Blind assessment for stereo images considering binocular characteristics and deep perception map based on deep belief network

© 2018 Elsevier Inc. In recent years, blind image quality assessment in the field of 2D image/video has gained the popularity, but its applications in 3D image/video are to be generalized. In this paper, we propose an effective blind metric evaluating stereo images via deep belief network (DBN). This method is based on wavelet transform with both 2D features from monocular images respectively as image content description and 3D features from a novel depth perception map (DPM) as depth perception description. In particular, the DPM is introduced to quantify longitudinal depth information to align with human stereo visual perception. More specifically, the 2D features are local histogram of oriented gradient (HoG) features from high frequency wavelet coefficients and global statistical features including magnitude, variance and entropy. Meanwhile, the global statistical features from the DPM are characterized as 3D features. Subsequently, considering binocular characteristics, an effective binocular weight model based on multiscale energy estimation of the left and right images is adopted to obtain the content quality. In the training and testing stages, three DBN models for the three types features separately are used to get the final score. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed stereo image quality evaluation model has high superiority over existing methods and achieve higher consistency with subjective quality assessments

Size-Dependent Phase Map and Phase Transformation Kinetics for Nanometric Iron(III) Oxides (γ → ε → α Pathway)

Nanometric iron­(III) oxide has been of great interest in a wide range of fields due to its magnetic properties, eminent biochemical characteristics, and potential for technological applications. Among iron oxides, ε-Fe₂O₃ is considered as a remarkable phase due to its giant coercive field at room temperature and ferromagnetic resonance capability. Here we present the first size-dependent phase map for ε-Fe₂O₃ via a γ → ε → α pathway together with the activation energies for the phase transformations, based on X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). HRTEM images of ε-Fe₂O₃ nanocrystals show both inversion and pseudohexagonal twins, which are fundamentally important for understanding the correlation between its nanostructure and magnetic properties. Two activation energies for γ-Fe₂O₃ → α-Fe₂O₃ phase transformations are 186.37 ± 9.89 and 174.58 ± 2.24 kJ mol^–1, respectively. The results provide useful information about the size, crystal structure, and transformation of the nanometric iron oxide polymorphs for applications in areas of developing engineered materials

Colloidal CdSe Quantum Wires by Oriented Attachment

We report here a relatively low temperature (100−180 °C) synthetic route to high-quality and single-crystalline CdSe nanowires using air-stable and generic chemicals. The diameter of nanowires was controlled and varied in an exceptionally small size regime, between 1.5 and 6 nm. This was achieved by using alkylamines, a single type or a mixture of two different types of amines, with different chain lengths and varying the reaction temperature. The experimental results suggest the coexistence of two types of fragments in the prewire aggregates, known as “pearl-necklace” or “string-of-pearls” in the literature, which are loosely associated and chemically fused sections

DataSheet1_Identification of a Five-mRNA Signature as a Novel Potential Prognostic Biomarker for Glioblastoma by Integrative Analysis.DOCX

Despite the availability of advanced multimodal therapy, the prognosis of patients suffering from glioblastoma (GBM) remains poor. We conducted a genome-wide integrative analysis of mRNA expression profiles in 302 GBM tissues and 209 normal brain tissues from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO), The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), and the Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) project to examine the prognostic and predictive value of specific mRNAs in GBM. A total of 26 mRNAs were identified to be closely related to GBM patients’ OS (p < 0.05). Utilizing survival analysis and the Cox regression model, we discovered a set of five mRNAs (PTPRN, ABCC3, MDK, NMB, and RALYL) from these 26 mRNAs that displayed the capacity to stratify patients into high- and low-risk groups with statistically different overall survival in the training set. The model of the five-mRNA biomarker signature was successfully verified on a testing set and independent sets. Moreover, multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed that the five-mRNA biomarker signature was a prognostic factor for the survival of patients with GBM independent of clinical characteristics and molecular features (p < 0.05). Gene set enrichment analysis indicated that the five-mRNA biomarker signature might be implicated in the incidence and development of GBM through its roles in known cancer-related pathways, signaling molecules, and the immune system. Moreover, consistent with the bioinformatics analysis, NMB, ABCC3, and MDK mRNA expression was considerably higher in four human GBM cells, and the expression of PTPRN and RALYL was decreased in GBM cells (p < 0.05). Our study developed a novel candidate model that provides new prospective prognostic biomarkers for GBM.</p

Fate of fenoxaprop-ethyl and fenoxaprop

Concentration and SD of fenoxaprop-ethyl and fenoxaprop in control and biochar-amended soils during the incubatio

Highly Efficient Synthesis of a Moisture-Stable Nitrogen-Abundant Metal–Organic Framework (MOF) for Large-Scale CO₂ Capture

Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) hold great potential as CO2 adsorbents; however, the long reaction time that is required for the preparation of MOFs by a hydrothermal or solvothermal method is a hurdle for large-scale production. In this work, we synthesize a moisture-stable nitrogen-abundant cobalt-based MOF, i.e., Co-PL-1, using microwave irradiation for the first time (denoted as MW-Co-PL-1). Compared to hydrothermal synthesis, which always requires 3 days at 180 °C, only 30 min at the same temperature is required for the microwave synthesis. The resulting MW-Co-PL-1 shows high CO2 uptake, especially at low CO2 partial pressure (89 mg g–1 at 298 K, 1 bar and 53 mg g–1 at 298 K, 0.15 bar), good capture selectivity against N2 (19.8 at 1 bar and 44 at 0.15 bar), reversible CO2 uptake during consecutive adsorption–desorption cycles, and very robust structure stability under moisture conditions. The highly efficient synthesis, together with great performance, makes the microwave synthesis of Co-PL-1 promising for large-scale CO2 capture, which demonstrates a new way for large-scale application of MOFs in the near future

Kinetics of Uranium(VI) Reduction by Hydrogen Sulfide in Anoxic Aqueous Systems

Aqueous U(VI) reduction by hydrogen sulfide was investigated by batch experiments and speciation modeling; product analysis by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was also performed. The molar ratio of U(VI) reduced to sulfide consumed, and the TEM result suggested that the reaction stoichiometry could be best represented by UO22+ + HS- = UO2 + S° + H+. At pH 6.89 and total carbonate concentration ([CO32-]T) of 4.0 mM, the reaction took place according to the following kinetics:  −d[U(VI)]/dt = 0.0103[U(VI)][S2-]T0.54 where [U(VI)] is the concentration of hexavalent uranium, and [S2-]T is the total concentration of sulfide. The kinetics of U(VI) reduction was found to be largely controlled by [CO32-]T (examined from 0.0 to 30.0 mM) and pH (examined from 6.37 to 9.06). The reduction was almost completely inhibited with the following [CO32-]T and pH combinations:  [(≥15.0 mM, pH 6.89); (≥4.0 mM, pH 8.01); and (≥2.0 mM, pH 9.06) ]. By comparing the experimental results with the calculated speciation of U(VI), it was found that there was a strong correlation between the measured initial reaction rates and the calculated total concentrations of uranium-hydroxyl species; we, therefore, concluded that uranium-hydroxyl species were the ones being reduced by sulfide, not the dominant U-carbonate species present in many carbonate-containing systems

Organic Controls over Biomineral Ca–Mg Carbonate Compositions and Morphologies

Calcium carbonate minerals, such as aragonite and calcite, are widespread in biomineral skeletons, shells, exoskeletons, and more. With rapidly increasing pCO2 levels linked to anthropogenic climate change, carbonate minerals face the threat of dissolution, especially in an acidifying ocean. Given the right conditions, Ca–Mg carbonates (especially disordered dolomite and dolomite) are alternative minerals for organisms to utilize, with the added benefit of being harder and more resistant to dissolution. Ca–Mg carbonate also holds greater potential for carbon sequestration due to both Ca and Mg cations being available to bond with the carbonate group (CO32–). However, Mg-bearing carbonates are relatively rare biominerals because the high kinetic energy barrier for the dehydration of the Mg2+–water complex severely restricts Mg incorporation in carbonates at Earth surface conditions. This work presents the first overview of the effects of the physiochemical properties of amino acids and chitins on the mineralogy, composition, and morphology of Ca–Mg carbonates in solutions and on solid surfaces. We discovered that acidic, negatively charged, hydrophilic amino acids (aspartic and glutamic) and chitins could induce the precipitation of high-magnesium calcite (HMC) and disordered dolomite in solution and on solid surfaces with these adsorbed biosubstrates via in vitro experiments. Thus, we expect that acidic amino acids and chitins are among the controlling factors in biomineralization used in different combinations to control the mineral phases, compositions, and morphologies of Ca–Mg carbonate biomineral crystals

Low-Temperature Synthesis of Disordered Dolomite and High-Magnesium Calcite in Ethanol–Water Solutions: The Solvation Effect and Implications

How dolomite [CaMg­(CO3)2] forms is still underdetermined, despite over a century of efforts. Challenges to synthesizing dolomite at low temperatures have hindered our understanding of sedimentary dolomite formation. Unlike calcium, magnesium’s high affinity toward water results in kinetic barriers from hydration shells that prevent anhydrous Ca–Mg carbonate growth. Previous synthesis studies show that adding low-dielectric-constant materials, such as dioxane, dissolved sulfide, and dissolved silica, can catalyze the formation of disordered dolomite. Also, polar hydrophilic amino acids and polysaccharides, which are very common in biomineralizing organisms, could have a positive role in stimulating Mg-rich carbonate precipitation. Here, we show that disordered dolomite and high-magnesium calcite can be precipitated at room temperature by partially replacing water with ethanol (which has a lower dielectric constant) and bypassing the hydration barrier. Increasing the ethanol volume percentage of ethanol results in higher Mg incorporation into the calcite structure. When the ethanol volume percentage increases to 75 vol %, disordered dolomite (>60 mol % MgCO3) can rapidly precipitate from a solution with [Mg2+] and [Ca2+] mimicking seawater. Thus, our results suggest that the hydration barrier is the critical kinetic inhibitor to primary dolomite precipitation. Ethanol synthesis experiments may provide insights into other materials that share similar properties to promote high-Mg calcite precipitation in sedimentary and biomineral environments

Direct Water Splitting Through Vibrating Piezoelectric Microfibers in Water

We propose a mechanism, a piezoelectrochemical effect for the direct conversion of mechanical energy to chemical energy. This phenomenon is further applied for generating hydrogen and oxygen via direct water decomposition by means of as-synthesized piezoelectric ZnO microfibers and BaTiO₃ microdendrites. Fibers and dendrites are vibrated with ultrasonic waves leading to a strain-induced electric charge development on their surface. With sufficient electric potential, strained piezoelectric fibers (and dendrites) in water triggered the redox reaction of water to produce hydrogen and oxygen gases. ZnO fibers under ultrasonic vibrations showed a stoichiometric ratio of H₂/O₂ (2:1) initial gas production from pure water. This study provides a simple and cost-effective technology for direct water splitting that may generate hydrogen fuels by scavenging energy wastes such as noise or stray vibrations from the environment. This new discovery may have potential implications in solving the challenging energy and environmental issues that we are facing today and in the future