Ice-nucleating particles from multiple aerosol sources in the urban environment of Beijing under mixed-phase cloud conditions

Ice crystals occurring in mixed-phase clouds play a vital role in global precipitation and energy balance because of the unstable equilibrium between coexistent liquid droplets and ice crystals, which affects cloud lifetime and radiative properties, as well as precipitation formation. Satellite observations proved that immersion freezing, i.e., ice formation on particles immersed within aqueous droplets, is the dominant ice nucleation (IN) pathway in mixed-phase clouds. However, the impact of anthropogenic emissions on atmospheric IN in the urban environment remains ambiguous. In this study, we present in situ observations of ambient ice-nucleating particle number concentration (NINP) measured at mixed-phase cloud conditions (−30 ∘C, relative humidity with respect to liquid water RHw= 104 %) and the physicochemical properties of ambient aerosol, including chemical composition and size distribution, at an urban site in Beijing during the traditional Chinese Spring Festival. The impact of multiple aerosol sources such as firework emissions, local traffic emissions, mineral dust, and urban secondary aerosols on NINP is investigated. The results show that NINP during the dust event reaches up to 160 # L−1 (where “#” represents number of particles), with an activation fraction (AF) of 0.0036 % ± 0.0011 %. During the rest of the observation, NINP is on the order of 10−1 to 10 # L−1, with an average AF between 0.0001 % and 0.0002 %. No obvious dependence of NINP on the number concentration of particles larger than 500 nm (N500) or black carbon (BC) mass concentration (mBC) is found throughout the field observation. The results indicate a substantial NINP increase during the dust event, although the observation took place at an urban site with high background aerosol concentration. Meanwhile, the presence of atmospheric BC from firework and traffic emissions, along with urban aerosols formed via secondary transformation during heavily polluted periods, does not influence the observed INP concentration. Our study corroborates previous laboratory and field findings that anthropogenic BC emission has a negligible effect on NINP and that NINP is unaffected by heavy pollution in the urban environment under mixed-phase cloud conditions.</p

Social Determinants of Community Health Services Utilization among the Users in China: A 4-Year Cross-Sectional Study

Background To identify social factors determining the frequency of community health service (CHS) utilization among CHS users in China. Methods Nationwide cross-sectional surveys were conducted in 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011. A total of 86,116 CHS visitors selected from 35 cities were interviewed. Descriptive analysis and multinomial logistic regression analysis were employed to analyze characteristics of CHS users, frequency of CHS utilization, and the socio-demographic and socio-economic factors influencing frequency of CHS utilization. Results Female and senior CHS clients were more likely to make 3–5 and ≥6 CHS visits (as opposed to 1–2 visits) than male and young clients, respectively. CHS clients with higher education were less frequent users than individuals with primary education or less in 2008 and 2009; in later surveys, CHS clients with higher education were the more frequent users. The association between frequent CHS visits and family income has changed significantly between 2008 and 2011. In 2011, income status did not have a discernible effect on the likelihood of making ≥6 CHS visits, and it only had a slight effect on making 3–5 CHS visits. Conclusion CHS may play an important role in providing primary health care to meet the demands of vulnerable populations in China. Over time, individuals with higher education are increasingly likely to make frequent CHS visits than individuals with primary school education or below. The gap in frequency of CHS utilization among different economic income groups decreased from 2008 to 2011

Influence of Emotions on Eye Behavior in Omnidirectional Content

International audienceThe recent development of Virtual Reality (VR) technologies and interactive visual content faces some important challenges in multimedia processing and Quality of Experience (QoE). Considering omnidirectional, also called 360-degree, content , one major research topic is the development of reliable visual attention models. In this paper, we present a new dataset to study the influence of emotions on eye behavior in omnidirec-tional content. This dataset is based on an eye-tracking experiment where 19 observers have assessed emotional valence and arousal dimensions in 360-degree images. Several analyses are then conducted to compare fixation and saccade features, inter-observer saliency congruency and spatial oculomotor biases in positive, neutral and negative content. Results show a significant impact of negative images on visual attention, with more visual agitation and avoidance behavior from larger, longer and faster saccades. However, no obvious difference of eye behavior is found between positive and neutral stimulis on this dataset

Influence of Emotions on Eye Behavior in Omnidirectional Content

International audienceThe recent development of Virtual Reality (VR) technologies and interactive visual content faces some important challenges in multimedia processing and Quality of Experience (QoE). Considering omnidirectional, also called 360-degree, content , one major research topic is the development of reliable visual attention models. In this paper, we present a new dataset to study the influence of emotions on eye behavior in omnidirec-tional content. This dataset is based on an eye-tracking experiment where 19 observers have assessed emotional valence and arousal dimensions in 360-degree images. Several analyses are then conducted to compare fixation and saccade features, inter-observer saliency congruency and spatial oculomotor biases in positive, neutral and negative content. Results show a significant impact of negative images on visual attention, with more visual agitation and avoidance behavior from larger, longer and faster saccades. However, no obvious difference of eye behavior is found between positive and neutral stimulis on this dataset

Design of a potato stubble cutting machine for side delivery

In order to solve the problem that the traditional stubble cutting machine of potato is not complete, which the chopped stalks cannot be collected and utilized, a side delivering potato stubble cutting mechanism was designed in this paper. The characteristic is that the cutting, clamping and delivering of potato plant stalks completed by the cooperation of the reel and the triangle-clamping chain, and the strip is laid on the right side of the machine. The machine can manually adjust the height of the cutting table, easy to operate, installed in the front of the tractor

Long Noncoding RNA ZBED5-AS1 Facilitates Tumor Progression and Metastasis in Lung Adenocarcinoma via ZNF146/ATR/Chk1 Axis

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been implicated in tumorigenesis, including lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD). However, the functional and regulatory mechanisms of lncRNAs in LUAD remain poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the role of lncRNA ZBED5-AS1 in LUAD. We found that ZBED5-AS1 was upregulated in LUAD specimens and overexpressed in LUAD cell lines. ZBED5-AS1 promoted LUAD cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in vitro and promoted LUAD cell growth in vivo. ZBED5-AS1 promoted ZNF146 expression, activating the ATR/Chk1 pathway and leading to LUAD progression. We observed that exosomes from LUAD cells have a higher expression of ZBED5-AS1 compared with exosomes from the normal cell line BEAS-2B. Coculture experiments with exosomes showed that ZBED5-AS1 expression was downregulated after coculture with Si-ZBED5-AS1 exosomes, and coculture with exosomes with low ZBED5-AS1 expression inhibited proliferation and invasion of LUAD cells. Our results indicate that ZBED5-AS1 functions as an oncogenic factor in LUAD cells by targeting the ZNF146/ATR/Chk1 axis

Fire Hazard Analysis on Different Fire Source Locations in Multi-Segment Converging Tunnel with Structural Beams

To investigate the fire risk in a complex tunnel with varying cross-sections, sloped structures, and dense upper cover beams, this study considered four fire source positions: the immersed tube section, confluence section, highway auxiliary road section, and four-lane sections of the main line. It also considered four beam spacings: 1 m, 1.8 m, 3.6 m, and 7.2 m. The Fire Dynamics Simulation Software FDS was utilized to create a comprehensive tunnel model. The analysis focused on temperature and visibility changes at a 2 m height under a 20 MW fire condition for different fire source positions. These changes were then compared with critical danger values to assess the safety of evacuating personnel within the tunnel. Subsequently, this study proposed corresponding emergency rescue strategies. The findings indicated that when the beam grid spacing exceeded 3.6 m, the upper dense beam gap showed a robust smoke storage capacity, leading to a reduced distance of high-temperature smoke spread. However, this increased smoke storage disrupted the stability of the smoke layer, resulting in a heightened smoke thickness. The location of the ventilation vent at the entrance of the immersed tunnel section caused a non-uniform ventilation flow under the girder, deflecting the smoke front towards the unventilated side and decreasing visibility in the road auxiliary area. In comparison to scenarios without a beam lattice, the presence of a beam lattice in the tunnel amplified fire hazards. When the beam lattice spacing was 3.6 m or greater, the extent of the hazardous environment, which is unfavorable for personnel evacuation, expanded. With the exception of the scenario where the fire source was located in the highway auxiliary roadway, all other conditions surpassed 150 m, which is roughly one-third of the tunnel length. Consequently, more targeted strategies are necessary for effective evacuation and rescue efforts

Retrospective screening of serum IgG glycosylation biomarker for primary Sjögren’s syndrome using lectin microarray

Background Primary Sjögren’s syndrome (PSS) is a systemic autoimmune disease resulting in significant loss of systemic gland secretory function. IgG glycosylation abnormalities had been found to play important roles in autoimmune diseases. Here, we aim to explore the specific changes of IgG glycosylation in PSS patient serum that could serve as potential biomarkers for disease diagnosis and differential diagnosis. Method From 2012 to 2018, patients diagnosed with PSS or primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) admitted consecutively to the department of Rheumatology at Peking Union Medical College Hospital were retrospectively included in this study. Glycan profiles of serum IgG from 40 PSS patients, 50 PBC patients, and 38 healthy controls were detected with lectin microarray containing 56 lectins. Lectins with significantly different signal intensity among groups were selected and validated by lectin blot assay. Results Lectin microarray analysis revealed that binding levels of Amaranthus Caudatus Lectin (ACL, prefers glycan Galβ3GalNAc, P = 0.011), Morniga M Lectin (MNA-M, prefers glycan mannose. P = 0.013), and Lens Culinaris Agglutinin (LCA, prefers glycan fucose) were significantly increased, while Salvia sclarea Agglutinin (SSA, prefers glycan sialylation, P = 0.001) was significantly decreased in PSS patients compared to PBC group. Compared to healthy controls, MNA-M (P = 0.001) and LCA (P = 0.028) were also significantly increased, while Phaseolus Vulgaris Erythroagglutinin and Phaseolus Vulgaris Leucoagglutinin (PHA-E and PHA-L, prefer glycan galactose, P = 0.004 and 0.006) were significantly decreased in PSS patients. The results of LCA and MNA-M were further confirmed using lectin blot assay. Conclusion Changes in serum IgG glycosylation in PSS increased binding levels of LCA and MNA-M lectins using microarray techniques compared to PBC patients and healthy controls, which could provide potential diagnostic value. Increased core fucose and mannose alteration of IgG may play important roles in PSS disease