bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
COVID-19 lockdowns cause global air pollution declines
Authors: Venter Zander S. , Aunan Kristin , Chowdhury Sourangsu , Lelieveld Jos
Published: July 2020

The lockdown response to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has caused an unprecedented reduction in global economic and transport activity. We test the hypothesis that this has reduced tropospheric and ground-level air pollution concentrations, using satellite data and a network of >10,000 air quality stations. After accounting for the effects of meteorological variability, we find declines in the population-weighted concentration of ground-level nitrogen dioxide (NO
2
: 60% with 95% CI 48 to 72%), and fine particulate matter (PM
2.5
: 31%; 95% CI: 17 to 45%), with marginal increases in ozone (O
3
: 4%; 95% CI: −2 to 10%) in 34 countries during lockdown dates up until 15 May. Except for ozone, satellite measurements of the troposphere indicate much smaller reductions, highlighting the spatial variability of pollutant anomalies attributable to complex NO
x
chemistry and long-distance transport of fine particulate matter with a diameter less than 2.5 µm (PM
2.5
). By leveraging Google and Apple mobility data, we find empirical evidence for a link between global vehicle transportation declines and the reduction of ambient NO
2
exposure. While the state of global lockdown is not sustainable, these findings allude to the potential for mitigating public health risk by reducing “business as usual” air pollutant emissions from economic activities. Explore trends here:
https://nina.earthengine.app/view/lockdown-pollution
.
FEN1 endonuclease as a therapeutic target for human cancers with defects in homologous recombination
Authors: Guo Elaine , Ishii Yuki , Mueller James , Srivatsan Anjana , Gahman Timothy , Putnam Christopher D. , Wang Jean Y. J. , Kolodner Richard D.
Published: July 2020

Significance

Analysis of synthetic lethal relationships identified in
Saccharomyces cerevisiae
was used to identify candidate therapeutic targets for cancers with
BRCA1
or
BRCA2
defects. Inhibition of one of these targets, flap endonuclease 1 (FEN1), with small-molecule inhibitors or siRNA knockdown of FEN1 expression preferentially killed
BRCA1
and
BRCA2
mutant cancer cell lines as well as some additional cancer cell lines without
BRCA1
or
BRCA2
defects. FEN1 inhibitors also preferentially reduced the growth of mouse xenografts established from FEN1 inhibitor-sensitive cancer cell lines. These studies support the use of
S. cerevisiae
genetics in identifying human therapeutic targets and establish FEN1 as a potential therapeutic target for further investigation and possible development.
Selective translation by alternative bacterial ribosomes
Authors: Chen Yu-Xiang , Xu Zhi-yu , Ge Xueliang , Hong Jia-Yao , Sanyal Suparna , Lu Zhi John , Javid Babak
Published: July 2020

Significance

Many organisms, including bacteria, code for multiple paralogues of some ribosomal protein subunits. The relative contribution of these alternative subunits to ribosome function and protein synthesis is unknown and controversial. Many studies on alternative ribosomes have been confounded by isolation of alternative and canonical ribosomes from different strains or growth conditions, potentially confounding results. Here, we show that one form of alternative ribosome fromMycobacterium smegmatishas a distinct translational profile compared with canonical ribosomes purified from an identical cellular context. We also identify a role for alternative ribosomes in iron homeostasis. Given the prevalence of alternative ribosomal genes in diverse organisms, our study suggests that alternative ribosomes may represent a further layer of regulation of gene translation.
Noninvasive wearable electroactive pharmaceutical monitoring for personalized therapeutics
Authors: Lin Shuyu , Yu Wenzhuo , Wang Bo , Zhao Yichao , En Ke , Zhu Jialun , Cheng Xuanbing , Zhou Crystal , Lin Haisong , Wang Zhaoqing , Hojaiji Hannaneh , Yeung Christopher , Milla Carlos , Davis Ronald W. , Emaminejad Sam
Published: July 2020

Significance

To achieve the mission of personalized medicine, centering on delivering the right drug to the right patient at the right dose, therapeutic drug monitoring solutions are necessary. By devising a surface engineering strategy, we created a voltammetric sensing interface, featuring an “undistorted potential window,” within which the target electroactive drug’s voltammetric response is dominant and interference is eliminated, rendering reliable target quantification in noninvasively retrievable biofluids (sweat and saliva). Leveraging this sensing interface, a fully integrated, wearable solution was constructed to seamlessly render drug readouts with minute-level temporal resolution. To inform its clinical utility, the solution was utilized to demonstrate noninvasive pharmacokinetic monitoring of a pharmaceutical (here, acetaminophen, a widely used analgesic and antipyretic) in a wearable format.
Fiducial displacements with improved accuracy for the global network of gravitational wave detectors
Authors: Bhattacharjee D , Lecoeuche Y , Karki S , Betzwieser J , Bossilkov V , Kandhasamy S , Payne E , Savage R L
Published: July 2020

As sensitivities improve and more detectors are added to the global network of gravitational wave observatories, calibration accuracy and precision are becoming increasingly important. Photon calibrators, relying on power-modulated auxiliary laser beams reflecting from suspended interferometer optics, enable continuous calibration by generating displacement fiducials proportional to the modulated laser power. Developments in the propagation of laser power calibration via transfer standards to on-line power sensors monitoring the modulated laser power have enabled generation of length fiducials with improved accuracy. Estimated uncertainties are almost a factor of two smaller than the lowest values previously reported. This is partly due to improvements in methodology that have increased confidence in the results reported. Referencing the laser power calibration standards for each observatory to a single transfer standard enables reducing relative calibration errors between elements of the detector network. Efforts within the national metrology institute community to realize improved laser power sensor calibration accuracy are ongoing.
Comments on ‘On Feynman’s handwritten notes on electromagnetism and the idea of introducing potentials before fields’
Authors: Davis Art
Published: July 2020

We address several issues discussed in a recent paper by Heras and Heras (2020 Eur. J. Phys.
41 035202). We offer an interpretation of a somewhat cryptic assertion by Richard P Feynman about reality of the electromagnetic potentials, we discuss the issue of proper definitions in physical science, and we analyze the use of the continuity equation by the authors—relating their paper to the context of a recent paper written by the author of the present comment.
Reply to Comments on ‘Feynman’s handwritten notes on electromagnetism and the idea of introducing potentials before fields’
Authors: Heras José A , Heras Ricardo
Published: July 2020

We reply to some comments made by Davis (2020 Eur. J. Phys.

40

018001) on our paper (2020 Eur. J. Phys.

41

035202), by arguing that Davis’s assertions are unsupported in some cases and are unsatisfactory in other cases.
A modified methodology for dielectric constant measurement of an arbitrary-shaped sheet by using capacitance technique
Authors: Afshar Soudabeh , Nazari Farid , Aliakbarian Hadi
Published: July 2020

The capacitance technique is one of the simplest methods to determine the dielectric constant of dielectric sheets in the low-frequency band. A new methodology and test procedure which eliminates the effect of the capacitors from the calculations and improves the accuracy of measurement is introduced. The main advantage of the method is that it can be applied for arbitrary-shaped dielectric sheets as long as they are smaller than approximately 0.6 of the diameter of the capacitor. The presented measurement results show the effectiveness of the method on measurement. A prototype version of the setup helped us achieve 7% accuracy.
Semi-supervised advancement of underwater visual quality
Authors: Zhu Huabo , Han Xu , Tao Yourui
Published: July 2020

In the underwater environment, the backscattering and attenuation of wavelength-dependent light degrade the quality of underwater vision. Low-quality underwater vision will reduce the accuracy of underwater robot visual navigation and pattern recognition. A novel semi-supervised deep convolutional neural network composed of a supervised learning branch and an unsupervised learning branch is proposed herein to improve underwater visual quality with poor visibility in real time. The network is constrained by a supervised loss function consisting of mean square, underwater index, and adversarial loss. The supervised branch serves as the baseline of the image enhancement algorithm to learn the basic feature information of the images and restore the original colors. The unsupervised learning branch, which makes the generated images more realistic and reduces reliance on the quality of the simulation model of synthetic data, applies underwater dark channel prior loss and total variation loss to learn the feature domain information of real images. Experiments show that the results of the proposed method show less color shift, lower fogging and blurring, and more pleasing high-quality vision. The enhanced images can extract more useful feature information, which is promising in the online visual navigation of underwater robots.
An improved particle filter based indoor tracking system via joint Wi-Fi/PDR localization
Authors: Qian Yongxiang , Chen Xuechen
Published: July 2020

The development of indoor localization has been advanced by the rapid development of intelligent devices. The well-known methods used for indoor localization such as Wi-Fi fingerprint database positioning and pedestrian dead reckoning (PDR) can be implemented in a self-contained smartphone. However, the existing Wi-Fi fingerprint database positioning method can be easily influenced by the dynamic environment while PDR will generate a cumulative error with an increase in walking steps. In this paper, we propose a new hybrid method using PDR and Wi-Fi information. We divide the localization area into several subareas to improve the accuracy of the Wi-Fi fingerprint matching phase and introduce an enhanced particle filter (PF) algorithm which includes subarea information in the state vector and adopts a clonal selection algorithm (CSA) to improve resampling. We conduct a series of experiments in real-world environments, and the experimental results validate that the proposed algorithm is much better than ordinary PF algorithms and standalone methods.
A validated Geant4 model of a whole-body PET scanner with four-layer DOI detectors
Authors: Ahmed Abdella M , Chacon Andrew , Rutherford Harley , Akamatsu Go , Mohammadi Akram , Nishikido Fumihiko , Tashima Hideaki , Yoshida Eiji , Yamaya Taiga , Franklin Daniel R , Rosenfeld Anatoly , Guatelli Susanna , Safavi-Naeini Mitra
Published: July 2020

The purpose of this work is to develop a validated Geant4 simulation model of a whole-body prototype PET scanner constructed from the four-layer depth-of-interaction detectors developed at the National Institute of Radiological Sciences, National Institutes for Quantum and Radiological Science and Technology, Japan. The simulation model emulates the behaviour of the unique depth of interaction sensing capability of the scanner without needing to directly simulate optical photon transport in the scintillator and photodetector modules. The model was validated by evaluating and comparing performance metrics from the NEMA NU 2-2012 protocol on both the simulated and physical scanner, including spatial resolution, sensitivity, scatter fraction, noise equivalent count rates and image quality. The results show that the average sensitivities of the scanner in the field-of-view were 5.9 cps kBq−1 and 6.0 cps kBq−1 for experiment and simulation, respectively. The average spatial resolutions measured for point sources placed at several radial offsets were 5.2± 0.7 mm and 5.0± 0.8 mm FWHM for experiment and simulation, respectively. The peak NECR was 22.9 kcps at 7.4 kBq ml−1 for the experiment, while the NECR obtained via simulation was 23.3 kcps at the same activity. The scatter fractions were 44% and 41.3% for the experiment and simulation, respectively. Contrast recovery estimates performed in different regions of a simulated image quality phantom matched the experimental results with an average error of -8.7% and +3.4% for hot and cold lesions, respectively. The results demonstrate that the developed Geant4 model reliably reproduces the key NEMA NU 2-2012 performance metrics evaluated on the prototype PET scanner. A simplified version of the model is included as an advanced example in Geant4 version 10.5.
Physics and biology of ultrahigh dose-rate (FLASH) radiotherapy: a topical review
Authors: Esplen Nolan , Mendonca Marc S , Bazalova-Carter Magdalena
Published: July 2020

Ultrahigh dose-rate radiotherapy (RT), or ‘FLASH’ therapy, has gained significant momentum following various in vivo studies published since 2014 which have demonstrated a reduction in normal tissue toxicity and similar tumor control for FLASH-RT when compared with conventional dose-rate RT. Subsequent studies have sought to investigate the potential for FLASH normal tissue protection and the literature has been since been inundated with publications on FLASH therapies. Today, FLASH-RT is considered by some as having the potential to ‘revolutionize radiotherapy’. FLASH-RT is considered by some as having the potential to ‘revolutionize radiotherapy’.

The goal of this review article is to present the current state of this intriguing RT technique and to review existing publications on FLASH-RT in terms of its physical and biological aspects. In the physics section, the current landscape of ultrahigh dose-rate radiation delivery and dosimetry is presented. Specifically, electron, photon and proton radiation sources capable of delivering ultrahigh dose-rates along with their beam delivery parameters are thoroughly discussed. Additionally, the benefits and drawbacks of radiation detectors suitable for dosimetry in FLASH-RT are presented. The biology section comprises a summary of pioneering in vitro ultrahigh dose-rate studies performed in the 1960s and early 1970s and continues with a summary of the recent literature investigating normal and tumor tissue responses in electron, photon and proton beams. The section is concluded with possible mechanistic explanations of the FLASH normal-tissue protection effect (FLASH effect). Finally, challenges associated with clinical translation of FLASH-RT and its future prospects are critically discussed; specifically, proposed treatment machines and publications on treatment planning for FLASH-RT are reviewed.
Automated identification of the predominant site of upper airway collapse in obstructive sleep apnoea patients using snore signal
Authors: Sebastian Arun , Cistulli Peter A. , Cohen Gary , de Chazal Philip
Published: July 2020

Objective: This study provides a novel approach for an automated system using a machine learning algorithm to predict the predominant site of upper airway collapse into four classes (‘lateral wall’, ‘palate’, ‘tongue-base’ related collapse or ‘multi-level’ site-of-collapse) in obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) patients from the audio signal recorded during normal sleep. Approach: Snore sounds from 58 patients were recorded simultaneously with full-night polysomnography during sleep with a ceiling mounted microphone. The probable site-of-airway collapse was determined by manual analysis of the shape of the airflow signal during hypopnoea. Time and frequency features of the audio signal were extracted from each hypopnoea event to classify the audio signal into ‘lateral wall’, ‘palate’ and ‘tongue-base’ related collapse according to prior research. The data was divided into two sets. The Learning Set contained the data of the first 45 patients and was used for building the model. The Hidden Set contained the data from the remaining 13 patients and was used for testing the performance of the model. Feature selection was employed to boost the classification performance. The classification was carried out with a multi-class linear discriminant analysis classifier to classify the predominant site-of-collapse for a patient into the four classes. Performance was evaluated by comparing the automatic and manually labelled data based on the predominant site-of-collapse and calculating the accuracy. Main results: The model achieved an overall accuracy on the Hidden Set of 77% for discriminating tongue/non-tongue collapse and an accuracy of 62% accuracy for all site-of-collapse classes. Significance: Our results demonstrate that the audio signal recorded during sleep can successfully identify the site-of-collapse in the upper airway. The additional information regarding the obstruction site may assist clinicians in deciding the most appropriate treatment for OSA.
Review: knots and other new topological effects in liquid crystals and colloids
Authors: Smalyukh Ivan I
Published: July 2020

Humankind has been obsessed with knots in religion, culture and daily life for millennia, while physicists like Gauss, Kelvin and Maxwell already involved them in models centuries ago. Nowadays, colloidal particles can be fabricated to have shapes of knots and links with arbitrary complexity. In liquid crystals, closed loops of singular vortex lines can be knotted by using colloidal particles and laser tweezers, as well as by confining nematic fluids into micrometer-sized droplets with complex topology. Knotted and linked colloidal particles induce knots and links of singular defects, which can be interlinked (or not) with colloidal particle knots, revealing the diversity of interactions between topologies of knotted fields and topologically nontrivial surfaces of colloidal objects. Even more diverse knotted structures emerge in nonsingular molecular alignment and magnetization fields in liquid crystals and colloidal ferromagnets. The topological solitons include hopfions, skyrmions, heliknotons, torons and other spatially localized continuous structures, which are classified based on homotopy theory, characterized by integer-valued topological invariants and often contain knotted or linked preimages, nonsingular regions of space corresponding to single points of the order parameter space. A zoo of topological solitons in liquid crystals, colloids and ferromagnets promises new breeds of information displays and a plethora of data storage, electro-optic and photonic applications. Their particle-like collective dynamics echoes coherent motions in active matter, ranging from crowds of people to schools of fish. This review discusses the state of the art in the field, as well as highlights recent developments and open questions in physics of knotted soft matter. We systematically overview knotted field configurations, the allowed transformations between them, their physical stability and how one can use one form of knotted fields to model, create and imprint other forms. The large variety of symmetries accessible to liquid crystals and colloids offer insights into stability, transformation and emergent dynamics of fully nonsingular and singular knotted fields of fundamental and applied importance. The common thread of this review is the ability to experimentally visualize these knots in real space. The review concludes with a discussion of how the studies of knots in liquid crystals and colloids can offer insights into topologically related structures in other branches of physics, with answers to many open questions, as well as how these experimentally observable knots hold a strong potential for providing new inspirations to the mathematical knot theory.
Dissipative dynamics of an open quantum battery
Authors: Carrega M , Crescente A , Ferraro D , Sassetti M
Published: July 2020

Coupling with an external environment inevitably affects the dynamics of a quantum system. Here, we consider how charging performances of a quantum battery, modelled as a two level system, are influenced by the presence of an Ohmic thermal reservoir. The latter is coupled to both longitudinal and transverse spin components of the quantum battery including decoherence and pure dephasing mechanisms. Charging and discharging dynamics of the quantum battery, subjected to a static driving, are obtained exploiting a proper mapping into the so-called spin-boson model. Analytic expressions for the time evolution of the energy stored in the weak coupling regime are presented relying on a systematic weak damping expansion. Here, decoherence and pure dephasing dissipative coupling are discussed in details. We argue that the former results in better charging performances, showing also interesting features reminiscent of the Lamb shift level splitting renormalization induced by the presence of the reservoir. Charging stability is also addressed, by monitoring the energy behaviour after the charging protocol has been switched off. This study presents a general framework to investigate relaxation effects, able to include also non Markovian effects, and it reveals the importance of controlling and, possibly, engineering system-bath coupling in the realization of quantum batteries.
Sulfur and Water Resistance and Activity of Ru-Ce-Zr-O
x
Catalysts for Nitric Oxide Catalytic Oxidation
Authors: Dong Yiwen , Fan,Pubo Chen Xing , Chen Pubo , Li Jian
Published: July 2020

Most mobile pollution sources have narrow space. Due to its small occupation area, fast selective catalytic reduction (SCR) is more suitable for controlling oxynitride (NO
x
) in exhausted gas in mobile pollution sources such as vessels. The fast SCR reaction can be divided into two stages: nitric oxide (NO) catalytic oxidation stage and NO
x
removal stage. This paper focused on the study of NO oxidation catalysts consists of ruthenium-cerium-zirconium (Ru-Ce-Zr) metal-oxides. It was found that the doping of ruthenium (Ru) which is the precious metal, greatly improved the catalytic activity. The NO oxidation rate of catalyst doped with 0.5% Ru at 300 °C was about 15% higher than that without Ru. However, with the increasing content of ruthenium, the sulfur and water resistance of catalysts decreased and the activity of the catalysts was only partially restored after regeneration. The results showed that Ru increased the activity of the catalysts while Ce and Zr improved the resistance of SO2 and H2O. Our work provided a solution to the space problem of mobile pollution sources such as vessels.
Fully decoupled fixed-time cascade control of three-phase voltage source converters with LC output filter
Authors: Ghazzali Mohamed , Haloua Mohamed , Giri Fouad
Published: July 2020

This paper presents a fully decoupled fixed-time cascade control system of three-phase voltage source converters (VSCs) with LC output filter. The proposed controller has a cascade structure and it is designed in the synchronous reference frame d-q. The outer loop is for voltage control and the inner loop is for current control. A fixed-time controller is developed for voltage regulation and reference tracking before the desired pre-fixed time despite the unknown disturbances. The current controller uses PI controllers for current regulation and feedforward terms to decouple the direct and quadrature of voltage and current control loops. Unlike the conventional PI-based synchronous reference frame VSC control, the proposed approach provides better control performance with smaller and smoother control signal and enables the d-q components of voltage and current to be fully decoupled. A comparative simulation study with the conventional control system is provided to highlight the effectiveness of the proposed approach.
Power Quality Analysis on Arc Furnace Capacitor Bank System in Thailand
Authors: Sreewirote Bancha , Ngaopitakkul Atthapol
Published: July 2020

A large arc furnace plant is currently in operation in Thailand has utilize a capacitor bank system to compensate for the reactive power. However, the use of a capacitor bank, the power quality has become a problem in terms of the harmonic current owing to the switching transient that magnifies the current harmonics and causes severe damage to the capacitor bank and other nearby sensitive equipment. In this study, we investigate the power quality issue in terms of harmonics in a steel furnace factory, and its effect when switching the capacitor bank into a system. We perform the study by using data from an arc furnace plant in Phetchaburi province, Thailand for a case study. The results obtained from the power quality measurement after installing a detuning reactor are satisfactory with a significant decrease in the harmonic current. Thus, the proposed approach can be applied to an arc furnace plant in order to ensure the safety and reliability of the plant.
Application of Thermal Pressure Ventilation Technology in Extra Long Construction Tunnel with High Ground Temperature
Authors: Xie Z W , Xiao Y M
Published: July 2020

The feasibility of thermal pressure ventilation technology for ventilation and cooling of extra long construction tunnel with high altitude and high ground temperature was discussed. A physical model was built with a proportional factor of 1:1 based on the design documents of Zilashan tunnel in China. The CFD model considering buoyancy effects was used to evaluated the influence of the initial rock temperature, the insulation performance of the left tunnel and the outdoor air temperature on the effect of thermal pressure ventilation. Results show that the effect of thermal pressure ventilation increases by 12.2%, and the effect of cooling enhances by 3.7% when the left tunnel has no insulation. Compared with the initial rock temperature, the outdoor air temperature has a greater influence on thermal pressure ventilation. When the initial rock temperature is below 54 °C, outdoor air temperature is below 17.5 °C and the left tunnel has no insulation, thermal pressure ventilation technology is feasible for ventilation and cooling of Zilashan tunnel with a shaft of 450 m height. The thermal pressure ventilation technology provides a reference for other construction tunnel projects as a design of ventilation and cooling.
Highly Efficient Use Technology of The By-Product Gas in Iron and Steel Making Process
Authors: Song Hanlin , Zhang Jinpeng , Xue Xiangxin
Published: July 2020

BOF gas, with an annual output of more than 100 billion standard cubic meters, is one of the primary by-product energy resources in the steelmaking process. However, the up to 34.7% abandoned rate of BOF gas in China has caused a lot of carbon emissions and energy resources waste. The abandoned BOF gas, with a high temperature of 1773∼1873K and 20∼40%(vol.%) CO and 20∼30%(vol.%) CO2 has a vast physical sensible heat and chemical latent heat. There are predictable recyclable values and comprehensive utilization prospects to achieve the ultra-low carbon emissions and energy conversion in ironmaking and steelmaking. The paper has carried out a detailed calculation of the energy value of abandoned BOF gas, and the feasibility analysis and program design of the overall resource recycling and energy utilization in ironmaking and steelmaking, including blast furnace smelting of vanadia-titania magnetite, combined blowing in BOF and vanadium-extracting converter, co-production of steel-chemicals industry.
Light scattering from periodic arrays of noble-metal disks
Authors: Ji Xiaowei , Zhou Yu
Published: July 2020

Numerical solution is presented for light scattering from free-standing periodic arrays of disks made of noble-metal. Using the generalized boundary conditions of the surface impedance type, we formulate the boundary value problem into a set of integral equations for unknown electric and magnetic current densities defined over the circular area. Employment of the method of moments allows us to solve the integral equations and give the expansion coefficients of the current densities, from which we can find reflected, transmitted, and absorbed powers. Dependence of the powers on the array parameters and wavelength is discussed in detail from the viewpoint of grating resonance.
Preparation and microstructure of Pb0.99Nb0.02((Zr0.52Sn0.48)0.955Ti0.045)0.98O3 ceramics
Authors: Li Min
Published: July 2020

The Pb0.99Nb0.02((Zr0.52Sn0.48)0.955Ti0.045)0.98O3 antiferroelectric ceramics were synthesized by two different preparing routes (molten salt method and conventional solid state method). It was found that the sample synthesizes by a solid state method which owns smaller grain size leading to a higher energy storage density of 1.3 J/cm3. From the S-E loops, it was found that the sample prepared by a molten salt method owns less micro-cracks and larger grain size which induced a higher switchable polarization and strain. From the results of situ TEM, the existence of 90 ° domain indicates the existence of antiferroelectric phase.
Dynamic Change and Influence Factor Analysis of Vegetation Community of West Liaohe River Plain
Authors: Yan Long , Wang Yong , Deng Wei , Li Dili
Published: July 2020

With intensive mining of groundwater and expansion of irrigation area, reversion has happened to the grassland and arable area of West Liaohe River Plain, and the natural property of ecological system has declined sharply. Through historical literature research and plant sampling survey, comparison was made for the status dynamic change of grassland vegetation community on the West Liaohe River Plain before (1980) and after interference (2016). According to the result, it showed that the grassland vegetation species diversity of West Liaohe River Plain dropped from 917 to 258. Besides, the influence factors affecting vegetation community change were also analyzed, 1) the grassland was occupied by arable land, thus resulting in a shrink in grassland area from 48, 900 km2 in 1980 to 22, 400 km2 in 2016. Due to the locality in species distribution, therefore, the shrinking process of grassland also represented the process of species disappearance; 2) large-scale well irrigation resulted in the overall decrease of underground water level and the vegetation ecological degradation; 3) overgrazing and other problems brought by rapid development of animal husbandry.
A Study of the Impact of Atmospheric Pressure in Eastern Qilian Mountains on Vertical Deformation at GNSS Stations
Authors: Yang Guolin , Sun Xuexian , Liu Tao , An Xuwei , Zhang Bo
Published: July 2020

The change of the earth’s surface environmental load is an important factor that causes the crustal short-term movement. The project address is in the eastern part of Qilian Mountain, and we take the crustal vertical deformation and gravity changes affected by load changes as the research object. Based on the crustal load deformation theory, we use the data of GNSS continuous reference stations and meteorological stations in the region to study the evolution between atmospheric load changes and vertical crustal movement in the region from 2012 to 2017. The results show that the atmosphere in the eastern part of the Qilian Mountains is affected by atmospheric load periodically and varies with the seasons. On average, atmospheric pressure is low in summer and high in winter, resulting in annual periodic crustal vertical deformation, while the crustal uplifts in summer and declines in winter. The crustal deformation in most areas is the largest around January and August, and there are certain differences in crustal deformation in different areas.
Characteristics of Dissolved Organic Matter in Tail Water of Wastewater Treatment Plant and its Influence on Receiving River
Authors: Yuan Xingcheng , Li Dan , Chen Yangwen , Liu Rui
Published: July 2020

The dissolved organic matter (DOM) in the tail water of the municipal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) are complex and changeable, and can react with the organic and metal ions in the receiving water, thus affecting their migration and transformation. In order to understand the characteristics of DOM in the tail water of WWTP, the Guozhen WWTP and Kui river in Xuzhou city were taken as the research objects. The spectral characteristics of DOM were analysed by three dimensional fluorescence spectroscopy (3D-EEM), and the water quality indexes such as pH, total nitrogen (TN), ammonia nitrogen (NH3
−-N), nitrate nitrogen(NO3
−-N), nitrite nitrogen(NO2
−-N), TOC and UV254 were measured. The changing rules of these indexes in sewage, tail water and receiving river were discussed. The results showed that DOM in the tail water was mainly composed of soluble microbial metabolites and humic acids. The TN, NH3-N, NO3
−-N, NO2
−-N and TOC have been significantly reduced under the biological treatment process of the WWTP, but the large-scale drainage of the tail water will still have no negligible influence on the natural waterbody.
Application of magnetic superacid catalyst in synthesis of 2-methylanthraquinone
Authors: Li Xiang , Yang Rui , Wang Detang , Li Gan , Zhao Meixia
Published: July 2020

A solid acid catalyst was prepared by impregnating trifluoromethanesulfonic acid (TFMSA) onto mesoporous SiO2 coated attapulgite (ATP). 2-(4’ -methyl benzoyl) benzoic acid (T acid) was used as a compound to evaluate the catalytic activity. T acid is an important dye intermediate. The results show that T acid conversion over the catalyst could reach 100% under mild conditions without concentrated sulfuric acid. It proved that the catalyst was stable after 4 cycles. According to multiple analyses, TFMSA was formed on the surface of ATP.
Biochar produced from cotton husks and its application for the adsorption of oil products
Authors: Yang Mouyuan , Wang Jiaqi , Chen Yan , Gao Junkai
Published: July 2020

Due to their low-cost, light weight, environmental protection, biological carbon as the oil adsorbent has aroused widely attention. The discovery and research of novel biological carbon for the separation of oil from water is still required urgently. In this work, the cotton husks were prepared through high-temperature pyrolysis and they are utilized to adsorb different oils. The adsorption process and reusability were also investigated, it founded that the carbonized cotton husks (CNH) exhibit fast adsorption capacity and excellent sorption capacity and reusability, which can be the great candidate for oil spill cleanup application.
Lead exposure characteristics and pollution evaluation of indoor and outdoor dust in primary school campuses of Baoji city in northwest China
Authors: Li Zixia , Lu Hai , Zhoug Fang
Published: July 2020

Lead in dust is an important potential source of human exposure to lead. The indoor and outdoor dust in the urban and rural areas of Baoji City, a typical industrial city of northwest China, including the urban, suburban towns, rural and lead-zinc smelters, was collected. The Pb content of the dust was analyzed by ICP-MS after microwave digestion. The results reveal that the lead content was 627.18 mg/kg and 679.39 mg/kg in indoor and outdoor school of the city center area, respectively. The average content of lead was 593.61 mg/kg and 635.46 mg/kg in indoor and outdoor school of the urban area, respectively. The lead content in the rural area was lower than city center area and the urban area, the results were 217.33 mg/kg and 268.57 mg/kg. The lead content in lead and zinc smelters area was highest than other area, the results were reached 2717.62 mg/kg and 3296.27 mg/kg. Pb pollution level and potential ecological risk in Baoji City had reached a serious level based on two kinds of evaluation methods. The results are expected to provide important scientific basis for regional environmental protection, environmental pollution controlling, management and health protection of Baoji city.
Study on Adsorption and Photocatalytic Properties of Rectorite-titanium Dioxide-Ag Composites
Authors: Du Yuanyuan , Fu Ying , Zheng Linlin , Gao Xing , He Wen , Han Li , Zheng Pengwu
Published: July 2020

Using butyl titanate, silver nitrate, tired rectorite (REC) as raw materials, titanium dioxide (TiO2) and silver (Ag) were loaded onto the octahedron structure of the tired rectorite by Sol-Gel method, and REC- TiO2 and REC- TiO2 -Ag Composites were successfully prepared. The Photocatalytic properties and adsorption properties were also studied. The results showed that the adsorption rate of REC-TiO2-Ag to methylene blue was higher than that of REC- TiO2. In the same proportion of REC- TiO2 -Ag and REC-TiO2 Composites, REC-TiO2-Ag composites have better adsorption effect on methylene blue, and the balanced adsorption of REC-TiO2-Ag composites at 25°C is 54.054 mg/g. The equilibrium adsorption amount of REC-TiO2 composites is 36.49 mg/g. At the same time, the photocatalytic degradation rate of REC- TiO2 -Ag to methylene blue was 96%, which was significantly higher than that of REC-TiO2.
Research on energy conservation of port public buildings
Authors: Ying Haining , Lu Huiyu , Ren Jie , Li Kang , Chen Jing
Published: July 2020

Energy is the basis of the survival and development of human society, and the energy needed is increasing. Our building energy consumption accounts for a large proportion of total social energy consumption, so the research and development of building energy-saving technology is the top priority. The energy conservation and emission reduction of port public buildings should also be paid attention to. Domestic and foreign scholars’ research on port energy conservation mainly focus on the management and planning of port construction, less on the specific energy conservation measures of port public buildings, staying at a relatively macro and overall level, and lack of detailed research on the function positioning, site selection and layout, and structural form of port public buildings.
Combustion Performance and Kinetic Analysis of Shenhua Raw Coal Mixed Coal Gasification Slag
Authors: Wang Yunfei , Zhang Fushen , Zheng Zhilei , Wang Huiqi , wang Feng
Published: July 2020

In this paper, Shenhua coal and its gasification slag (GS) in Ordos are taken as the research objects. The thermogrmetric analyzer is used to investigate the mixed combustion characteristics of different proportions. The experimental results show that Shenhua raw coal mixed with GS can improve the overall ignition and burnout characteristics of mixed coal to some extent. With the increase of the mixing amount of GS, the combustion characteristic temperature of coal samples presents an overall trend of increase in ignition point temperature (T
i) and burnout temperature (T
b). When the GS content is 50%, the maximum weight loss temperature (T
max) is the highest. The mixing amount of GS is not equal to the change of sample mass. The comprehensive combustion characteristic S decreases with the increase of GS content.When the mixing amount of GS was 50%, the minimum apparent activation energy obtained was 87.11kJ/mol.
Analysis of the Urban Renewal Strategies with Fuzzy Delphi Approach
Authors: Liu Shih-Yuan , Wu Pao-Kuan
Published: July 2020

Currently, the old houses more than 30 years are exceed 4.5 million in Taiwan. If it does not accelerate urban renewal and reconstruction, it will reach 6.4 million in ten years. “Urban renewal is not a goal, it is a tool”. J. Q. Wilson mentioned it by his book named Urban Renewal in 1996. Since 2007, government promote renewal works energetically by the means of additional building bulk and tax reduce to achieve the fallowing goal: promote a well-planned urban land redevelopment, revitalize urban functions, improve urban living environments, and to increase public interest. In addition, the inability to implement various supporting measures have made urban renewal very difficult. In particular, urban renewal adopt the “Joint Construction Agreement”. Consequently, this study proceeds to explore the main factors that affect urban renewal for joint construction agreement. Through the evaluation model and expert groups giving fuzzy values, access the relative importance of each factors by using Fuzzy Delphi method. The study found the critical factor and propose strategies for urban renewal development in the future to improve the quality and quantity of urban renewal.
Probing criticality in quantum spin chains with neural networks
Authors: Berezutskii A , Beketov M , Yudin D , Zimborás Z , Biamonte J D
Published: July 2020

The numerical emulation of quantum systems often requires an exponential number of degrees of freedom which translates to a computational bottleneck. Methods of machine learning have been used in adjacent fields for effective feature extraction and dimensionality reduction of high-dimensional datasets. Recent studies have revealed that neural networks are further suitable for the determination of macroscopic phases of matter and associated phase transitions as well as efficient quantum state representation. In this work, we address quantum phase transitions in quantum spin chains, namely the transverse field Ising chain and the anisotropic XY chain, and show that even neural networks with no hidden layers can be effectively trained to distinguish between magnetically ordered and disordered phases. Our neural network acts to predict the corresponding crossovers finite-size systems undergo. Our results extend to a wide class of interacting quantum many-body systems and illustrate the wide applicability of neural networks to many-body quantum physics.
Strengths in numbers: Assessing the use of StrengthsFinder 2.0 in a pharmacy residency program
Authors: Faville Elizabeth , Turner Suzanne , Armitstead John A
Published: July 2020

Purpose

To quantify the trends of StrengthsFinder 2.0 domains and traits in pharmacy residents within a single residency program. To recognize and discuss the application of resident StrengthsFinder 2.0 traits within a residency program.

Methods

This is a retrospective review of StrengthsFinder 2.0 domains and traits among first- and second-year postgraduate year (PGY) pharmacy residents over the past 6 years in a community-based health system. Perspectives on the utility of the StrengthsFinder 2.0 assessment within a residency program, from the viewpoints of a residency program director, a system director of pharmacy, and a current resident, were also obtained and recorded.

Results

A total of 34 residents with 170 StrengthsFinder 2.0 traits were included in this data analysis. The top StrengthsFinder 2.0 domains of all pharmacy residents were Strategic Thinking and Relationship Building, being exhibited by 36% and 28%, respectively. Learner, Achiever, Harmony, Input, and Restorative were found to be the most frequently reported StrengthsFinder 2.0 traits among all pharmacy residents examined. Learner and Harmony were found to be the top traits of first-year pharmacy residents (11% and 9%), while Achiever and Learner were the most common traits found in the second-year pharmacy residents (13% and 10%). The system pharmacy director, residency program director, and current resident agreed that the assessment tool enhances the resident experience. However, each has their own perspective on the benefits of the StrengthsFinder assessment with respect to the residency program.

Conclusion

Overall, the top 5 StrengthsFinder 2.0 traits seen in pharmacy residents who have completed a PGY1 or PGY2 residency at Lee Health were: Learner (18%), Achiever (9%), Harmony (7%), Input (6%), and Restorative (6%). Achiever, Harmony, Learner, Input, and Restorative were found to be the most common traits across all categories reported. These trends are similar to those reported in previous studies of StrengthsFinder 2.0 assessment of pharmacy students and residents. Evaluating individual StrengthsFinder 2.0 traits at the start of the residency year provides a framework for each resident to complete ongoing self-evaluations. In addition, familiarity with the common traits seen within residents allows residency leadership members to make more thoughtful decisions regarding resident assignments for learning experiences or committee appointments.
Primary care pharmacy technicians: Effect on pharmacist workload and patient access to clinical pharmacy services
Authors: Walker Dmitry , Hartkopf Katherine J , Hager David R
Published: July 2020

Purpose

Improve patient access to clinical pharmacy services and decrease pharmacist technical task workload in primary care (PC) clinics.

Due to concerns with the amount of technical tasks performed by University of Wisconsin Health PC clinical pharmacists negatively impacting their capacity to care for patients and perform clinical tasks, the pharmacy department piloted a new PC pharmacy technician role that involved completion of technical tasks previously performed by PC pharmacists. PC pharmacist daily technical and clinical activities were identified through shadowing and quantified by a 4-week period of work sampling. A PC pharmacist workgroup determined the technical tasks that would be appropriate for a pharmacy technician to complete and developed the technician workflows. A PC pharmacy technician was implemented during a 3-week pilot, when pharmacist daily technical and clinical activities were quantified through work sampling. Following implementation, a 52.7% (P < 0.001) relative reduction and a 10.2% (P < 0.001) relative increase in pharmacist technical and clinical activities, respectively, were identified. Additionally, a 10% relative increase from the previous 3-month average was observed in the PC pharmacist rolling patient panel size during the pilot period, correlating with an increase of patient access to pharmacist clinical services.

Conclusion

Up to 17% of PC pharmacist daily activities are technical tasks. Leveraging pharmacy technicians to support pharmacists with completion of these tasks increases patient access to clinical pharmacy services but requires additional staff resources.
Facelift With Power-Assisted Dissection: A Preliminary Report
Authors: Cohen Steven R , Hewett Sierra , Baraf Patrick , Crowley Sarah Jiwon , Atlan Michael
Published: July 2020

Background

Subcutaneous elevation of the skin has remained a key component in all facelift techniques.

Objectives

The aim of this preliminary report was to introduce the ABC facelift as a 3-step method addressing photodamage, soft tissue laxity, and areas of bone and volume loss.

Methods

The procedure consists of: (A) anatomic and regenerative adipose grafting prior to skin elevation; (B) the use of a Baraf elevator for takedown of perpendicular subcutaneous fibers following hydrodissection of the skin flaps with tumescent solution; and (C) cautery dissection of the superficial muscular aponeurotic system (SMAS) and platysma in the neck.

Results

Thirty-four patients (31 females; 3 male), aged 50 to 77 years at the date of procedure, underwent an ABC facelift. Dissection of the skin flaps and SMAS elevation were faster than with traditional methods, averaging 10 to 15 minutes per hemiface. Bleeding was reduced (average estimated blood loss, 12 mL) and the skin flaps appeared better perfused with less venous engorgement and ecchymosis than achieved with sharp scissor dissection. In general, patients appeared to have shorter postoperative recovery courses and less social downtime secondary to bruising and edema.

Conclusions

The ABC facelift addresses facial laxity, volume loss, and skin aging with 3 simple steps: anatomic and regenerative fat grafting, combined with power-assisted dissection of the skin and cautery elevation of the SMAS. The use of more advanced hydrodissection tools to achieve further improvements in layer separation is currently being investigated.

Level of Evidence: 4