Does a higher minimum wage accelerate labour division in agricultural production? Evidence from the main riceplanting area in China

Agricultural production outsourcing, a new means of agricultural production, can optimise the allocation of resources, reduce agricultural production costs, and improve agricultural productivity. However, farmers’ outsourcing behaviours are strongly interfered with by many factors such as economics, technology and institutions. Using a farmer-level data set from 2014 to 2018 in China, we examine the effects of the minimum wage increase on rice farmers’ production outsourcing behaviours. Our study relies on a Logit regression framework and uses the control function (C.F.) approach to address potential endogeneity concerns. Results show that the minimum wage increase significantly reduces the probability of farmers conducting production outsourcing. We also examine the heterogeneous effects of the minimum wage increase, and find that compared with other outsourcing services, the adverse effects on harvesting outsourcing are the strongest; the negative effects on production outsourcing are stronger for rice farmers with higher education. Our results provide new insights into understanding how labour regulation affects labour division in agricultural production

Stability Analysis of a Repairable System with Warning Device and Repairman Vacation

This paper considers a simple repairable system with a warning device and a repairman who can have delayed-multiple vacations. By Markov renewal process theory and the probability analysis method, the system is first transformed into a group of integrodifferential equations. Then, the existence and uniqueness as well as regularity of the system dynamic solution are discussed with the functional analysis method. Further, the asymptotic stability, especially the exponential stability of the system dynamic solution, is studied by using the strongly continuous semigroup theory or C0 semigroup theory. The reliability indices and some applications (such as the comparisons of indices and profit of systems with and without warning device), as well as numerical examples, are presented at the end of the paper

Discerning changes and drivers of water yield ecosystem service: A case study of Chongqing-Chengdu District, Southwest China

Water yield (WY) ecosystem service is an important ecological indicator in assessing water availability and sustainability. Although it was widely acknowledged that WY was mainly driven by land use change and climate factor, the intrinsic driving mechanisms remained unclear. Here, we selected the Chengdu-Chongqing District in Southwest China as the study area, using the InVEST model, structural equation modeling, and scenario analysis to exhaustively reveal the past and future WY changes and contribution rate of driving factors. The results demonstrated that the study area experienced rapid forest expansion and urbanization at the expense of cropland and grassland in the last 30 years. In this region, WY increased by approximately ∼130 mm during 1990–2020, attributed mainly to the contribution of precipitation (>90 %), and secondary to potential evapotranspiration and land use change. It was projected that by the end of the 21st century, WY would increase by about 20 % under SSP585 scenario compared to the historical average. We found that every 100 mm increase of precipitation would produce an additional 62–65 mm of WY, with higher precipitation resulting larger WY coefficient due to energy constraint there. Further, we also found that the elevation factor played a direct and negative role (standardized path coefficient, b = −0.4, p < 0.05) in precipitation, and further indirectly, positively dominated (b = 1.0, p < 0.05) WY. This implied that higher WY was widely occurred in areas with lower elevation. These results highlighted topographic and climatic factors controlling WY in such a basin-featured region, which provided a deeper understanding into ecosystem service science

Properties Evaluations of Topology Optimized Functionally Graded Lattice Structures Fabricated by Selective Laser Melting

Owning to their lightweight characteristic and high performance, functionally graded lattice structures (FGLSs) show great potential in orthopedics, automotive industries and aerospace applications. Here, two types of uniform lattice structures (ULSs) with RD = 0.50 and 0.20, and two types of FGLSs with RD = 0.30–0.50 and RD = 0.20–0.40, were designed by topology optimization and fabricated by SLM technology. Subsequently, their surface morphology, compressive deformation behavior and energy absorption abilities were evaluated by use of the finite element method (FEM) and compression tests. From these results, both elastic modulus and yield strength of specimens decreased with the lowering of the RD value. ULSs had a uniform deformation behavior with bending and bulking of struts, while FGLSs presented a mixed deformation behavior of different layers. Additionally, the energy absorption capability (Wv) of specimens was proportional to the RD value. When the value of RD increased from 0.20 to 0.50, the Wv of specimens increased from 0.3657 to 1.7469 MJ/m3. Furthermore, mathematical models were established successfully to predict the mechanical properties of FGLSs with percentage deviations < 10%. This work provides a comprehensive understanding regarding how to design and manufacture FGLSs with the properties desired for satisfying the demand of different application scenarios

DataSheet1_Development of a novel pyroptosis-related LncRNA signature with multiple significance in acute myeloid leukemia.docx

Background: Pyroptosis, a programmed cell death (PCD) with highly inflammatory form, has been recently found to be associated with the origin of hematopoietic malignancies. Long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) had emerged as an essential mediator to regulate gene expression and been involved in oncogenesis. However, the roles of pyroptosis-related lncRNA (PRlncRNA) in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) have not yet been completely clarified.Methods: We collected AML datasets from public databases to obtain PRlncRNA associated with survival and constructed a PRlncRNA signature using Lasso-Cox regression analysis. Subsequently, we employed RT-PCR to confirm its expression difference and internal training to further verify its reliability. Next, AML patients were classified into two subgroups by the median risk score. Finally, the differences between two groups in immune infiltration, enrichment analysis and drug sensitivity were further explored.Results: A PRlncRNA signature and an effective nomogram combined with clinicopathological variables to predict the prognosis of AML were constructed. The internal validations showed that the PRlncRNA risk score model was an accurate and productive indicator to predict the outcome of AML. Furthermore, this study indicated that higher inflammatory cell and immunosuppressive cells, and less sensitive to conventional chemotherapy drugs were highlighted in the high-risk group.Conclusion: Through comprehensive analysis of PRlncRNA model, our study may offer a valuable basis for future researches in targeting pyroptosis and tumor microenvironment (TME) and provide new measures for prevention and treatment in AML.</p

IRE1α regulates the PTHrP-IHH feedback loop to orchestrate chondrocyte hypertrophy and cartilage mineralization

Cartilage development is controlled by the highly synergistic proliferation and differentiation of growth plate chondrocytes, in which the Indian hedgehog (IHH) and parathyroid hormone-related protein-parathyroid hormone-1 receptor (PTHrP-PTH1R) feedback loop is crucial. The inositol-requiring enzyme 1α/X-box-binding protein-1 spliced (IRE1α/XBP1s) branch of the unfolded protein response (UPR) is essential for normal cartilage development. However, the precise role of ER stress effector IRE1α, encoded by endoplasmic reticulum to nucleus signaling 1 (ERN1), in skeletal development remains unknown. Herein, we reported that loss of IRE1α accelerates chondrocyte hypertrophy and promotes endochondral bone growth. ERN1 acts as a negative regulator of chondrocyte proliferation and differentiation in postnatal growth plates. Its deficiency interrupted PTHrP/PTH1R and IHH homeostasis leading to impaired chondrocyte hypertrophy and differentiation. XBP1s, produced by p-IRE1α-mediated splicing, binds and up-regulates PTH1R and IHH, which coordinate cartilage development. Meanwhile, ER stress cannot be activated normally in ERN1-deficient chondrocytes. In conclusion, ERN1 deficiency accelerates chondrocyte hypertrophy and cartilage mineralization by impairing the homeostasis of the IHH and PTHrP/PTH1R feedback loop and ER stress. ERN1 may have a potential role as a new target for cartilage growth and maturation