Analysis of TCM syndrome elements and relevant factors for senile diabetes

AbstractObjectiveTo explore the laws governing the distribution of TCM syndrome elements (SEs) of senile diabetes (SD) and their relationship to relevant factors.MethodAn investigation of patients who met the inclusion criteria was conducted by trained doctors, using case report forms. All related data were collected, including body mass index (BMI =body weight [kg]/height2 [m]), glycated hemoglobin, illness course, complications, symptoms, and tongue and pulse manifestation. The SEs of each patient were judged by three qualified associate chief physicians independently.ResultThe main SEs of SD are Yin deficiency, Qi deficiency, blood stasis, and phlegm turbidity. Yin deficiency, Qi deficiency, blood stasis, and phlegm turbidity are most commonly seen among 4-SE combinations. Yang deficiency is typically related to illness course and BMI, phlegm turbidity to hypertension and hyperlipidemia, excessive heat to diabetic microangiopathy, and blood stasis to illness course and diabetic macroangiopathy.ConclusionSD pathogenesis has a deficiency in origin and excess in superficiality. Deficiency syndrome mainly manifests as deficiency of both Qi and Yin, and concurrently in Yang deficiency. Excess syndrome is characterized by blood stasis and phlegm turbidity. SE analysis provides a basis for the prevention and treatment of SD with Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and lays the foundation for objectively evaluating multicentric clinical research for SD in TCM

Solitary wave solutions for a generalized KdV–mKdV equation with distributed delays

This paper deals with a generalized KdV–mKdV equation with time delay. By employing the geometrical singular perturbation theory and the linear chain trick, we establish the existence result of solitary wave solutions when the average delay is sufficiently small, for a special convolution kernel

Flux-ratio anomalies from discs and other baryonic structures in the Illustris simulation

The flux ratios in the multiple images of gravitationally lensed quasars can provide evidence for dark matter substructure in the halo of the lensing galaxy if the flux ratios differ from those predicted by a smooth model of the lensing galaxy mass distribution. However, it is also possible that baryonic structures in the lensing galaxy, such as edge-on discs, can produce flux-ratio anomalies. In this work, we present the first statistical analysis of flux-ratio anomalies due to baryons from a numerical simulation perspective. We select galaxies with various morphological types in the Illustris simulation and ray-trace through the simulated halos, which include baryons in the main lensing galaxies but exclude any substructures, in order to explore the pure baryonic effects. Our ray-tracing results show that the baryonic components can be a major contribution to the flux-ratio anomalies in lensed quasars and that edge-on disc lenses induce the strongest anomalies. We find that the baryonic components increase the probability of finding high flux-ratio anomalies in the early-type lenses by about 8% and by about 10 - 20% in the disc lenses. The baryonic effects also induce astrometric anomalies in 13% of the mock lenses. Our results indicate that the morphology of the lens galaxy becomes important in the analysis of flux-ratio anomalies when considering the effect of baryons, and that the presence of baryons may also partially explain the discrepancy between the observed (high) anomaly frequency and what is expected due to the presence of subhalos as predicted by the CDM simulations.Comment: 16 pages, 11 figures, accepted by MNRA

Unveiling the Secrets of Collaboration on Video-Sharing Platforms

In online video platforms, collaborative content creation gains popularity as vloggers exchange social capital to boost content’s appeal and personal visibility. However, existing research lacks rigorous verification of collaboration efficacy in this context. This study investigates the benefits of collaboration on vlogger influence within the online video domain. Utilizing a staggered difference-in-differences approach, we found that collaboration indeed generates positive impact on vloggers’ influence, as evidenced by the significant increases of their fan and like numbers among the audience. However, managing collaboration activities with suitable intensity is vital, as the marginal utility of collaborations diminishes with increased collaboration numbers. Furthermore, vloggers should avoid excessive non-core activities (e.g., uploading photo albums, audios, and articles) post-collaboration, as these peripheral activities negatively affect collaboration benefits in online video contexts. We believe that the findings of our study will provide helpful guidelines for designing more effective collaboration strategies on video sharing platforms

Photocatalytic Activity of MOF-derived Cu2O/Cu/C/Ag Porous Composites

Cu2O/Cu/C/Ag porous composite was synthesized by heat-treatment and wet-chemical method using a typical metal-organic framework (Cu-BTC) as  precursor. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS) and  ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-vis). The results showed that the originalstructure of Cu-BTC was retained by high temperature calcination in nitrogen atmosphere. Uniform doping of Cu, C and Ag provided a triple trapping of photogenerated electron hole pairs and the Cu2O/Cu/C/Ag exhibited an enhanced photocatalytic activity for degradation of Congo Red under visible light irradiation. Heat-treatment of the MOFs with high temperature is afacile and effective way for preparation of photocatalytic composite with desirable properties.Keywords: Photocatalyst, cuprous oxide, dye degradation, Cu-BTC

Incentive Provision and Pro-Social Behaviors

Individuals’ pro-social behaviors are driven by altruistic and selfish motivations. In this paper we explore how the introduction of external incentives would influence one’s pro-social behavior both in the short term and in the long run. Using a large data set on Amazon product reviews, we design a quasi-experimental approach where we combine a propensity score matching (PSM) and a difference-in-differences (DiD) method to empirically study the effect of incentive provision on reviewer’s behavior. We apply techniques from linguistics, language processing, and machine learning to propose several novel measures to capture reviews’ writing style and quality. We find evidences consistent with crowding-out and overjustification effects. Our study contributes to the understanding of pro-social behavior and sheds light on how incentives would shift individual behavior

Daily Costs and Cost Effectiveness of Glaucoma Fixed Combinations in China

Background. The aim of this study was to compare the daily costs and cost effectiveness of fixed combination glaucoma drugs in China. Methods. This study included the following fixed combination drugs: brinzolamide 1% and timolol 0.5% (Azarga; Alcon, Inc., Fort Worth, TX, USA), travoprost 0.004% and timolol 0.5% (DuoTrav; Alcon, Inc.), bimatoprost 0.03% and timolol 0.5% (Ganfort; Allergan, Inc., Dublin, Ireland), and latanoprost 0.005% and timolol 0.5% (Xalacom; Pfizer, Inc., New York, NY, USA). Five bottles of each drug were measured. The mean actual volume, mean actual number of drops, volume per drop, daily cost, yearly cost, and per mmHg reduction cost for each drug were calculated. Results. The volumes per drop ranged from 32.61 ± 2.90 μl (DuoTrav) to 24.38 ± 0.23 μl (Ganfort). The number of usage days per bottle varied from 36 days (DuoTrav) to 61 days (Ganfort). Azarga had the lowest daily cost ($0.23) and yearly cost ($84.72), while DuoTrav had the highest daily cost ($0.79) and yearly cost ($287.02). Azarga costed $2.17-$3.30 per mmHg intraocular pressure reduction, which was lower than the other three drugs. For the prostaglandin and ß-adrenergic blocker FCs, Ganfort had the lowest daily cost ($0.35) and per mmHg reduction cost (from$3.40 to $4.04). Conclusions. The daily costs of these drugs were significantly different, with Azarga having the lowest daily cost and best cost effectiveness. For the prostaglandin and β-adrenergic blocker fixed combinations, Ganfort was the most economical choice with its lower daily cost and per mmHg reduction cost. The results of this study could provide drug selection guidance from an economic perspective, but various factors should be considered when making a decision.</p