weak. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: NANOG functions as the gateway for the generation of pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) in mice and humans. NANOG is a transcription factor highly expressed in pig pre-implantation embryos, indicating that it is a conserved pluripotency-associated factor. However, pig NANOG reporter PSCs have yet to be established, and the regulation of pluripotency by NANOG is not fully understood in this animal. Methods: In this study, pig NANOG tdTomato knock-in reporter positive PC-iPS cells were established using CRISPR/Cas9. The resulting cell line was treated with several cytokines and their corresponding inhibitors to identify pathways that regulate NANOG expression. The pathways examined were LIF (leukemia inhibitory factor)/IL6 (interleukin 6)-STAT3, FGF (fibroblast growth factor)/ERK, IGF1 (insulin-like growth factor 1)/PIP3 (phosphoinositide 3-kinase)-AKT, Activin A/SMAD, and BMP4 (bone morphogenetic proteins)/SMAD. Results: Our experiments showed that the Activin A/SMAD pathway is directly associated with activation of NANOG expression in the pig, as is also the case in mice and humans. Activin A directly regulates the expression of pig NANOG via SMAD2/3; inhibition of this pathway by SB431542 resulted in inhibition of NANOG expression. Conclusions: Our results show that Activin A plays an important regulatory role in NANOG-mediated pluripotency in pig iPS cells. Activin A treatment may be therefore an effective method for de novo derivation of authentic embryonic stem cells (ESCs) from pig pre-implantation embryos. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cilia and flagella are critical organelles with conserved internal structures and diverse developmental and physiological processes according to cell type. Although the core components of structures are shared with thousands of associated proteins involved in cilia or flagella formation, we hypothesized that some unknown proteins, such as outer dense fiber 2 (Odf2/Cenexin) perform distinct functions in these organelles. In the present study, we identified several uncharacterized proteins through mass spectrometry interactome analysis of Odf2/Cenexin proteins. We further examined the expression patterns and functions of a protein named cilia and flagella associated protein 58 (Cfap58) in cultured astrocytes and sperm flagella. The results of a combination of biochemical analyses and drug administration studies reveal that Cfap58 is a testis-enrichment protein that exhibits similar localization to Odf2/Cenexin proteins and is required for the elongation of the primary cilium and sperm midpiece via modulation of the Notch signaling pathway. However, the cell cycle-related functions and localization of Odf2/Cenexin in the mother centriole were not altered in Cfap58 knockdown cells. These findings indicate that Cfap58 may be partially recruited by Odf2/Cenexin proteins and is indispensable for the cilia and flagellar assembly. These data provide us with a better understanding of ciliogenesis and flagellar elongation and may aid in identifying new targets for diseases caused by Notch-mediated ciliopathies and flagellar abnormalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The synthesis of a new azobenzene (azo)-containing main-chain crystalline polymer with reactive secondary amino groups in its backbone and photodeformation behaviors of its supramolecular hydrogen-bonded fibers are described. This main-chain azo polymer (namely Azo-MP6) was prepared via first the synthesis of a diacrylate-type azo monomer and its subsequent Michael addition copolymerization with trans-1,4-cyclohexanediamine under a mild reaction condition. Azo-MP6 was found to have a linear main-chain chemical structure instead of a branched one, as verified by comparing its 1H-NMR spectrum with that of the azo polymer prepared via the polymer analogous reaction of Azo-MP6 with acetic anhydride. The thermal stability, phase transition behavior, and photoresponsivity of Azo-MP6 were characterized with TGA, DSC, POM, XRD, and UV-Vis spectroscopy. The experimental results revealed that it had good thermal stability, low glass transition temperature, broad crystalline phase temperature range, and highly reversible photoresponsivity. Physically crosslinked supramolecular hydrogen-bonded fibers with good mechanical properties and a high alignment order of azo mesogens were readily fabricated from Azo-MP6 by using the simple melt spinning method, and they could show "reversible" photoinduced bending under the same UV light irradiation and good anti-fatigue properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]