bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Donan, Lochranza and Balloch fields, Blocks 15/20a and 15/20b, UK North Sea
Authors: Ings R. J. , Davids D. , Shotton P. , Agnew C.
Published: October 2020

The Donan Field is a mature asset in the final phase of production, following the redevelopment facilitated by various advances in technology and subsurface understanding. The original development utilized an ingenious single-well oil production system vessel which made small hydrocarbon accumulations economic, while the use of a floating production, storage and offloading vessel to redevelop the Donan Field as the ‘Dumbarton Project’ allowed the previously stranded Lochranza and undiscovered Balloch fields to be developed.

Donan and Lochranza are typical Paleocene oilfields with excellent water drive from a large regional aquifer. Balloch is an Upper Jurassic oilfield of equivalent size to Lochranza supported by a large regional aquifer but has a considerably higher recovery factor on account of excellent reservoir properties combined with a more optimal geometry to effectively sweep the reservoir. Most of the fields have exceeded pre-development expectations, particularly Balloch on account of it being developed whilst considerable subsurface uncertainties remained.

Recognition of a seismic amplitude v. offset response across the Donan Field was key to redevelopment, significantly increasing the oil in place and guiding the locations of development wells. This was supplemented by the ability to geosteer the horizontal development wells in the shallowest possible reservoir sand to maximize the recoverable resources. The use of horizontal development wells facilitated the development of short, areally extensive, oil columns; while the design of the production facilities and wells to include permanent artificial lift and capacity to process large water volumes was essential.
The Perth Field, Blocks 14/25a, 15/21c, 15/21e, UK North Sea
Authors: Allan N. P. , Southwood D. A.
Published: October 2020

The Perth Field was discovered in 1983 and appraised from 1992 to 1997, but has remained undeveloped due to the lack of a suitable export solution for the sour fluids. The field is a combined structural–stratigraphic trap on the southern edge of the Tartan Ridge in the Outer Moray Firth. An oil column of >1000 ft is developed in the turbiditic Upper Jurassic Claymore Sandstone Member which is mostly 500–800 ft thick in the proven appraised Core Perth area. Reference case oil in place within Core Perth is estimated at 197 MMbbl. An undrilled northern terrace may contain a similar amount of oil, with an additional 40 MMbbl estimated to be in place in a separate, proven northeastern fault panel. Potential development by subsea tieback to the Scott platform became an option in 2017. P50 reserves for 15 years’ production from Core Perth (five producers and two water injectors) are estimated at 47.3 MMbbl (24% recovery factor). The preferred concept is for oil and gas to be processed on a new self-contained sour module located on a standalone structure at Scott with oil exported in the Forties Pipeline System. Sour gas would be incinerated in a dedicated flare with recovered hydrocarbon gas exported to Scott.
The Ketch, Schooner and Topaz fields, Blocks 44/26, 44/28, 49/1a and 49/2a, UK North Sea
Authors: Moscariello A. , Goffey G.
Published: October 2020

The Ketch, Schooner and Topaz fields were discovered between 1984 and 1987 and produced from Upper Carboniferous, Westphalian C/D (Bolsovian/Asturian) reservoirs. Gas production began in 1996, 1999 and 2009 for Schooner, Ketch and Topaz respectively. The low net-to-gross reservoir consists of discrete, low sinuosity fluvio-deltaic channels evolving upwards into an aggradational, distal fluvial fan setting, dominated by braided channels. Fault compartmentalization and variable sandbody extent mean that reservoir connectivity was a key subsurface uncertainty. The Ketch and Schooner fields gas-in-place estimates at development approval of 956 and 1021 bcf are now modelled as 581 and 654 bcf respectively. This reduction is due mainly to remapping (Schooner) and revised reservoir modelling reflecting production experience. Generally poor reservoir connectivity is demonstrated by the lower connected gas-in-place volumes, estimated at 351 and 481 bcf respectively, based on production data. Field recovery to cessation of production in 2018 was 263 (Ketch) and 310 bcf (Schooner) or 75 and 64% of the in-place volume connected to production wells. Topaz has 139 bcf gas in place, with recovery of 10.4 bcf from a connected volume of 14 bcf, equating to 74% recovery of connected volumes or 7.5% full field recovery.
The Maria Field, Block 16/29a, UK North Sea
Authors: Stephens I. N. , Small S. , Wood P. H.
Published: October 2020

The Maria oilfield is located on a fault-bounded terrace in Block 16/29a of the UK sector of the North Sea, at the intersection of the South Viking Graben and the eastern Witch Ground Graben. The field was discovered in December 1993 by the 16/29a-11Y well and was confirmed by two further appraisal wells. The reservoir consists of shoreface sandstones of the Jurassic Fulmar Formation. The Jurassic sandstones, ranging from 100 to 180 ft in thickness, have variable reservoir properties, with porosities ranging from 10 to 18% and permeabilities from 1 to 300 mD. Hydrocarbons are trapped in a truncated rotated fault block, striking NW–SE. The reservoir sequence is sealed by Kimmeridge Clay Formation and Heather Formation claystones. Geochemical analysis suggests that Middle Jurassic Pentland Formation and Upper Jurassic Kimmeridge Clay Formation mudstones have been the source of the Maria hydrocarbons. Estimated recoverable reserves are 10.6 MMbbl and 67 bcf (21.8 MMboe). Two further production wells were drilled in 2018 to access unexploited areas.
Providing Detailed Information on National Policies to Cope with the Covid-19 Pandemic
Authors: Gaie Christophe
Published: October 2020

This article considers the valorization of government interventions to support the economy in France; in particular, it provides a detailed geovisualization of emergency funds granted to companies. Transparency of the actions performed to cope with the pandemic situation is offered by the combination of open data and the usage of a new open-source visualization framework. It provides the essential information of public policies for citizens, academics, companies, public decision makers, and so on. The proposed framework is completely customizable and may be easily re-used in many crisis management situations, such as hurricanes, earthquakes, flooding, nuclear disasters.
A new noninvasive method for measurement of dynamic lung compliance from fluctuations on photoplethysmography in respiration
Authors: Yamazaki Haruna , Fujimoto Keisaku
Published: October 2020

Our newly developed method for measuring dynamic lung compliance (Cdyn) in combination with changes in estimated intrathoracic pressure from fluctuations on photoplethysmography with respiration and lung volume measured simultaneously by spirometry showed good linear regression between the estimated Cdyn and the Cdyn measured with an esophageal balloon, and the estimated percentage of predicted Cdyn (%Cdyn) showed significantly lower values in patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD) than in healthy subjects and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients and significant correlations with vital capacity and lung diffusion capacity.
Distinct contributions of skin and core temperatures to flow-mediated dilation of the brachial artery following passive heating
Authors: Coombs Geoff B. , Tremblay Joshua C. , Shkredova Daria A. , Carr Jay M. J. R , Wakeham Denis J. , Patrician Alexander , Ainslie Philip N.
Published: October 2020

The primary determinant of vascular adaptations to lifestyle interventions, such as exercise and heat therapy, is repeated elevations in vascular shear stress. Whether skin or core temperatures also modulate the vascular adaptation to acute heat exposure is unknown, likely due to difficulty in dissociating the thermal and hemodynamic responses to heat. We found that skin and core temperatures modify the acute vascular responses to passive heating irrespective of the magnitude of increase in shear stress.
Sex-related differences in rapid-onset vasodilation: impact of aging
Authors: Hanson Brady E. , Joyner Michael J. , Casey Darren P.
Published: October 2020

While rapid-onset vasodilation (ROV) has been shown to decrease in older individuals, it is unclear if sex contributes to the decline with aging. We sought to identify if sex-related differences exist in the ROV response to single forearm contractions in young and older adults. Our data suggest sex-related differences are present among older but not young individuals, with women having an attenuated response. These data indicate sex plays a role in decreased vasodilation with aging.
Influence of prostaglandins and endothelial-derived hyperpolarizing factors on brachial and popliteal endothelial-dependent function in young adults
Authors: Petterson Jennifer L. , O’Brien Myles W. , Johns Jarrett A. , Chiasson Jack , Kimmerly Derek S.
Published: October 2020

We compared changes in upper- and lower-limb artery endothelial-dependent vasodilatory and vasoconstrictor responses between control, prostaglandin inhibition, and endothelial-derived hyperpolarizing factor inhibition conditions. Neither prostaglandins nor endothelial-derived hyperpolarizing factor influenced flow-mediated dilation responses in either the brachial or popliteal artery. In contrast, endothelial-derived hyperpolarizing factor, but not prostaglandins, reduced resting brachial artery blood flow and shear rate and resting popliteal artery diameter, as well as low-flow-mediated constriction responses in both the popliteal and brachial arteries.
Impact Tensile Behaviors of PVDF Building Coated Fabrics
Authors: Zheng Lianqiong , Ye Yilong , zhuang Jinping , Zheng Yongqian
Published: October 2020

The paper presents the impact tensile behaviors of two common building membranes (Ferrari 1002T2 membrane and XYD 300N membrane) in PVDF‐coated‐fabric membrane structures. The tests are conducted using the split Hopkinson bar test device. Typical forms of stress and strain are applied for comparing the stress‐strain relationship between quasi‐static and high strain rates. Besides, the failure mechanism and energy absorption at high strain rates are discussed. The results show that with the increase of strain rates, the growth rate of the stress of PVDF membrane decreases gradually, which is different from the stress‐strain relationship in low strain rates. At high strain rates, the ultimate tensile strength increases linearly with the increase of strain rates. In addition, the energy absorption capacity of the material increases with the increase of strain rates. The results can provide an important basis for the design and analysis of membrane structures under the impact loads.
Research on How Human Intelligence, Consciousness, and Cognitive Computing Affect the Development of Artificial Intelligence
Authors: Dong Yanyan , Hou Jie , Zhang Ning , Zhang Maocong
Published: October 2020

Artificial intelligence (AI) is essentially the simulation of human intelligence. Today’s AI can only simulate, replace, extend, or expand part of human intelligence. In the future, the research and development of cutting-edge technologies such as brain-computer interface (BCI) together with the development of the human brain will eventually usher in a strong AI era, when AI can simulate and replace human’s imagination, emotion, intuition, potential, tacit knowledge, and other kinds of personalized intelligence. Breakthroughs in algorithms represented by cognitive computing promote the continuous penetration of AI into fields such as education, commerce, and medical treatment to build up AI service space. As to human concern, namely, who controls whom between humankind and intelligent machines, the answer is that AI can only become a service provider for human beings, demonstrating the value rationality of following ethics.
Immune-Related lncRNA Correlated with Transcription Factors Provide Strong Prognostic Prediction in Gliomas
Authors: Tian Yixin , Ke Yi-Quan , Ma Yanxia
Published: October 2020

Glioma is the most common and deadly tumor in central nervous system. According to previous studies, long noncoding RNAs (lncRNA) and transcription factors were significant factors of gliomas progression by regulating gliomas immune microenvironment. In our study, we built two independent cohorts from CGGA and TCGA. And we extracted 253 immune-related lncRNA correlated with prognosis. After LASSO analysis and multivariate Cox regression analysis, 8 immune-related lncRNA were used to construct classifier. The effectiveness of classifier was confirmed in both CGGA (AUC = 0.869) and TCGA (AUC = 0.902) cohorts. The correlation between transcription factors and immune-related lncRNA was calculated by WCGNA. Eventually, we built a network between 8 lncRNA and transcription factors. The function of core immune-related lncRNA in gliomas immune microenvironment was also investigated by CIBERTSORT. Our research provided a strong classifier of immune-related lncRNA to predict gliomas patient outcome. We also found the correlation between core immune-related lncRNA and transcription factors. These results may stimulate new strategy of immunotherapy in gliomas patients.
RNA-Seq-Based Breast Cancer Subtypes Classification Using Machine Learning Approaches
Authors: Yu Zhezhou , Wang Zhuo , Yu Xiangchun , Zhang Zhe
Published: October 2020

Background. Breast invasive carcinoma (BRCA) is not a single disease as each subtype has a distinct morphology structure. Although several computational methods have been proposed to conduct breast cancer subtype identification, the specific interaction mechanisms of genes involved in the subtypes are still incomplete. To identify and explore the corresponding interaction mechanisms of genes for each subtype of breast cancer can impose an important impact on the personalized treatment for different patients. Methods. We integrate the biological importance of genes from the gene regulatory networks to the differential expression analysis and then obtain the weighted differentially expressed genes (weighted DEGs). A gene with a high weight means it regulates more target genes and thus holds more biological importance. Besides, we constructed gene coexpression networks for control and experiment groups, and the significantly differentially interacting structures encouraged us to design the corresponding Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment based on gene coexpression networks (GOEGCN). The GOEGCN considers the two-side distinction analysis between gene coexpression networks for control and experiment groups. The method allows us to study how the modulated coexpressed gene couples impact biological functions at a GO level. Results. We modeled the binary classification with weighted DEGs for each subtype. The binary classifier could make a good prediction for an unseen sample, and the experimental results validated the effectiveness of our proposed approaches. The novel enriched GO terms based on GOEGCN for control and experiment groups of each subtype explain the specific biological function changes according to the two-side distinction of coexpression network structures to some extent. Conclusion. The weighted DEGs contain biological importance derived from the gene regulatory network. Based on the weighted DEGs, five binary classifiers were learned and showed good performance concerning the “Sensitivity,” “Specificity,” “Accuracy,” “F1,” and “AUC” metrics. The GOEGCN with weighted DEGs for control and experiment groups presented a novel GO enrichment analysis results and the novel enriched GO terms would further unveil the changes of specific biological functions among all the BRCA subtypes to some extent. The R code in this research is available at https://github.com/yxchspring/GOEGCN_BRCA_Subtypes.
Extended SQ-Coons Surface and Its Application on Fairing Automobile Surface Design
Authors: Liu Fan , Ji Xiaomin , Gao Jing
Published: October 2020

Aiming at car design, a parametric design method is proposed in this paper. There are two contents in this method, a novel parametric surface, a shape-adjustable automobile styling template, and a design method of integrating the two contents. The surface termed extended SQ-Coons surface constructed in this paper has the advantage of being fine adjusted while always interpolating at the given boundary curves, which is suitable for its application in automobile modeling design. Matching with the surface, a car model template built by multiple quadrilateral surfaces is proposed. The car models built by the template could achieve the parametric adjustability of all modeling features on the premise of maintaining

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continuity between subsurfaces. Finally, after the integration of the surface and the template, a whole set of parametric automobile surface modeling design method is proposed. In this method, the overall shape of the car body is determined through multi angle hand drawing, and curve control points, segmentation parameters, and shape parameters are used to adjust the detail modeling. The final results show that the novel surface and template proposed could be used to parametrically establish the vehicle models of various shapes and improve the design efficiency in the conceptual design stage.
The Influence of Government Intervention on the Performance of Independent Innovation under Financial Support Based on Data of Listed Companies in Strategic Emerging Industries
Authors: Zhou Ze-Jiong , Zhang Peng-Yue , Lu Miao-Miao , Gao Zhi
Published: October 2020

Based on the data of the listed companies in strategic emerging industries in China, this paper uses GMM panel estimation method to measure the impact of government intervention on the performance of independent innovation and analyzes the impact of financial support on the effect of government intervention. The conclusions are as follows: Firstly, there is a lag effect in the performance of independent innovation, and there is also a lag effect in the patent application and main business income. In addition, there is an inverted U-shaped relationship between the patent application of one period lag and the current patent application, while there is no inverted U-shaped relationship between the main business income of one period lag and the current main business income. Secondly, government subsidies, additional deduction of R&D expenses, and value-added tax incentives have a significant effect on the number of patent applications, and the reduction of income tax burden can improve the main business income. Thirdly, after adding the financial support adjustment variables, we find that the influence direction of government intervention on the independent innovation performance has not changed, but the influence degree is weaker. Fourthly, the capital investment and labor input can significantly improve the performance of enterprise independent innovation.
Research Hotspots and Evolution of Energy Prosumer: A Literature Review and Bibliometric Analysis
Authors: Dai Chunyan , Cheng Kai , Lei Yiting , Yang Ying
Published: October 2020

Energy prosumer participates in the balance of the energy system actively through their production and consumption of energy and will become a major participant in the open energy market increasingly in the future. This paper used the bibliometric method to sort out 1251 literature data related to energy prosumer in the “Web of Science Core Collection” and used the software named CiteSpace to perform statistics and cooccurrence analysis. The research found the following: (a) journals in the field of prosumer have their emphasis on theory, application, policy, and modeling; (b) the United States and European institutions have published the articles most, and the academic influence of Chinese scholars needs to be further improved; (c) the focus of the prosumers’ research in the past decade has turned the energy system designing to the market transaction research; (d) P2P, P2G, and prosumer community are three market models that have attracted attention for scholars; besides, self-consumption, market matching, district heating, aggregators, and household energy management systems are also the current research hotspots; (e) digital technologies such as big data, the Internet of Things, and blockchain have a significant impact on the prosumer participating in energy market transactions, which will change the existing energy supply chain model profoundly. In the context of the energy Internet, energy trading platforms, digital ecosystems, cross-border innovation, and other fields will become the hotspots in future research on prosumer.
Using MEC and FAHP to Establish an Evaluation Model for Food Processing Machinery Procurement
Authors: Chou Tsung-Yu , Liao Juei-Ping
Published: October 2020

Industry 4.0 is a high degree of connection and integration of information and mechanical equipment. The goal of Industry 4.0 is to link equipment, production lines, factories, suppliers, products, and customers closely. With the continuous increase of smart manufacturing equipment, the responsibility of the purchasing department and purchasers will become heavier. Therefore, purchasers must understand these kinds of equipment and their functions in order to make a good decision. The objective of this paper is to establish a procurement decision support model. It presents corporate purchaser decision-making criteria as reference for the food processing machinery (FPM) manufacturing industry. Combining the concepts and methods of mean-end chain (MEC) and fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP), an MCDM model to select suitable machinery for the food processing industry was presented. Firstly, a hierarchical structure includes 2 factors, 7 criteria, and 25 subcriteria for FPM purchasers to select machines is constructed based on MEC analysis. Secondly, FAHP is used to solve the subjective weights of all criteria and subcriteria. Then, the key factors of FPM procurement were obtained. There are 50 FPM purchasers to be interviewed in first phase, and 50 AHP questionnaires were distributed to these purchasers in second phase. Fuzzy multicriteria decision analysis was carried out, and the top five most important attributes out of the 25 criteria were sorted out. They are switching cost, price, brand, professionalism of service personnel, and accessibility of after-sales services. This study uses actual industrial cases to verify the proposed method, and offers the practical purchasing decision support model based on the actual FPM purchaser and the manufacturer’s product manager. It will enhance the practicality of the research. In addition, the lack of the literature makes it difficult to establish an evaluation model. This study uses MEC and FAHP to obtain evaluation criteria and establish evaluation models, which will be the original contribution of the research.
Ficus carica and Sizigium cumini Regulate Glucose and Lipid Parameters in High-Fat Diet and Streptozocin-Induced Rats
Authors: Arafa El-Shaimaa A. , Hassan Waseem , Murtaza Ghulam , Buabeid Manal Ali
Published: October 2020

Obesity linked diabetes, popularly known as diabesity, has been viewed as a direct product of the modern lifestyle in both developed and developing countries, and its increased prevalence is seen as a major threat to public health globally. Ficus carica (FC) and Syzigium cumini (SC) are part of indigenous flora with traditional medicinal properties. Fresh seeds of SC fruit and fruit of FC were collected and macerated to obtain the final extract. Wistar rats were divided into seven groups fed either on a normal diet or high-fat diet (HFD) along with streptozocin (STZ) to induce diabesity. The crude extract of FC (FC.Cr.) and SC (SC.Cr.) were administered at 250 mg/kg/day and 500 mg/kg/day in induced diabesity state. Body weights, blood glucose level, complete blood count (CBC), cholesterol, triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) were recorded to analyze their effects on glucose and lipid metabolism. Further, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and malondialdehyde (MDA) were measured to examine their effects on lipid peroxidation and ant oxidative enzyme. Results showed that both FC.Cr. and SC.Cr. have the potential to control obesity-linked type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) by lowering the body weights, serum glucose, cholesterol, TG, LDL, and VLDL, while increasing the protective effects of HDL dose-dependently. The crude extract of both plants showed significant activity to raise SOD and curb MDA under diabetic states. It was concluded that both FC.Cr. and SC.Cr. exhibited remarkable therapeutics potential in HFD-STZ-induced diabetic rats. However, we found that the effects of SC.Cr. are relatively more pronounced as compared to FC.Cr. in almost all parameters.
Study of Antispasmodic and Antidiarrheal Activities of Tagetes lucida (Mexican Tarragon) in Experimental Models and Its Mechanism of Action
Authors: Ventura-Martinez Rosa , Angeles-Lopez Guadalupe Esther , Gonzalez-Trujano Maria Eva , Carrasco Omar F. , Deciga-Campos Myrna
Published: October 2020

Tagetes lucida has been used in traditional medicine as a remedy to alleviate several gastrointestinal disorders that provoke stomachaches, abdominal cramps, and diarrhea. However, there is not enough scientific evidence that supports these effects. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate antispasmodic and antidiarrheal activities of aqueous extract of T. lucida (AqExt‐TL) as well as its mechanism of action in experimental models. Antispasmodic activity and the mechanism of action of AqExt‐TL were assessed on segments of the guinea pig ileum precontracted with KCl, acetylcholine (ACh), or electrical field stimulation (EFS). Furthermore, the antispasmodic effect of two coumarins (umbelliferone and herniarin) previously identified in this species was evaluated. Antidiarrheal activity of AqExt‐TL was determined using the charcoal meal test in mice. AqExt‐TL showed antispasmodic activity in segments of the guinea pig ileum precontracted with KCl (83.7 ± 1.9%) and ACh (77.2 ± 5.3%) at the maximal concentration; however, practically, it did not alter the contractions induced by EFS (10.1 ± 2.2%). Antispasmodic activity of AqExt‐TL was not significantly altered by hexamethonium (a ganglionic blocker) or L‐NAME (an inhibitor of nitric oxide synthase). However, this extract decreased the maximal contractile response to calcium (82.7 ± 8.5%), serotonin (68.1 ± 8.5%), and histamine (63.9 ± 5.9%) in their concentration‐response curves. Umbelliferone and herniarin also induced an antispasmodic effect on tissues precontracted with KCl. In addition, low doses of AqExt‐TL reduced to 50% the distance traveled by charcoal meal in the gastrointestinal transit model in mice as loperamide, an antidiarrheal agent, did. These results provided evidence of the antispasmodic and antidiarrheal activity of T. lucida, which supports its use in the folk medicine in relieving symptoms in some gastrointestinal disorders. In the antispasmodic effect, the blockade of histaminergic and serotoninergic pathway as well as the calcium channels seems to be involved. Finally, umbelliferone and herniarin could be partially responsible for the antispasmodic activity induced by T. lucida.
Evaluation of the Efficacy of Epiduroscopic Laser Neural Discectomy in Lumbar Disc Herniations: Retrospective Analysis of 163 Cases- Evaluation of the Efficacy of ELND
Authors: Ülgen Ali Metin , Beyaz Serbülent Gökhan , Inanmaz Mustafa Erkan , Şahin Fatih
Published: October 2020

Background. Epiduroscopy, or spinal endoscopy, is the visualisation of the epidural space using a percutaneous and minimally invasive imaging fiberoptic device. Recently, as a result of some studies, it has been reported that laser therapy with epiduroscopic laser neural discectomy (ELND) was applied during multiple lesions. Methods. In this study, ELND performed between January 2012 and July 2016 at the Algology Clinic of the Department of Anesthesiology and Reanimation, Sakarya University Training and Research Hospital, was examined retrospectively. The Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) scores were recorded preoperatively, as well as after 2 weeks and 2, 6, and 12 months after the ELND. Results. According to the preoperative VAS and ODI scores, the decrease in postoperative 2nd week, 2nd, 6th, and 12th month VAS and ODI scores was significantp=0.001. Similarly, according to the postoperative 2nd week VAS and ODI scores, decrease in postoperative 6th and 12th VAS and ODI scores was significantp=0.001. Conclusions. As a result, ELND with Holmium: YAG laser, which is a new technique in patients with lumbar disc herniated low back and/or leg pain, can reduce VAS and ODI scores from 2 weeks without any complications that open surgery can bring with it. We believe that it is a useful and advanced technique in treatment of lumbar disc herniation and has low complication rates that provides maximum efficacy from the first year.
Review of the Roles and Interaction of Androgen and Inflammation in Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia
Authors: Tong Yu , Zhou Ren-yuan
Published: October 2020

The lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTSs) and acute urinary retention (AUR) caused by benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) can seriously affect the quality of life of elderly men. Studies suggest that both androgens and inflammation greatly influence the occurrence and development of BPH in most patients. These two factors combined can also affect each other, leading to pathological changes in the stromal and epithelial tissue of the prostate transition zone in BPH patients. DHT in the prostate tissue of BPH patients may activate a chronic inflammatory response in the prostate, amplifying the expression of inflammatory factors and upregulating the proliferation ability of prostate tissue.
Assessing Urban Road Network Capacity considering Parking Supply and Parking Pricing
Authors: Jiang Xiaowei , Du Muqing , Liu Haisheng
Published: October 2020

To enhance the assessment of the network capacity for a given urban road system, the effects of the parking management strategies at destination areas are supposed to be considered in the network capacity assessment model. This study provides an extended road network capacity model which takes into consideration both the parking supply and parking pricing at each traffic zone. The network capacity model is formulated as a bilevel programming problem, with the maximization of total trip generation in the upper level and the combined trip distribution and traffic assignment (CTDTA) problem in the lower level. To reasonably characterize the impacts of the parking pricing and parking delay due to the congestion effect, two classes of travel demand are involved in the CTDTA model. An efficient and practical algorithm is provided for the solution of the bilevel network capacity model. Numerical experiments show the advantages of the proposed model and also demonstrate the effect of the parking supply and parking pricing on the assessment results of the road network capacity.
A Multivariate Grey Prediction Model Using Neural Networks with Application to Carbon Dioxide Emissions Forecasting
Authors: Chiu Yu-Jing , Hu Yi-Chung , Jiang Peng , Xie Jingci , Ken Yen-Wei
Published: October 2020

The forecast of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions has played a significant role in drawing up energy development policies for individual countries. Since data about CO2 emissions are often limited and do not conform to the usual statistical assumptions, this study attempts to develop a novel multivariate grey prediction model (MGPM) for CO2 emissions. Compared with other MGPMs, the proposed model has several distinctive features. First, both feature selection and residual modification are considered to improve prediction accuracy. For the former, grey relational analysis is used to filter out the irrelevant features that have weaker relevance with CO2 emissions. For the latter, predicted values obtained from the proposed MGPM are further adjusted by establishing a neural-network-based residual model. Prediction accuracies of the proposed MGPM were verified using real CO2 emission cases. Experimental results demonstrated that the proposed MGPM performed well compared with other MGPMs considered.
Damage Statistical Empirical Model for Fractured Rock under Freezing-Thawing Cycle and Loading
Authors: Chen Yifan , Lin Hang , Wang Yixian , Zhao Yanlin
Published: October 2020

The natural rock mass prevailingly exists in the form of a fractured rock mass, and freezing-thawing failure of the fractured rock mass is also frequently encountered during geotechnical projects in cold regions. The previous researches and reports in freezing-thawing field principally focused on intact rocks, while rock joints and fractures were rarely considered, which causes great inconvenience to the safety design and stability assessment of engineering. In response to the special climatic conditions of cold regions, the freezing-thawing damage and degradation mechanism of fractured rock were studied in this paper based on existing laboratory experiments and damage mechanics theory. Primarily, a brief review of the progressive damage process of rock in the conventional triaxial compression experiment was given, as well as the determination methods of four characteristic stresses in the prepeak curve. Then, from the microcosmic perspective, the maximum tensile strain yield criterion was used to reflect the microunit strength which was assumed to statistically satisfy the Weibull distribution, deriving the damage evolution equation of fractured rock under the freezing-thawing cycle and load conditions and quantificationally describing the damage evolution law. Consequently, the statistical empirical constitutive relation of fractured rock considering freezing-thawing and loading damages was established. Ultimately, by combining the existing conventional triaxial compression experimental data of freezing-thawing single fractured rocks with the determination methods of characteristic stresses, the relevant constitutive parameters were solved, and the theoretical constitutive relation curves of the fractured rock after freezing-thawing cycles were obtained, which were compared with the experimental results to verify the validity of the established empirical constitutive relation. The study findings can provide a theoretical basis for revealing the freezing-thawing failure mechanism of the fractured rock mass to some extent.
Training and Testing Data Division Influence on Hybrid Machine Learning Model Process: Application of River Flow Forecasting
Authors: Tao Hai , Al-Sulttani Ali Omran , Salih Ameen Ameen Mohammed , Ali Zainab Hasan , Al-Ansari Nadhir , Salih Sinan Q. , Mostafa Reham R.
Published: October 2020

The hydrological process has a dynamic nature characterised by randomness and complex phenomena. The application of machine learning (ML) models in forecasting river flow has grown rapidly. This is owing to their capacity to simulate the complex phenomena associated with hydrological and environmental processes. Four different ML models were developed for river flow forecasting located in semiarid region, Iraq. The effectiveness of data division influence on the ML models process was investigated. Three data division modeling scenarios were inspected including 70%–30%, 80%–20, and 90%–10%. Several statistical indicators are computed to verify the performance of the models. The results revealed the potential of the hybridized support vector regression model with a genetic algorithm (SVR-GA) over the other ML forecasting models for monthly river flow forecasting using 90%–10% data division. In addition, it was found to improve the accuracy in forecasting high flow events. The unique architecture of developed SVR-GA due to the ability of the GA optimizer to tune the internal parameters of the SVR model provides a robust learning process. This has made it more efficient in forecasting stochastic river flow behaviour compared to the other developed hybrid models.
Amnesia in a Patient with Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Case of Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis
Authors: Weilg Pablo , Diaz-Zamora Giancarlo , Young Larry
Published: October 2020

A 56-year-old male with a history of seropositive rheumatoid arthritis complained of polyarthritis and forgetfulness. The initial CT scan of the head without contrast was negative for acute pathologies. However, as he continued to decline despite being on oral prednisone, an MRI of the head was ordered and revealed a subtle small region of acute infarction in the left mammillary body. He was diagnosed with granulomatosis with polyangiitis in light of his positive C-ANCA antibodies, PR3 antibody, and a kidney biopsy, which showed focal necrotizing pauci-immune crescentic glomerulonephritis. Despite undergoing steroid pulse therapy, the patient developed diffuse alveolar damage which finally responded to rituximab infusion.
A Discussion of Stability and Engineering Verification of Thin Immediate Roof under Uniform Load of the Rectangular Coal Roadway
Authors: Gao Linsheng , Wang Yueping , Zhang Er-hui , Cheng Liang , Peng Rui
Published: October 2020

Roadway roof is a key factor in roadway stability. At present, the analysis of roof stability is mainly based on numerical calculations and field measurements with a relatively weak theoretical basis and inadequate research studies on the loading mechanism of the roof. In this paper, a mechanical calculation model of immediate direct roof under uniform load of rectangular coal roadway is established. The stress distribution and roof subsidence in the roof are calculated theoretically and verified by the numerical calculation, physical tests, and engineering applications. Based on the classical beam solution theory, the stress distribution and sinking of the thin immediate roof under uniform load are obtained and verified by numerical calculations. The results are highly consistent. Two types of thin direct roof failure under uniform load are analyzed: the failure of the normal cross section caused by the bottom tensile stress and the failure of the inclined section caused by the combined effect of the tensile stress in the abdominal area and compressive stress. The stability of thin immediate roof under uniform load of the rectangular coal roadway was tested in 1905s mining roadway of Great Wall Number #3 coal excavation field. This research can further fill in blanks of the loading mechanism of the roadway roof and provide theoretical and pragmatic values to control the roadway pressure and rock stratum as well as the scientific references to the design of the anchor bolt supporting system.
An Asymmetric-Anticipation Car-following Model in the Era of Autonomous-Connected and Human-Driving Vehicles
Authors: Jafaripournimchahi Ammar , Hu Wusheng , Sun Lu
Published: October 2020

Herein, we explored the impact of anticipation and asymmetric driving behavior on vehicle’s position, velocity, acceleration, energy consumption, and exhaust emissions of CO, HC, and NOx in mixed traffic flow. We present an asymmetric-anticipation car-following model (AAFVD) considering the motion information from two direct preceding vehicles (i.e., human-driving (HD) and autonomous and connected (AC) vehicles platoon) via wireless data transmission. The linear stability approach was used to evaluate the properties of the AAFVD model. Our simulations revealed that the drivers’ anticipation factor using the motion information from two direct preceding vehicles in connected vehicles environment can effectively improve traffic flow stability. The vehicle’s departure and arrival process while passing through a signal lane with a traffic light considering the anticipation and asymmetric driving behavior, and the motion information from two direct preceding vehicles was explored. Our numerical results demonstrated that the AAFVD model can decrease the velocity fluctuations, energy consumption, and exhaust emissions of vehicles in mixed traffic flow system.
Analysis of the Characteristics and Influencing Factors of Gas Explosion in Heading Face
Authors: Zhang Xue-bo , Gao Jian-liang , Ren Jing-zhang , Wang Chun-xia
Published: October 2020

In order to accurately grasp the characteristics and influencing factors of gas explosion in heading face, the mathematical model of gas explosion was determined. According to the actual size of a heading face of a coal mine, a 3D geometric model with a length of 100 m was established, and the effects of ignition energy and gas explosion equivalent on the gas explosion characteristics of the heading face were analyzed. The results show the following. (1) The mathematical models for numerical simulation of gas explosion can accurately simulate the gas explosion and its propagation process. The time-space step size has a great influence on the simulation results. The grid spacing for numerical simulation of mine gas explosion is determined to be 0.1 m and the time step length is determined to be 0.001 s. (2) The ignition energy has a limited effect on gas explosion characteristics. It only has a certain influence on the gas explosion process, but has little influence on the overpressure of shock wave. The larger the ignition energy is, the faster the explosion reaction speed is, and the maximum overpressure increases slightly. When the ignition energy increases to a certain value, the time of peak shock wave and the maximum overpressure both tend to be stable. The ignition energy has little effect on gas explosion characteristics when an explosion accident occurs underground with a large amount of gas accumulation. (3) The gas explosion equivalent has a great influence on the overpressure of gas explosion shock wave. The higher the explosion equivalent is, the greater the pressure is, and the peak value of the shock wave overpressure increases with the explosion equivalent as a power function. The research results have important guiding significance for the research and development of new technology for prevention and control of gas explosion.
Government Subsidies and Revenue Sharing Decisions for Port and Shipping Service Supply Chain in Emission Control Areas
Authors: Han Bing , Pan Xia , Zhou Yu
Published: October 2020

As the core of the port and shipping service supply chain system, the port and shipping companies must urgently solve the problem of how to balance emissions, costs, and benefits with the gradual extension of China’s emission control area (ECA) and the stringent emission requirements. From the perspective of system optimization, this research constructs a revenue sharing model of the port and shipping service supply chain and deals with the revenue sharing decision-making problem of the secondary service supply chain after port enterprises and shipping enterprises joining the government subsidy mechanism driven by ECA’s policy. Research shows that the government subsidy mechanism directly affects the profit of the port and shipping service supply chain, which is the key factor in implementing the ECA’s policy and promoting the emission reduction of the port and shipping enterprises. The revenue sharing of the port and shipping enterprises plays a decisive role in the revenue of the shipping enterprises. Cooperative emission reduction mechanism should be led by port enterprises to promote the balance between revenue and emission reduction in the supply chain system. Results provide a reference for the Chinese government to formulate corresponding incentives and subsidy policy under the new ECA’s regulations as well as solving the problems of how to balance emissions reduction and cost improvement for port and shipping enterprises.
Dynamic Inversion Analysis of Structural Layer Modulus of Semirigid Base Pavement considering the Influence of Temperature and Humidity
Authors: Zhang Bei , Zhang Xu , Zhong Yanhui , Li Xiaolong , Hao Meimei , Liu Jinbo
Published: October 2020

This paper is aimed to solve the overlearning problem of the neural network algorithm used to calculate the asphalt concrete pavement structural modulus in reverse. The firefly algorithm was adapted to optimize the selection of support vector machine (SVM) parameters. Based on the optimized SVM model, a new method for dynamic inversion of the semirigid base asphalt concrete pavement structural layer modulus was presented. The results show that the absolute value of relative error of each layer modulus is not more than 3.73% by using the proposed method. Then, the influences of temperature and humidity on the inversion modulus of semirigid base asphalt concrete pavement in the seasonal frozen area were analyzed, and the correction formula of the inversion modulus was established. The paper is of practical significance for improving the safety performance of semirigid base pavement in the seasonal frozen area in China.
Effects of Link Capacity Reductions on the Reliability of an Urban Rail Transit Network
Authors: Liu Jie , Schonfeld Paul M. , Yin Yong , Peng Qiyuan
Published: October 2020

Link capacity reductions, which occur often, degrade the service quality and performance of urban rail transit (URT) networks. To measure the reliability of a URT network when link capacity reductions occur in a given time period, the passengers’ generalized travel cost (GTC) is computed and passengers are divided into three categories. The GTC considers here the crowding in trains, seat availability, and perceived travel time. Passengers whose relative increase in GTC on a URT is below or above a preset threshold belong to category I or II, respectively, while passengers who cannot travel on the URT due to insufficient capacities on their paths belong to category III. Passenger trips in categories I are acceptable since their GTC increases only slightly with link capacity reductions. The fraction of acceptable trip (FAT) and total GTC increase ratio (TGCR) in a given time period are defined here as the network’s reliability and unreliability metrics, respectively. The ratio of affected passenger trip (RAPT) is proposed to identify each line’s most critical links. The reliability and unreliability metrics of Wuhan’s URT network during evening peak hours are computed when the capacities of the most critical link or multiple most critical links are reduced. The results show that the proposed RAPT indicator is effective in identifying the most critical links that greatly affect the reliability and performance of a URT network. For capacity reductions on a line’s most critical link, the proposed method can determine the capacity reduction ratio corresponding to network’s high FAT and low TGCR as well as the priorities of lines needing emergency measures to maintain high network reliability and performance. For capacity reductions on critical links of multiple lines, the proposed method can identify the number of reduction links and the capacity reduction ratio that the network can withstand while maintaining its reliability and performance above a specified level.