Thermodynamic analysis of air cycle refrigeration system for Chinese train air conditioning

AbstractThe air cycle refrigeration system used in Chinese train air conditioning engineering is investigated. The effects of possible parameters affecting system performance are examined through sensitive analysis of the thermodynamic model. The results show that, the pressure ratio should be in the range of 2-2.5, the COP will be in the range of 1-1.2, and the cold air distribution system can be used. To increase the COP, higher efficiencies of compressors, expanders and heat exchangers are expected

The Influence of Social Comparison and Peer Group Size on Risky Decision-Making

This study explores the influence of different social reference points and different comparison group sizes on risky decision-making. Participants were presented with a scenario describing an exam, and presented with the opportunity of making a risky decision in the context of different information provided about the performance of their peers. We found that behavior was influenced, not only by comparison with peers, but also by the size of the comparison group. Specifically, the larger the reference group, the more polarized the behavior it prompted. In situations describing social loss, participants were led to make riskier decisions after comparing themselves against larger groups, while in situations describing social gain, they become more risk averse. These results indicate that decision making is influenced both by social comparison and the number of people making up the social reference group

Transpositional reactivation of the Dart transposon family in rice lines derived from introgressive hybridization with Zizania latifolia

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>It is widely recognized that interspecific hybridization may induce "genome shock", and lead to genetic and epigenetic instabilities in the resultant hybrids and/or backcrossed introgressants. A prominent component involved in the genome shock is reactivation of cryptic transposable elements (TEs) in the hybrid genome, which is often associated with alteration in the elements' epigenetic modifications like cytosine DNA methylation. We have previously reported that introgressants derived from hybridization between <it>Oryza sativa </it>(rice) and <it>Zizania latifolia </it>manifested substantial methylation re-patterning and rampant mobilization of two TEs, a <it>copia </it>retrotransposon <it>Tos17 </it>and a MITE <it>mPing</it>. It was not known however whether other types of TEs had also been transpositionally reactivated in these introgressants, their relevance to alteration in cytosine methylation, and their impact on expression of adjacent cellular genes.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We document in this study that the <it>Dart </it>TE family was transpositionally reactivated followed by stabilization in all three studied introgressants (RZ1, RZ2 and RZ35) derived from introgressive hybridization between rice (cv. Matsumae) and <it>Z. latifolia</it>, while the TEs remained quiescent in the recipient rice genome. Transposon-display (TD) and sequencing verified the element's mobility and mapped the excisions and re-insertions to the rice chromosomes. Methylation-sensitive Southern blotting showed that the <it>Dart </it>TEs were heavily methylated along their entire length, and moderate alteration in cytosine methylation patterns occurred in the introgressants relative to their rice parental line. Real-time qRT-PCR quantification on the relative transcript abundance of six single-copy genes flanking the newly excised or inserted <it>Dart</it>-related TE copies indicated that whereas marked difference in the expression of all four genes in both tissues (leaf and root) were detected between the introgressants and their rice parental line under both normal and various stress conditions, the difference showed little association with the presence or absence of the newly mobilized <it>Dart-</it>related TEs.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Introgressive hybridization has induced transpositional reactivation of the otherwise immobile <it>Dart</it>-related TEs in the parental rice line (cv. Matsumae), which was accompanied with a moderate alteration in the element's cytosine methylation. Significant difference in expression of the <it>Dart</it>-adjacent genes occurred between the introgressants and their rice parental line under both normal and various abiotic stress conditions, but the alteration in gene expression was not coupled with the TEs.</p

Multiple abiotic and biotic drivers of long-term wood decomposition within and among species in the semi-arid inland dunes:A dual role for stem diameter

Litter decomposition in sunny, semi-arid and arid ecosystems is controlled by both biotic factors including litter traits and abiotic factors including UV light, but for wood decomposition it still remains uncertain which of these environmental factors are the predominant controls among different woody species. In these dry ecosystems, it is likely that the stem diameter and spatial position of the dead wood are of particular importance especially where wood can be buried versus exposed due to substrate displacement by wind. Here we focus on the fact that stem diameter can affect decomposition rates both via the relative surface exposure to sunlight or soil and via higher resource quality of narrower stems to decomposers. In a field manipulation experiment, we investigated the relative importance of litter position (sand burial vs. surface vs. suspended above the surface), UV radiation (block versus pass) and stem diameter class (<2, 2–4, 4–8, 8–13 and 13–20 mm) on the mass loss of woody litters of four shrub species in an inland dune ecosystem in northern China. We found that after 34 months of in situ incubation, the mass loss of buried woody litters was three times faster than those of suspended and surface woody litters (53.5 ± 2.7%, 17.0 ± 1.0% and 14.4 ± 1.2%, respectively). In surface and suspended positions, litter decomposition rates were almost equally low and most mass loss was during the first 2 years, when bark was still attached and UV radiation had no significant effect on woody litter mass loss. These findings suggest that sand burial is the main environmental driver of wood decomposition via its control on microbial activity. Moreover, wood N and diameter class were the predominant factors driving woody litter decomposition. A key finding was that wider stems had slower litter decomposition rates not only directly (presumably via greater relative surface exposure) but also indirectly via their higher wood dry matter content or lower wood N; these effects were modulated by litter position. Our findings highlight a dual role of stem diameter on wood decomposition, that is, via relative surface exposure and via wood traits. The accuracy and confidence of global carbon cycling models would be improved by incorporating the different effects of stem diameter on woody litter decomposition and below-ground wood decomposition processes in drylands

BESS: Balanced Entity Sampling and Sharing for Large-Scale Knowledge Graph Completion

We present the award-winning submission to the WikiKG90Mv2 track of OGB-LSC@NeurIPS 2022. The task is link-prediction on the large-scale knowledge graph WikiKG90Mv2, consisting of 90M+ nodes and 600M+ edges. Our solution uses a diverse ensemble of $85$ Knowledge Graph Embedding models combining five different scoring functions (TransE, TransH, RotatE, DistMult, ComplEx) and two different loss functions (log-sigmoid, sampled softmax cross-entropy). Each individual model is trained in parallel on a Graphcore Bow Pod$_{16}$ using BESS (Balanced Entity Sampling and Sharing), a new distribution framework for KGE training and inference based on balanced collective communications between workers. Our final model achieves a validation MRR of 0.2922 and a test-challenge MRR of 0.2562, winning the first place in the competition. The code is publicly available at: https://github.com/graphcore/distributed-kge-poplar/tree/2022-ogb-submission.Comment: First place in the WikiKG90Mv2 track of the Open Graph Benchmark Large-Scale Challenge @NeurIPS202

Seed Germination Responses to Seasonal Temperature and Drought Stress Are Species‐Specific but Not Related to Seed Size in a Desert Steppe: Implications for Effect of Climate Change on Community Structure

Investigating how seed germination of multiple species in an ecosystem responds to environmental conditions is crucial for understanding the mechanisms for community structure and biodiversity maintenance. However, knowledge of seed germination response of species to environmental conditions is still scarce at the community level. We hypothesized that responses of seed germination to environmental conditions differ among species at the community level, and that germination response is not correlated with seed size. To test this hypothesis, we determined the response of seed germination of 20 common species in the Siziwang Desert Steppe, China, to seasonal temperature regimes (representing April, May, June, and July) and drought stress (0, −0.003, −0.027, −0.155, and −0.87 MPa). Seed germination percentage increased with increasing temperature regime, but Allium ramosum, Allium tenuissimum, Artemisia annua, Artemisia mongolica, Artemisia scoparia, Artemisia sieversiana, Bassia dasyphylla, Kochia prastrata, and Neopallasia pectinata germinated to \u3e60% in the lowest temperature regime (April). Germination decreased with increasing water stress, but Allium ramosum, Artemisia annua, Artemisia scoparia, Bassia dasyphylla, Heteropappus altaicus, Kochia prastrata, Neopallasia pectinata, and Potentilla tanacetifolia germinated to near 60% at −0.87 MPa. Among these eight species, germination of six was tolerant to both temperature and water stress. Mean germination percentage in the four temperature regimes and the five water potentials was not significantly correlated with seed mass or seed area, which were highly correlated. Our results suggest that the species‐specific germination responses to environmental conditions are important in structuring the desert steppe community and have implications for predicting community structure under climate change. Thus, the predicted warmer and dryer climate will favor germination of drought‐tolerant species, resulting in altered proportions of germinants of different species and subsequently change in community composition of the desert steppe

The role of school organizational conditions in teacher psychological resilience and stress during COVID-19 pandemic: A moderated mediation model

Educational revisions facilitate the relief of teacher stress by means of enhancing school organizational conditions. However, limited research has explored the effects of school organizational conditions on teacher stress in China. Using a sample of 734 primary and secondary school teachers from 30 provinces or municipalities of China, this study examined the effects of school organizational conditions on teacher stress in China, with a particular focus on the mediating role of psychological resilience and moderating role of perceived COVID-19 crisis strength. The results demonstrated that school organizational conditions were negatively associated with teacher stress. Furthermore, psychological resilience partially mediated the relation between school organizational conditions and teacher stress. In addition, perceived COVID-19 crisis strength significantly moderated the direct and indirect relations between school organizational conditions and teacher stress. The relations between school organizational conditions and teacher stress and between school organizational conditions and psychological resilience were stronger for teachers who perceived low levels of COVID-19 crisis strength. However, the indirect relation between psychological resilience and stress was stronger for teachers who perceived high levels of COVID-19 crisis strength. Implications have been provided accordingly

Dried tea residue can alter the blood metabolism and the composition and functionality of the intestinal microbiota in Hu sheep

Ruminant animals face multiple challenges during the rearing process, including immune disorders and oxidative stress. Green tea by-products have gained widespread attention for their significant immunomodulatory and antioxidant effects, leading to their application in livestock production. In this study, we investigated the effects of Dried Tea Residue (DTR) as a feed additive on the growth performance, blood biochemical indicators, and hindgut microbial structure and function of Hu sheep. Sixteen Hu sheep were randomly divided into two groups and fed with 0 and 100 g/d of DTR, respectively. Data were recorded over a 56-day feeding period. Compared to the control group, there were no significant changes in the production performance of Hu sheep fed with DTR. However, the sheep fed with DTR showed a significant increase in IgA (p &lt; 0.001), IgG (p = 0.005), IgM (p = 0.003), T-SOD (p = 0.013), GSH-Px (p = 0.005), and CAT (p &lt; 0.001) in the blood, along with a significant decrease in albumin (p = 0.019), high density lipoprotein (p = 0.050), and triglyceride (p = 0.021). DTR supplementation enhanced the fiber digestion ability of hindgut microbiota, optimized the microbial community structure, and increased the abundance of carbohydrate-digesting enzymes. Therefore, DTR can be used as a natural feed additive in ruminant animal production to enhance their immune and antioxidant capabilities, thereby improving the health status of ruminant animals

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation as an adjunctive treatment for negative symptoms and cognitive impairment in patients with schizophrenia: a randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled trial

Purpose: Effective treatment options for negative symptoms and cognitive impairment in patients with schizophrenia are still to be developed. The present study was to examine potential benefits of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) to improve negative symptoms and cognition in this patient population. Methods: The study was a 4-week, randomized, double-blind sham-controlled trial. Patients with schizophrenia were treated with adjunctive 20-Hz rTMS for 4 weeks or sham condition to the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). Negative symptoms were measured using the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS) and the Positive and Negative symptom scale (PANSS) negative subscale at baseline and week 4. Cognitive function was measured using the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB) at the same two time points. In addition, possible moderators for rTMS treatment efficacy were explored. Results: Sixty patients (33 in the treatment group, 27 in the sham group) completed the study. There was a significant decrease in negative symptoms after 4-week rTMS treatment as measured by the SANS total score and the PANSS negative symptom subscale score. However, there was no significant improvement in cognition with rTMS treatment. Stepwise multiple linear regression analysis suggested that the baseline severity of positive symptoms may predict poorer improvement in negative symptoms at week 4. Conclusion: Twenty-Hz rTMS stimulation over left DLPFC as an adjunctive treatment might be beneficial in improving negative symptoms of schizophrenia. Future studies with a longer treatment duration and a larger sample size are needed. Clinical trial ID: NCT01940939

Waterways to Greenways: A Case Study in Shangjie, Zhengzhou, Henan, China

This case study introduces how we used a water sensitive approach to plan a storm water and sponge city project, which expanded into a holistic green infrastructure project. The project is in the Shangjie district in city of Zhengzhou, Henan China. The whole site is 61.16 km² including several waterways. The city is expanding into areas that were previously agricultural. Developers and city both desire to improve the ecological value of the city to boost the economic growth of the Shangjie district. The main goal for the client is to transform the existing industrial city into a more resilient and livable ecological region. Our approach is to holistically solve the region\u27s increasing demand for flood control and storm water management, and to improve ecological and recreational values along these riparian corridors. We propose additional waterways and water bodies to act as green infrastructure, then link the greenways to existing or proposed parks to form a comprehensive greenway network. Our multidisciplinary team conducted detailed investigations and collaborated extensively. The team consists of hydraulic engineers, civil engineers, environmental planners, landscape planners, urban planners, economic planners, and others. We used a variety of technologies, including GIS, Infoworks, remote sensing technology, MIKE model, and lab tests