Guo Xiang’s commentary of the Zhuangzi’s imputed words and its implication on explaining metaphor

This thesis discusses how Guo Xiang’s Commentary (hereinafter referred to as “the Commentary”) shapes our understanding of the Zhuangzi in regard to the usage of imputed words (yuyan 寓言). In order to discuss it, two issues have to be examined first: imputed words in the Zhuangzi, and comparison of the Commentary’s and the Zhuangzi’s usages of imputed words. As for the first issue, I argue in Chapter 1 that imputed words, echoing the Zhuangzi’s indeterminacy, can be regarded as metaphors. The rhetoric and persuasive purposes of imputed words help these words serve as purveyors to allow readers to perceive implicit meanings and understand unfamiliar concepts that are usually difficult to be articulated with direct language. However, there is always a gap between readers’ perception and author’s intended meaning, and I use Gricean account to examine imputed words to prove it. As for the second issue, I argue in Chapter 2 that Guo Xiang uses less imputed words in the Commentary, and he introduces new concepts to articulate the original texts. I hold that Guo’s interpretation may guide readers to understand the Zhuangzi relatively straightforwardly, but Guo also promotes his own philosophical views in the Commentary, and the new concepts he introduces are not necessarily mirroring Zhuangzi’s original implicit meaning, which is not acceptable. The final chapter discusses the reason why Guo uses this interpretive approach and how the Commentary influences people’s understanding of the Zhuangzi. In this chapter, I examine the Commentary in the scope of intellectual history of Han Dynasty and Wei-Jin Dynasty, and relate it to contemporary scholars’ views as well. To conclude, I hold that Guo’s approach is unacceptable, not only because it deviates from Zhuangzi’s intended meaning, but also because it fails to “balance the ‘teaching of names’ and the ‘self-so’”

Synthesis and tunable luminescent properties of Eu-doped Ca2NaSiO4F – Coexistence of the Eu2+ and Eu3+ centers

AbstractNovel phosphors Ca2NaSiO4F:Eu were synthesized successfully by the conventional solid-state method in CO atmosphere, and their spectroscopic properties in UV−vis region were investigated. The photoluminescence properties show that Eu3+ ions were partially reduced to Eu2+ in Ca2NaSiO4F. As a result of radiation and re-absorption energy transfer from Eu2+ to Eu3+, both Eu2+ bluish-green emission at around 520nm and Eu3+ red emission are observed in the emission spectra under the n-UV light excitation. Furthermore, the ratio between Eu2+ and Eu3+ emissions varies with increasing content of overall Eu. Because relative intensity of the red component from Eu3+ became systematically stronger, white light emission can be realized by combining the emission of Eu2+ and Eu3+ in a single host lattice under n-UV light excitation. These results indicate that the Ca2NaSiO4F:Eu phosphors have potential applications as a n-UV convertible phosphor for light-emitting diodes

Research on Embedded Sensors for Concrete Health Monitoring Based on Ultrasonic Testing

In this article, embedded ultrasonic sensors were prepared using 1–3-type piezoelectric composite and piezoelectric ceramic as the piezoelectric elements, respectively. The frequency bandwidth of the novel embedded ultrasonic sensors was investigated. To obtain the relationship between the receiving ultrasonic velocity and compressive strength, as well as their response signals to crack damage, the sensors were fabricated and embedded into the cement mortar before testing. The results demonstrated that the piezoelectric composite sensor had wider frequency bandwidth than the piezoelectric ceramic sensor. The compressive strength and ultrasonic velocity had a positive linear relationship, with a correlation coefficient of 0.9216. The head wave amplitude of the receiving ultrasonic signal was sensitive to the changing crack damage and gradually decayed with the increasing degree of cement damage. Thus, the novel embedded ultrasonic sensors are suitable for concrete health monitoring via ultrasonic non-destructive testing

Postoperative survival of pulmonary invasive mucinous adenocarcinoma versus non-mucinous invasive adenocarcinoma

Abstract Purpose In 2015, the World Health Organization renamed mucinous bronchioloalveolar adenocarcinoma as pulmonary invasive mucinous adenocarcinoma (IMA). Due to its low incidence and unclear prognosis with surgical treatment, previous studies have presented opposing survival outcomes. We aimed to investigate the differences in surgical prognosis and prognosis-related risk factors by comparing IMA with non-mucinous invasive adenocarcinoma (NMA). Methods A total of 20,914 patients diagnosed with IMA or NMA from 2000 to 2014 were screened from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database. The screened patients were subjected to propensity score matching (PSM) in a 1:4 ratio to explore the survival differences between patients with IMA and NMA and the factors influencing prognosis. Results For all patients, IMA was prevalent in the lower lobes of the lungs (p < 0.0001), well-differentiated histologically (p < 0.0001), less likely to have lymph node metastases (94.4% vs. 72.0%, p < 0.0001) and at an earlier pathological stage (p = 0.0001). After PSM, the IMA cohort consisted of 303 patients, and the NMA cohort consisted of 1212 patients. Kaplan‒Meier survival analysis showed no difference in overall survival (OS) between patients in the IMA cohort and those in the NMA cohort (p = 0.7). Cox proportional hazards analysis showed that differences in tumor pathological type did not influence OS between the two cohorts (p = 0.65). Age (HR: 1.98, 95% CI 1.7–2.31, p < 0.0001), gender (HR: 0.64, 95% CI 0.55–0.75, p < 0.0001), and radiation treatment (HR: 2.49, 95% CI 1.84–3.37, p < 0.0001) were independent predictors of patient OS. Conclusion There was no significant difference in OS between patients with IMA and those with NMA after surgical treatment. Age, sex, and radiation treatment can independently predict OS

Translesion synthesis of acetylaminofluorene-dG adducts by DNA polymerase ζ is stimulated by yeast Rev1 protein

Translesion synthesis is an important mechanism in response to unrepaired DNA lesions during replication. The DNA polymerase ζ (Polζ) mutagenesis pathway is a major error-prone translesion synthesis mechanism requiring Polζ and Rev1. In addition to its dCMP transferase, a non-catalytic function of Rev1 is suspected in cellular response to certain types of DNA lesions. However, it is not well understood about the non-catalytic function of Rev1 in translesion synthesis. We have analyzed the role of Rev1 in translesion synthesis of an acetylaminofluorene (AAF)-dG DNA adduct. Purified yeast Rev1 was essentially unresponsive to a template AAF-dG DNA adduct, in contrast to its efficient C insertion opposite a template 1,N(6)-ethenoadenine adduct. Purified yeast Polζ was very inefficient in the bypass of the AAF-dG adduct. Combining Rev1 and Polζ, however, led to a synergistic effect on translesion synthesis. Rev1 protein enhanced Polζ-catalyzed nucleotide insertion opposite the AAF-dG adduct and strongly stimulated Polζ-catalyzed extension from opposite the lesion. Rev1 also stimulated the deficient synthesis by Polζ at the very end of undamaged DNA templates. Deleting the C-terminal 205 aa of Rev1 did not affect its dCMP transferase activity, but abolished its stimulatory activity on Polζ-catalyzed extension from opposite the AAF-dG adduct. These results suggest that translesion synthesis of AAF-dG adducts by Polζ is stimulated by Rev1 protein in yeast. Consistent with the in vitro results, both Polζ and Rev1 were found to be equally important for error-prone translesion synthesis across from AAF-dG DNA adducts in yeast cells

Fluence of different heating charging modes on thermal comfort in cold area

A residential residence in Jiaozuo city, Henan Province, China was researched over two heating seasons, interior thermal environmental characteristics were monitored, and subjects ’ thermal comfort was investigated to evaluate the differences between different heating charging techniques. Charging by area (CBA) and charge by flow (CBF) is the two heating charging types used in China’s central heating buildings. CBA mode is based on the actual home heating area calculation cost, which requires residents in the heating season before the commencement of a one-time settlement of all costs. In contrast, CBF mode is based on the actual residents daily heating charge dosage in real-time. As opposed to CBA mode, CBF mode gives homes greater choice in determining whether or not to utilize heating and gives them more control over the thermal environment. Through comparison analysis, the researchers discovered statistically significant changes in garment insulation, thermal response, and thermal preference across users with different thermal assessment techniques. Households charged by flow rate have a lower thermal neutral temperature and tolerable temperature than those charged by area. CBF mode may lower people ’s expectations of hot settings while increasing heating comfort, which is more favorable to energy conservation and carbon reduction. The goal of this study is to find out how people’s thermal responses alter when they use different heating charging modes, and to utilize this information to help individuals choose the right heating charging mode for their home

The high-pressure elastic properties of celestine and the high-pressure behavior of barite-type sulphates

The structural stability and elastic properties of celestine have been investigated at room temperature and pressure up to 15GPa, by using in situ angle-dispersive X-ray diffraction and a diamond anvil cell. No phase change is observed within the range of pressure in this study. Analysis of room temperature P-V data to a third-order Birch-Murnaghan (BM) Eos yields: the zero-pressure volume V-0 = 306.0(6) angstrom(3), isothermal bulk modulus K-0 = 62(5) GPa and its pressure derivative K'(0) = 11(1). If K'(0) is fixed at 4, then the isothermal bulk modulus is K-0 = 98(2) GPa. In addition, the axial compressiblity moduli of the three unit cell axes of celestine are obtained as K-a0 = 102(2) GPa, K-b0 = 92(2) GPa and K-c0 = 98(2) GPa, indicating the anisotropy of axial compressibility, with the a axis the most incompressible and the b axis the most compressible. Furthermore, the elastic properties of barite-type sulfates are discussed by combining the results in this study with previous studies on barite-group minerals

Classification and identification of archaea using single-cell raman ejection and artificial intelligence: implications for investigating uncultivated microorganisms

Archaea can produce special cellular components such as polyhydroxyalkanoates, carotenoids, rhodopsin, and ether lipids, which have valuable applications in medicine and green energy production. Most of the archaeal species are uncultivated, posing challenges to investigating their biomarker components and biochemical properties. In this study, we applied Raman spectroscopy to examine the biological characteristics of nine archaeal isolates, including halophilic archaea (Haloferax larsenii, Haloarcula argentinensis, Haloferax mediterranei, Halomicrobium mukohataei, Halomicrobium salinus, Halorussus sp., Natrinema gari), thermophilic archaea (Sulfolobus acidocaldarius), and marine group I (MGI) archaea (Nitrosopumilus maritimus). Linear discriminant analysis of the Raman spectra allowed visualization of significant separations among the nine archaeal isolates. Machine-learning classification models based on support vector machine achieved accuracies of 88–100% when classifying the nine archaeal species. The predicted results were validated by DNA sequencing analysis of cells isolated from the mixture by Raman-activated cell sorting. Raman spectra of uncultured archaea (MGII) were also obtained based on Raman spectroscopy and fluorescence in situ hybridization. The results combining multiple Raman-based techniques indicated that MGII may have the ability to produce lipids distinct from other archaeal species. Our study provides a valuable approach for investigating and classifying archaea, especially uncultured species, at the single-cell level