Assessing the Thermal Performance of Temporary Shelters

AbstractThe aim of this study is to improve conditions inside temporary shelters for non-displaced populations from natural disasters. Field studies on transitional settlements were conducted after the Wenchuan M8.0 earthquake in 2008 and the Lushan M7.0 earthquake in 2013. Then three bamboo-wood shelter models were made in the laboratory. The temperatures and humidity were measured inside the shelters with different thermal comfort improvement approaches in cold weather conditions. Data were compared and the most effective and economical method will be recommended to the shelter occupants. The study provides the foundation of laying down the applicable guidelines for disaster relief in China

Suppression of microglial Ccl2 reduces neuropathic pain associated with chronic spinal compression

IntroductionChronic spinal compression is a common complication of spinal cord injury (SCI), which can lead to spinal stenosis or herniated discs. The ensuing neuropathic pain is often associated with the activation of microglia. In this investigation, our objective was to explore whether modifying the levels of chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 2 (Ccl2) in microglia could alleviate neuropathic pain resulting from chronic spinal compression.MethodsWe used a public database to look for major altered gene associated in a SCI model established in rats. We then employed adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors, expressing siRNA for the identified significantly altered gene under a microglia-specific TMEM119 promoter. We also tested the impact of this treatment in microglia in vivo on the severity of chronic spinal compression and associated pain using a ttw mouse model for progressive spinal compression.ResultsWe identified chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 2 (Ccl2) as the primary gene altered in microglia within a rat SCI model, utilizing a public database. Microglial Ccl2 levels were then found to be significantly elevated in disc specimens from SCI patients diagnosed with chronic spinal compression and strongly correlated with the Thompson classification of the degeneration level and pain score. Depletion of Ccl2 in microglia-specific TMEM119 promoter were developed to transfect mouse microglia in vitro, resulting in a proinflammatory to anti-inflammatory phenotypic adaption. In vivo depletion of Ccl2 in microglia mitigated the severity of chronic spinal compression and related pain in ttw mice, likely due to significant changes in pain-associated cytokines and factors.ConclusionDisc microglia expressing high levels of Ccl2 may contribute to chronic spinal compression and SCI-associated pain. Therapeutically targeting Ccl2 in microglia could offer a potential avenue for treating chronic spinal compression and SCI-associated pain

Realization of Embedded Multimedia System Based On Dual-Core Processor OMAP5910

This paper focuses on the realization of a complete embedded system using the dual-core processor OMAP5910. Detailed description of how to compose the hardware system is presented with a description of the software system on our platform. Tasks communication between the two cores is realized using the DSP driver. The system bootloader and the DSP bootloader are described in detail. The implementation of the MPEG-4 video decoder has been realized on the presented system. Higher speed can be achieved and less power is needed for MPEG-4 video processing on the dual-core platform. This dual-core system can be applied to 3G wireless communication, robot control and vision systems

Whispering gallery modes in indium oxide hexagonal microcavities

We report on the use of In₂O₃nanowires with hexagonal cross section as optical whispering gallery resonators. The single-crystal In₂O₃nanowires were fabricated by an in situ thermal oxidation method. Whispering gallery modes(WGMs) in the visible spectral range were directly observed at room temperature. Due to the slight tapering of the nanowires, the energies and orders of the WGMs were modulated when excitations were scanned along the c-axis (length) of the nanowires. The experimental results were explained and fitted well with a plane wave interference model and Cauchy dispersion formula for refractive indices.The work is funded by the NSFC 973 projects and STCSM of China Grant Nos. 2004CB619004 and 2006CB921506. The authors thank the Australian Government Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research for funding this collaborative research under the International Science Linkages China Program

Single-crystalline hexagonal ZnO microtube optical resonators

High quality ZnO microtubes with hexagonal cross sections, fabricated via an oxidation-sublimation process, are studied as novel optical resonators. Whispering gallery modes, Fabry-Pérot modes, and an additional set of modes with different polarization

Recombination analysis reveals a double recombination event in hepatitis E virus

Recombination of Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) has rarely been reported. In the present study, phylogenetic and recombination analyses were performed on 134 complete HEV genomes. Three potentially significant recombination events, including both intra-genotype and one inter-genotype, were identified by recombination detection analysis. Recombination events I and II occurred intra-genotype and inter-genotype, respectively, among three isolates, including the lineage represented by CHN-XJ-SW13 (GU119961, swine isolate), E067-SIJ05C (AB369690, human isolate), and JJT-Kan (AB091394, human isolate), and lead to the recombinant swine isolate swCH31 (DQ450072). Recombination event III occurred between the lineage represented by the NA1 (M73218) and K52-87 (L25595), which resulted in the recombinant Xingjiang-1 (D11092). Our analyses proved that that recombination could occur between human and swine HEV strains, double recombination events existed in HEV, and recombination event could happen within ORF2 region of HEV. These results will provide valuable hints for future research on HEV diversity

Recombination analysis based on the complete genome of bocavirus

Bocavirus include bovine parvovirus, minute virus of canine, porcine bocavirus, gorilla bocavirus, and Human bocaviruses 1-4 (HBoVs). Although recent reports showed that recombination happened in bocavirus, no systematical study investigated the recombination of bocavirus. The present study performed the phylogenetic and recombination analysis of bocavirus over the complete genomes available in GenBank. Results confirmed that recombination existed among bocavirus, including the likely inter-genotype recombination between HBoV1 and HBoV4, and intra-genotype recombination among HBoV2 variants. Moreover, it is the first report revealing the recombination that occurred between minute viruses of canine

Electrical source of surface plasmon polaritons based on hybrid Au-GaAs QW structures

In this paper, the electrical excitation of surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) based on a hybrid metal-semiconductor quantum well (QW) structure is investigated by finite-difference time-domain The hybrid structure could serve as a plasmonic source for integrated plasmonic circuits