English Publicity of Chinese Folk Songs—With the Tea Picking Dance as an Example

Chinese folk songs have unique inheritance and dissemination value. While actively developing the local dissemination of folk songs, we should constantly expand the transmission of Chinese folk songs overseas and enhance the international influence of Chinese folk song culture. Utilizing folk song micro-lesson to popularize the knowledge of Chinese folk songs, conducting surveys and analyzing the attitudes of international students from different countries towards four folk song micro-lesson videos, we have obtained over 30 valid survey data. The survey found that 96.77% of respondents believe that this series of micro-lesson plays a certain role in spreading Chinese folk songs, and the majority of the audience is interested in folk song micro-lesson and willing to share them. Micro-lessons of folk songs is one of the media for disseminating Chinese folk songs and folk song culture in the new era, providing a reference for the new approach to the external dissemination of Chinese culture

Diosgenin inhibits cell proliferation of primary human thyrocytes via downregulation of PI3K/Akt signaling pathway

Purpose: To determine the potential influence of diosgenin on proliferation of human thyrocytes and its possible mechanism.Methods: Primary human thyrocytes were cultured and treated with diosgenin at various time intervals. Anti-proliferative activity was determined by MTT assay. Cell proliferation was evaluated by EdU assay while cell cycle was analyzed using fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) method. Protein expression of p21 (CIP1), p27 (KIP1), cyclins, protein kinase B (Akt), phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase (PI3K) and p-Akt was determined by the western blot.Results: Diosgenin inhibited proliferation of primary human thyrocytes and caused G0/G1 arrest in a concentration-dependent manner. It also downregulated cyclin D1 and phosphorylation of PI3K and Akt, but upregulated p21 and p27.Conclusion: Inhibition of proliferation of primary human thyrocytes by diosgenin occurs viadownregulation of PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. Therefore, diosgenin can be developed as a potential drug for the treatment of thyroid disease.Keywords: Diosgenin, Proliferation, Primary human thyrocytes, PI3K/Akt signaling pathwa

Sociodemographic and obstetric characteristics of stillbirths in China: a census of nearly 4 million health facility births between 2012 and 2014

Background Very little is known about the burden and determinants of stillbirths in China. We used data from a national surveillance system for health facility births to compute a stillbirth rate representative of all facility births in China and to explore sociodemographic and obstetric factors associated with variation in the stillbirth rate. Methods We used data from China’s National Maternal Near Miss Surveillance System between Jan 1, 2012, and Dec 31, 2014, which covers 441 hospitals in 326 urban districts and rural counties. The surveillance aimed to enumerate all maternal deaths and near misses in health facilities, and collected data prospectively for all pregnant or post-partum women admitted to the obstetric department. We restricted the analysis to births of 28 or more completed weeks of gestation or 1000 g or heavier birthweight. We examined the strength of association between sociodemographic characteristics, gestational age, and obstetric complications and stillbirths using logistic regression, taking account of the sampling strategy and clustering of births within hospitals and in cases of more than one birth per woman. Findings There were 3 956 836 births and 37 855 stillbirths, giving a stillbirth rate of 8·8 per 1000 births (95% CI 8·8–8·9). The stillbirth rate was particularly high for women younger than 15 years of age (59·9 stillbirths per 1000 births), those who had not sought antenatal care (38·3 per 1000), the unmarried (32·5 per 1000), those with no education (26·9 per 1000), or those who had had four or more births (23·2 per 1000). A high proportion (29 319 [78·2%] of 37 514) of stillbirths occurred at gestational ages of younger than 37 weeks, and about two thirds (24 787 [66·1%] of 37 514) were in women without any maternal complication at the time of birth. Of babies born at normal gestations (37–41 weeks), maternal complications substantially increased the risk of stillbirth (odds ratio comparing antepartum or intrapartum complications with no complication 3·96 [95% CI 3·66–4·29]), but only a small proportion (1638 [4·4%] of 37 514) of stillbirths fell into this group. Interpretation Our analysis of nearly 4 million births in 441 health facilities in China suggests a stillbirth rate of 8·8 per 1000 births between 2012 and 2014. Stillbirths do not feature in the Chinese Government’s 5 year plans and most information systems do not include stillbirths. The Government need to start paying attention to stillbirths and invest strategically in antenatal care, particularly for the most disadvantaged women, including the very young, unmarried, and illiterate, and those at high parity

Near-Space Communications: the Last Piece of 6G Space-Air-Ground-Sea Integrated Network Puzzle

This article presents a comprehensive study on the emerging near-space communications (NS-COM) within the context of space-air-ground-sea integrated network (SAGSIN). Specifically, we firstly explore the recent technical developments of NS-COM, followed by the discussions about motivations behind integrating NS-COM into SAGSIN. To further demonstrate the necessity of NS-COM, a comparative analysis between the NS-COM network and other counterparts in SAGSIN is conducted, covering aspects of deployment, coverage, channel characteristics and unique problems of NS-COM network. Afterwards, the technical aspects of NS-COM, including channel modeling, random access, channel estimation, array-based beam management and joint network optimization, are examined in detail. Furthermore, we explore the potential applications of NS-COM, such as structural expansion in SAGSIN communication, civil aviation communication, remote and urgent communication, weather monitoring and carbon neutrality. Finally, some promising research avenues are identified, including stratospheric satellite (StratoSat) -to-ground direct links for mobile terminals, reconfigurable multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) and holographic MIMO, federated learning in NS-COM networks, maritime communication, electromagnetic spectrum sensing and adversarial game, integrated sensing and communications, StratoSat-based radar detection and imaging, NS-COM assisted enhanced global navigation system, NS-COM assisted intelligent unmanned system and free space optical (FSO) communication. Overall, this paper highlights that the NS-COM plays an indispensable role in the SAGSIN puzzle, providing substantial performance and coverage enhancement to the traditional SAGSIN architecture.Comment: 28 pages, 8 figures, 2 table

Evaluation of the prevalence of adolescent scoliosis and its associated factors in Gansu Province, China: a cross-sectional study

IntroductionGansu Province is situated in the northwest region of China, characterized by diverse and complex topography and a rich diversity of ethnic groups. This study aims to explore the prevalence and risk factors of adolescent suspected scoliosis in Gansu Province through a cross-sectional population study.MethodsFrom April 2022 to July 2022, a prospective cross-sectional study was conducted in Baiyin City, Jinchang City, Lanzhou City, Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture, and Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Gansu Province. The screening covered 3,118 middle and high school students across 24 institutions, including middle and high schools. Diagnosis of suspected scoliosis was established through visual inspection, the Adams forward bend test, and measurement of trunk rotation angle. Employing a custom-designed questionnaire, demographic data were collected, and the prevalence of suspected scoliosis was calculated. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were employed to assess factors associated with suspected scoliosis.ResultsA total of 3,044 participants were ultimately included in the analysis. The overall prevalence of suspected scoliosis was 5.68% in Gansu Province. The peak prevalence for boy is at 14 years (6.70%), while for girl, it is at 15 years (8.75%). Lanzhou City exhibits the highest prevalence rates (boy, 9.82%; girl, 10.16). The results of univariate logistic regression analysis presented that BMI (OR = 0.92, 95% CI: 0.88–0.96), altitude of habitation (1,600 m-2000 m) (OR = 0.50, 95% CI: 0.34–0.73), altitude of habitation (2000 m-3321 m) (OR = 0.58, 95% CI: 0.40–0.83), family medical history (OR = 1.56, 95% CI: 1.02–2.31), and shoulders of unequal height (OR = 1.49, 95% CI: 1.09–2.03) were significantly correlated with suspected scoliosis. The multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that BMI (OR = 0.91, 95% CI: 0.86–0.95), altitude of habitation (1,600 m-2000 m) (OR = 0.35, 95% CI: 0.23–0.54), altitude of habitation (2000 m-3321 m) (OR = 0.39, 95% CI: 0.24–0.60), family medical history (OR = 1.66, 95% CI:1.08–2.49), and shoulders of unequal height (OR = 1.45, 95% CI:1.06–1.99) were independently associated with suspected scoliosis.ConclusionLow BMI, residence at an altitude of 1,600 m-3321 m, family medical history, and shoulders of unequal height were independently associated with an increased prevalence of suspected scoliosis. It is recommended to promptly screen high-risk adolescents for suspected scoliosis, provide effective preventive and intervention measures

Simulation Studies for the First Pathfinder of the CATCH Space Mission

The Chasing All Transients Constellation Hunters (CATCH) space mission is an intelligent constellation consisting of 126 micro-satellites in three types (A, B, and C), designed for X-ray observation with the objective of studying the dynamic universe. Currently, we are actively developing the first Pathfinder (CATCH-1) for the CATCH mission, specifically for type-A satellites. CATCH-1 is equipped with Micro Pore Optics (MPO) and a 4-pixel Silicon Drift Detector (SDD) array. To assess its scientific performance, including the effective area of the optical system, on-orbit background, and telescope sensitivity, we employ the Monte Carlo software Geant4 for simulation in this study. The MPO optics exhibit an effective area of $41$ cm$^2$ at the focal spot for 1 keV X-rays, while the entire telescope system achieves an effective area of $29$ cm$^2$ at 1 keV when taking into account the SDD detector's detection efficiency. The primary contribution to the background is found to be from the Cosmic X-ray Background. Assuming a 625 km orbit with an inclination of $29^\circ$, the total background for CATCH-1 is estimated to be $8.13\times10^{-2}$ counts s$^{-1}$ in the energy range of 0.5--4 keV. Based on the background within the central detector and assuming a Crab-like source spectrum, the estimated ideal sensitivity could achieve $1.9\times10^{-12}$ erg cm$^{-2}$ s$^{-1}$ for an exposure of 10$^4$ s in the energy band of 0.5--4 keV. Furthermore, after simulating the background caused by low-energy charged particles near the geomagnetic equator, we have determined that there is no need to install a magnetic deflector

Application of Multiattribute Decision-Making for Evaluating Regional Innovation Capacity

The growing imbalance in regional innovation development has become an urgent issue in China’s strategy to build an innovative country. To enrich the regional innovation capacity evaluation system, scientifically assess regional innovation capacity, and explore available pathways to improve regional innovation capacity, this paper introduces a multiattribute decision-making method for evaluating regional innovation capacity. First, a random forest model and the DEMATEL-based analytic network process (DANP) method are applied to calculate the weights of the evaluation attributes. Second, the multiobjective optimization by the ratio analysis method based on the maximum and minimum (MOORA-min-max method) is used to calculate the evaluation attribute gap ratios and regional innovation capacity of each region. Finally, the limitations of regional innovation development are identified based on the evaluation attribute gap ratios and the critical influence strength roadmap (CISR) to explore the regional innovation capacity improvement pathways. The results show that “output capacity of R&D personnel in universities and research institutes” is the most fundamental evaluation attribute in the regional innovation capacity evaluation, while “output efficiency of R&D funds in universities and research institutes” is the most influential evaluation attribute. Research in Sichuan and Inner Mongolia reveals that regions need to identify critical constraints in four aspects: knowledge creation, knowledge acquisition, enterprise innovation, and innovation environment, to improve regional innovation capacity