Diffuse interstitial and multiple cavitary lung lesions due to Talaromyces marneffei infection in a non-HIV patient

AbstractA 57-year-old man presented with unproductive cough and dyspnea for 6 months in Fujian Province, China. His misuse of a large amount of steroids (accumulated dose equivalent to 3530 mg prednisolone) resulted in Talaromyces marneffei infection. Chest computed tomographic scan revealed diffuse interstitial and multiple cavitary lung lesions. Treatment with amphotericin B combined with itraconazole resulted in total recovery, with marked regression of lung lesions

An Investigation into Contribution I-Intention and We-Intention in Open Web-Based Encyclopedia: Roles of Joint Commitment and Mutual Agreement

In the current study, knowledge contribution in open web-based encyclopedia is conceptualized as a group-referent intentional social action, and we-intention, which reflects one’s perception of the group acting as a unit, has been employed. The motivation of this study thus is to better understand antecedents and consequences of contribution I-intention and we-intention in open web-based encyclopedia. A research model was developed and empirically examined with 202 knowledge contributors in two most famous wiki communities in Mainland China. The results demonstrated that personal outcome expectations exert significant effects on both intentions. Joint commitment, mutual agreement and community-related outcome expectations are significantly related to we-intention to contribute, but not related to I-intention. In addition, we-intention has a statistically significant positive effect on contribution behavior. However, I-intention negatively relates to contribution behavior. We believe this study will serve as a starting point for furthering our limited understanding of the intentional social action in knowledge management research

Effect of Pin Diameters on the Wear Characteristics of Friction Pairs

The tribological tests are carried out to assess the effect of pin diameters on wear characteristics via changing contact stresses and sliding speeds to provide support for choosing friction pair sizes. The friction couple is set as CuZn pins for medium carbon steel (No. 1045 steel) rings. The differential wear rate and its calculation formula are defined to express the line wear rate or the wear resistance of unit cross-section area. The effect of the pin end surface diameter on differential wear rate and its scale/increased multiplier are investigated. When the product (P×V=0.095) is kept constant, the abrasion loss for the specimens of a small diameter (d1=0.6 mm) is lesser than that of the specimens of a large diameter (d2=4.0 mm). As compared to the sliding speed, the change in contact stresses exerts a greater influence on the wear behavior, especially for small-diameter specimens. The differential wear rate of small-diameter specimens is always higher than that of the specimens of a large diameter. The scale multiplier of the differential wear rate is always larger than that of the contact pressure stress, especially for small-diameter specimens.С целью обоснования выбора размеров пар трения проводятся трибологические испытания по оценке влияния диаметров штифта на характеристики износа путем изменения нагрузок и скорости скольжения. Пара трения представляется в виде штифтов из CuZn к кольцам из среднеуглеродистой стали (сталь 1045). Дифференциальная скорость изнашивания и формула для ее расчета определяются для выражения линейной скорости изнашивания или сопротивления износу единицы площади поперечного сечения. Исследуются влияние различного диаметра торцевой поверхности штифтов, дифференциальная скорость изнашивания и ее увеличенный множитель. Результаты показывают, что при поддержании постоянства произведения P×V=0,095 потери при истирании образцов малого диаметра (d1=0,6 мм) меньше, чем образцов большого диаметра (d2 =4,0 мм). По сравнению со скоростью скольжения изменение нагрузки более существенно влияет на характеристики износа, особенно для образцов малого диаметра. Дифференциальная скорость изнашивания образцов малого диаметра всегда больше, чем образцов большого диаметра. Увеличенный множитель дифференциальной скорости изнашивания всегда превышает увеличенный множитель повышения напряжения контактного давления, особенно для образцов малого диаметра.З метою обґрунтування вибору розмірів пар тертя проводяться трибологичні випробування з оцінки впливу діаметрів штифта на характеристики зносу шляхом зміни навантажень і швидкості ковзання. Пара тертя представляється у вигляді штифтів з СuZn до кілець з середньовуглецевої сталі (сталь 1045). Диференціальна швидкість зношування і формула для її розрахунку визначаються для вираження лінійної швидкості зношування або опору зносу одиниці площі поперечного перерізу. Досліджуються вплив різного діаметру торцевої поверхні штифтів, диференціальна швидкість зношування і її збільшений множник. Результати показують, що при підтримці сталості Р x V = 0,095 втрати при стиранні зразків малого діаметра (d1 = 0,6 мм) менше, ніж зразків великого діаметра (d2 = 4,0 мм). У порівнянні зі швидкістю ковзання зміна навантаження більш істотно впливає на характеристики зносу, особливо для зразків малого діаметра. Диференціальна швидкість зношування зразків малого діаметра завжди більше, ніж зразків великого діаметру. Збільшений множник диференціальної швидкості зношування завжди перевищує збільшений множник підвищення напружень контактного тиску, особливо для зразків малого діаметра

Research of Curve Fitting Method on the Measured Settlement of Tanks

AbstractThe settlement data of oil storage tanks made of steel are measured by the measurement points located around the base of the tank wall. The measured settlement data need to be curve fitted in order to reflect the settlement distribution around the whole tank wall base. Considering about the disadvantage of measured settlement data treatment methods on tanks in current standards, an optimization method of curve fitting on the measured settlement data is presented. The Fourier series expansion is used to analyze the measured settlement data, the fitting curves and mean square error according to different order are obtained. The fitting curve with minimum mean square error is selected as the most appropriate one that reflects the actual displacement of the tank base. The optimization method of curve fitting present is applied to analyze the measured settlement data obtained from the floating roof tank and the fixed roof tank. Results show that different effects can be obtained with different order of the fitting curve. Curve fitting referring to different order is necessary to the measured settlement data in actual engineering in order to find the most appropriate one that reflects the real tank base displacement distribution

Mass measurements of neutron-deficient Y, Zr, and Nb isotopes and their impact on rp and νp nucleosynthesis processes

© 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This manuscript is made available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International licence (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0). For further details please see: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/Using isochronous mass spectrometry at the experimental storage ring CSRe in Lanzhou, the masses of 82Zr and 84Nb were measured for the first time with an uncertainty of ∼10 keV, and the masses of 79Y, 81Zr, and 83Nb were re-determined with a higher precision. The latter are significantly less bound than their literature values. Our new and accurate masses remove the irregularities of the mass surface in this region of the nuclear chart. Our results do not support the predicted island of pronounced low α separation energies for neutron-deficient Mo and Tc isotopes, making the formation of Zr–Nb cycle in the rp-process unlikely. The new proton separation energy of 83Nb was determined to be 490(400) keV smaller than that in the Atomic Mass Evaluation 2012. This partly removes the overproduction of the p-nucleus 84Sr relative to the neutron-deficient molybdenum isotopes in the previous νp-process simulations.Peer reviewe

Aerosol particles at a high-altitude site on the Southeast Tibetan Plateau, China: Implications for pollution transport from South Asia

      Bulk aerosol samples were collected from 16 July 2008 to 26 July 2009 at Lulang, a high-altitude (>3300m above sea level) site on the southeast Tibetan Plateau (TP); objectives were to determine chemical characteristics of the aerosol and identify its major sources. We report aerosol (total suspended particulate, TSP) mass levels and the concentrations of selected elements, carbonaceous species, and water-soluble inorganic ions. Significant buildup of aerosol mass and chemical species (organic carbon, element carbon, nitrate, and sulfate) occurred during the premonsoon, while lower concentrations were observed during the monsoon. Seasonal variations in aerosol and chemical species were driven by precipitation scavenging and atmospheric circulation. Two kinds of high-aerosol episodes were observed: one was enriched with dust indicators (Fe and Ca2+), and the other was enhanced with organic and elemental carbon (OC and EC), SO42−, NO3−, and Fe. The TSP loadings during the latter were 3 to 6 times those on normal days. The greatest aerosol optical depths (National Centers for Environmental Protection/National Center for Atmospheric Research reanalysis) occurred upwind, in eastern India and Bangladesh, and trajectory analysis indicates that air pollutants were transported from the southwest. Northwesterly winds brought high levels of natural emissions (Fe, Ca2+) and low levels of pollutants (SO42−, NO3−, K+, and EC); this was consistent with high aerosol optical depths over the western deserts and Gobi. Our work provides evidence that both geological and pollution aerosols from surrounding regions impact the aerosol population of the TP

Genome-wide association study for flour color-related traits and polyphenol oxidase activity in common wheat

This study aimed to clarify the genetic mechanisms behind wheat flour color. Flour colorrelated traits (L*, a*, and b*) and polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity are important parameters that influence the end-use quality of wheat. Dissecting the genetic bases and exploring important chromosomal loci of these traits are extremely important for improving wheat quality. The diverse panel of 205 elite wheat varieties (lines) was genotyped using a highdensity Illumina iSelect 90K single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) assay to disclose the genetic mechanism of flour color-related traits and PPO activity. In 2 different environments and their mean values (MV), 28, 30, 24, and 12 marker-trait associations (MTAs) were identified for L*, a*, b* traits, and PPO activity, respectively. A single locus could explain from 5.52% to 20.01% of the phenotypic variation for all analyzed traits. Among them, 5 highly significant SNPs (P ≤ 0.0001), 11 stable SNPs (detected in all environments) and 25 multitrait MTAs were identified. Especially, BS00000020_51 showed pleiotropic effects on L*, a*, and b*, and was detected in all environments with the highest phenotypic contribution rates. Furthermore, this SNP was also found to be co-associated with wheat grain hardness, ash content, and pasting temperature of starch in previous studies. The identification of these significantly associated SNPs is helpful in revealing the genetic mechanisms of wheat colorrelated traits, and also provides a reference for follow-up molecular marker-assisted selection in wheat breeding

Granular discharge and clogging for tilted hoppers

We measure the flux of spherical glass beads through a hole as a systematic function of both tilt angle and hole diameter, for two different size beads. The discharge increases with hole diameter in accord with the Beverloo relation for both horizontal and vertical holes, but in the latter case with a larger small-hole cutoff. For large holes the flux decreases linearly in cosine of the tilt angle, vanishing smoothly somewhat below the angle of repose. For small holes it vanishes abruptly at a smaller angle. The conditions for zero flux are discussed in the context of a {\it clogging phase diagram} of flow state vs tilt angle and ratio of hole to grain size