Calculation and Expression of the Urban Heat Island Indices Based on GeoSOT Grid

The urban heat island (UHI) effect accelerates the accumulation of atmospheric pollutants, which has a strong impact on the climate of cities, circulation of material, and health of citizens. Therefore, it is of great significance to conduct quantitative monitoring and accurate governance of UHI by calculating the index rapidly and expressing spatial distribution accurately. In this paper, we proposed a model that integrates UHI information with the GeoSOT (Geographic Coordinate Subdividing Grid with One-Dimension Integer Coding on 2n Tree) grid and subsequently designed the calculation method of UHI indices and expression method of UHI spatial distribution. The UHI indices were calculated on Dongcheng and Xicheng District, Beijing, in the Summer of 2014 to 2019. Experimental results showed that the proposed method has higher calculation efficiency, and achieved a more detailed description of the spatial distribution of the urban thermal environment compared with the Gaussian surface fitting method. This method can be used for large-scale and high-frequency monitoring the level of UHI and expressing complicated spatial distribution of UHI inside the city, thus supporting accurate governance of UHI

The leaf-mining genus Antispila Hübner, 1825 feeding on Vitaceae in Shandong Peninsula, China with one new species (Lepidoptera, Heliozelidae)

The Antispila species feeding on Vitaceae from Shandong Peninsula, China are treated. Antispila kunyuensis Liu, sp. n., feeding on Ampelopsis humulifolia, is described as new to science, and A. uenoi Kuroko, 1987, feeding on Vitis amurensis, is recorded as new for China. Vitis amurensis is documented as a new host plant for A. uenoi. The adult male and female, host plant and typical patterns of leaf-mines of both species are illustrated, as are male and female genitalia and venation. The venation and the paired tufts of scales on the 7th abdominal segment in male are illustrated for A. uenoi for the first time. DNA barcodes of both species are also provided, together with a neighbor-joining tree for facilitating species delimitation

Random vibration response prediction of electronic device based on hierarchicaly model updating and validation

Electronic device is susceptible to failure due to environmental vibration during transportation and use, even causing the entire device to failure. In recent years, the structure of electronic device has been more complex, the application range has become more and more extensive, and requirements for structural performance under vibration environment of electronic device are more strict, especially in the aviation and aerospace field. Therefore, in order to ensure the safe and reliable work of electronic device, and to control vibration level effectively , it is necessary to carry out environmental vibration simulation analysis and response prediction for electronic device.In this paper, a certain type of aviation airborne electronic device is taken as the research object. The finite element method is used to model the electronic device. In order to obtain an accurate finite element model to simulate the vibration of the electronic device, the hierarchicaly model updating and validation is applied to the vibration simulation for the electronic device. Then the substructure FE model (PCB printed circuit board without electronic items) is firstly calibrated by means of the deterministic model updating technique by comparing with the experiment modal analysis. And a Bayesian method of parameter uncertainty quantification was employed to identify the mass and stiffness distribution (PCB with electronic items). Finally, the established validated model is used to predict the random response of the reference points and verified by random vibration test.<br/

Isolation, Identification, and Characterization of Two Potential Probiotics from Marine Fish

Marine fish are rich in minerals (calcium and iron), vitamins (riboflavin and niacin), nutrients that are beneficial for brain (fatty acids), docosahexaenoic acid that prevent cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, and are an important source of protein for humans. In recent years, the nexus between the increased demand of high-quality protein and the decrease in marine fishery resources resulted in the intensification of marine farming. However, this high-density farming has led to various bacterial diseases frequently due to lack of disease control methods, which has caused economic losses in the farming industry and impeded the healthy development of the industry. Therefore, it is particularly important to reduce the rates of bacterial diseases and improve the survival rate of cultured fish. It is of particular concern on how to maintain intestinal health of cultured fish under this farming method. Probiotics, a kind of living microorganisms, are beneficial to the health of the host. In the 1980s, probiotics have been viewed as an environmentally friendly and effective product in aquaculture; they improve the host health by influencing intestinal microbiota and nonspecific immunity to increase disease resistance ability. Moreover, they can be used as an ideal substitute for antibiotics in aquaculture production. Probiotics from Bacillus, lactic acid bacteria, saccharomyces, and nitrobacteria are diverse, and the function of each varies widely. As the typical representative of probiotics, lactic acid bacteria, may inhibit the growth of pathogens by the production of its metabolites, such as lactic acid, acetic acid, peroxide hydrogen, and bacteriocin. Lactic acid bacteria are also able to balance intestinal microecological imbalance and maintain intestinal microbiota balance when the intestinal microbiota contains pathogenic bacteria or the host is treated with antibiotics. Bacillus is an aerobic or facultative anaerobic gram-positive bacteria, which is stable, possesses strong stress resistance and high resurrection rate, and can produce various macromolecules, such as proteases and amylases and thus can improve the digestive function of the host by promoting the absorption of nutrients. Furthermore, as a non-specific immune antigen, Bacillus can improve the immune resistance of the host by stimulation of the components of cells or cell walls. The application of lactic acid bacteria and Bacillus has demonstrated favorable results, but this has been limited in marine fish culture because the non-fish origin of some strains and the different specificity of strains for different fish species or the same growth stage make their application difficult. Thus, it is essential to develop marine fish-derived probiotics, analyze their characteristics, define growth conditions, verify safety effects, and determine dosage and methods for their administer in marine fish culture. In this study, probiotics from marine fish were screened for the development of microbial ecological agents; 80 strains of culturable bacteria were obtained by separating bacteria from the mucosa samples of the digestive tract of wild Sebastes schlegelii and Hexagrammos otakii. The enzyme-producing ability of the strains was determined using a selective culture medium. The common pathogenic bacteria infecting marine fish were selected as indicator bacteria to determine the antibacterial activity of the isolated strains. Two potential probiotics, strains TS2 and TH8, were screened, and their physiological and biochemical identification, 16S rDNA sequence, growth characteristics, and host safety were determined. The results showed that TS2 had the strongest ability to hydrolyze starch, protein, and fat, and its sterile culture products could significantly inhibit the growth of Vibrio anguillarum, V. parahaemolyticus, V. Harvey, and Pseudoalteromonas nigrifaciens. TH8 has the strongest ability to hydrolyze protein and fat, and its sterile culture products could significantly inhibit the growth of V. anguillarum, V. alginolyticus, V. parahaemolyticus, P. nigrifaciens, Aeromonas hydrophila, Staphyloccocus aureus, and Escherichia coli. According to the analysis of the physiological and biochemical characteristics of the bacteria and 16S rDNA sequence alignment analysis, strain TS2 was identified as Bacillus subtilis and strain TH8 as Vagococcus fluvialis. Strain TS2 showed significant growth at 15–40 ℃, sodium chloride concentration of 0–0.08 g/L, and pH of 5–9; it entered the logarithmic phase after 6 h and the stable phase after 26 h. TH8 grew rapidly at 20–40 ℃, sodium chloride concentration of 0–0.08 g/L, and pH of 5–12; it entered the logarithmic phase after 2 h and the stable phase after 14 h. The safety of strains TS2 and TH8 was analyzed on a homologous host, and it was found that the strains were relatively safe for the homologous host at the concentration of 108 CFU/mL. The screened B. subtilis TS2 and V. fluvialis TH8 strains have a strong enzyme production ability and inhibit the growth of various pathogens by their metabolites; they have the following advantages: Wide temperature and salt tolerance, acid and alkali resistance, and fast growth speed. Thus, they could be considered as potential probiotic candidates for the development of microbial pharmaceuticals and can be used in more applications in marine aquaculture

Preparation of a one-dimensional hierarchical MnO@CNT@Co-N/C ternary nanostructure as a high-performance bifunctional electrocatalyst for rechargeable Zn-air batteries

Developing high-performance bifunctional electrocatalysts for both the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is a significant challenge for the implementation of rechargeable Zn-air batteries. Herein, MnO2nanotubes (NTs) are prepared as both templates and oxidants to grow polypyrrole (PPy) nanotubes (NTs), on which a zeolite imidazole framework-67 (ZIF-67) is grown. Following that, a single calcination step transforms MnO2, PPy and ZIF-67 into MnO nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and Co-N doped carbon materials (Co-N/C), respectively to form a one-dimensional (1D) hierarchical ternary nanocomposite. In this composite, the CNTs encapsulate the MnO particles to effectively prevent their further agglomeration. The separated MnO particles possess a mixed valence of Mn2+/4+inside the CNTs, which can greatly facilitate electrolyte diffusion and electron transfer during the redox reactions. Furthermore, the Co-N/C and micro-CNTs formed on the CNT provide multiple catalytic active sites (Co-Nx, Co-O, and C-N moieties). At the optimized calcination temperature of 700 °C, MnO@CNT@Co-N/C exhibits excellent ORR/OER catalytic performance with a ΔEvalue of 0.81 V while maintaining structural and compositional stability. Remarkably, the rechargeable Zn-air battery fabricated with MnO@CNT@Co-N/C as the air electrode catalyst displays a higher peak power density (200.8 mW cm−2) and improved cyclability (300 h) at 5 mA cm−2compared to a precious metal commercial catalyst, indicating the potential application of this composite in energy storage and conversion technology.</p

Morphology and SSU rDNA-based phylogeny of two Euplotes species from China: E. wuhanensis sp. n. and E. muscicola Kahl, 1932 (Ciliophora, Euplotida)

The living morphology, infraciliature and silverline system of two small Euplotes species, E. wuhanensis sp. n. and E. muscicola Kahl, 1932, isolated from Wuhan, central China, were investigated. Euplotes wuhanensis sp. n. is characterized by a combination of features including small size (40-50 x 25-30 mu m), two conspicuously small and eight normal-sized frontoventral cirri, five transverse cirri in two groups, two marginal and two caudal cirri, seven dorsal kineties with about 12 dikinetids in the mid-dorsal row and a double-eurystomus type of dorsal silverline pattern. The Wuhan population of E. muscicola closely resembles previously described populations. The establishments of three subspecies of E. muscicola are not supported. The small subunit ribosomal RNA gene sequences were determined for both species. We propose that the two sequences under the name of E. muscicola (No. AJ305254, DQ917684 deposited in GenBank) are very likely from misidentified material. Phylogenetic analyses based on these data support the validity of both E. muscicola and E. wuhanensis as distinct species. (C) 2018 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved