KDE-Based Rainfall Event Separation and Characterization

Rainfall event separation is mainly based on the selection of the minimum inter-event time (MIET). The traditional approach to determining a suitable MIET for estimating the probability den sity functions is often using the frequency histograms. However, this approach cannot avoid arbi trariness and subjectivity in selecting the histogram parameters. To overcome the above limitations, this study proposes a kernel density estimation (KDE) approach for rainfall event separation and characterization at any specific site where the exponential distributions are suitable for characterizing the rainfall event statistics. Using the standardized procedure provided taking into account the Poisson and Kolmogorov–Smirnov (K-S) statistical tests, the optimal pair of the MIET and rainfall event volume threshold can be determined. Two climatically different cities, Hangzhou and Jinan of China, applying the proposed approach are selected for demonstration purposes. The results show that the optimal MIETs determined are 12 h for Hangzhou and 10 h for Jinan while the optimal event volume threshold values are 3 mm for both Hangzhou and Jinan. The KDE-based approach can facilitate the rainfall statistical representation of the analytical probabilistic models of urban drainage/stormwater control facilitie

Heterogeneous and flexible transmission of mcr-1 in hospital-associated escherichia coli

The recent emergence of a transferable colistin resistance mechanism, MCR-1, has gained global attention because of its threat to clinical treatment of infections caused by multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria. However, the possible transmission route of mcr-1 among Enterobacteriaceae species in clinical settings is largely unknown. Here, we present a comprehensive genomic analysis of Escherichia coli isolates collected in a hospital in Hangzhou, China. We found that mcr-1-carrying isolates from clinical infections and feces of inpatients and healthy volunteers were genetically diverse and were not closely related phylogenetically, suggesting that clonal expansion is not involved in the spread of mcr-1. The mcr-1 gene was found on either chromosomes or plasmids, but in most of the E. coli isolates, mcr-1 was carried on plasmids. The genetic context of the plasmids showed considerable diversity as evidenced by the different functional insertion sequence (IS) elements, toxin-antitoxin (TA) systems, heavy metal resistance determinants, and Rep proteins of broad-host-range plasmids. Additionally, the genomic analysis revealed nosocomial transmission of mcr-1 and the coexistence of mcr-1 with other genes encoding β-lactamases and fluoroquinolone resistance in the E. coli isolates. These findings indicate that mcr-1 is heterogeneously disseminated in both commensal and pathogenic strains of E. coli, suggest the high flexibility of this gene in its association with diverse genetic backgrounds of the hosts, and provide new insights into the genome epidemiology of mcr-1 among hospital-associated E. coli strains. IMPORTANCE Colistin represents one of the very few available drugs for treating infections caused by extensively multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria. The recently emergent mcr-1 colistin resistance gene threatens the clinical utility of colistin and has gained global attention. How mcr-1 spreads in hospital settings remains unknown and was investigated by whole-genome sequencing of mcr-1-carrying Escherichia coli in this study. The findings revealed extraordinary flexibility of mcr-1 in its spread among genetically diverse E. coli hosts and plasmids, nosocomial transmission of mcr-1-carrying E. coli, and the continuous emergence of novel Inc types of plasmids carrying mcr-1 and new mcr-1 variants. Additionally, mcr-1 was found to be frequently associated with other genes encoding β-lactams and fluoroquinolone resistance. These findings provide important information on the transmission and epidemiology of mcr-1 and are of significant public health importance as the information is expected to facilitate the control of this significant antibiotic resistance threat

new six-node and seven-node hexagonal finite elements

In this paper, we introduce a six-node and a seven-node hexagonal elements. Both elements are based on the rotated trilinear interpolation in terms of the three-directional coordinates. Optimal a priori error estimates are provided for the new elements by decomposing the consistency error into two parts that both can be estimated using the F-E-M test. Some numerical tests are carried out to verify the theoretical analysis. Comparisons to both the previously studied edge-oriented hexagonal elements and the traditional linear triangular elements are also provided to show the efficiency and superiority of the new six-node and seven-node hexagonal elements. © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

<b>A news species</b><b> </b><b>of </b><b><i>Dicronocephalus </i></b><b>Hope, 1831 from Yunnan, China (Coleoptera:Scarabaeidae:Cetoniinae)</b>

This paper describes Dicronocephalus sp. nov. found in Yunnan, China, and compares it with D. adamsi.</p

Evolution of element-specific electronic structures in alkaline titanates

Evolution of element-specific electronic structures in alkaline titanate

Effects of corticosterone and dietary energy on immune function of broiler chickens.

An experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary energy level on the performance and immune function of stressed broiler chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus). A total of 96 three-day-old male broiler chickens (Ross × Ross) were divided into two groups. One group received a high energy (HE) diet and the other group received a low energy (LE) diet for 7 days. At 5 days of age, the chickens from each group were further divided into two sub-groups and received one of the following two treatments for 3 days: (1) subcutaneous injection of corticosterone, twice per day (CORT group; 2 mg of CORT/kg BW in corn oil) and (2) subcutaneous injection of corn oil, twice per day (Control/Sham treatment group). At 10 days of age, samples of blood, duodenum, jejunum, and ileum were obtained. Compared with the other three groups, the LE group treated with CORT had the lowest average daily gain (ADG) and the poorest feed conversion ratio (FCR, P < 0.05). Furthermore, CORT treatment decreased the relative weight (RW) of the bursa independent of the dietary energy level, but it decreased the RW of the thymus only in the chickens fed the LE diet. By contrast, CORT administration decreased the RW of the spleen only in the chickens fed the HE diet (P < 0.05). The plasma total protein, albumin, tumor necrosis factor alpha, interleukin 2 and immunoglobulin G (IgG) levels were affected by the CORT treatment (P < 0.05); however, these factors were not significantly affected by the dietary energy level. Toll-like receptor-5 mRNA level was down-regulated by CORT injection in the duodenum and ileum (P < 0.05) and showed a trend of down-regulation in the jejunum (P=0.0846). The present study showed that CORT treatment induced immunosuppressive effects on the innate immune system of broiler chickens, which were ameliorated by consumption of higher dietary energy