206 research outputs found
The use of un-composted spent mushroom residue as a replacement of peat in substrates for Gossypium herbaceum and Talinum paniculatum
In order to evaluate the effect of growing media with peat and spent mushroom residue (SMR) on medicinal plants, we cultured Gossypium herbaceum and Talinum paniculatum seedlings in the substrates with SMR in proportions of 0% (control), 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100%. Results showed that G. herbaceum seedlings can survive in all treatments, but T. paniculatum seedlings died out in 75% and 100% SMR substrates where higher electrical conductance was found (2.3-2.7 dS m-1). Both growth and biomass mostly declined with the increase of SMR proportion in the growing media for the two species except for root biomass in T. paniculatum seedlings between the control and the 25% SMR treatment. Shoot nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations and contents tended to be higher in low- and high-SMR-proportional substrates, respectively. N and P statuses were both diagnosed to be excessive than needed for the two species. Overall, it was not recommended to culture G. herbaceum seedlings in the substrates with SMR; instead T. paniculatum seedlings can be cultured in the growing media with SMR in volumetric proportion of 25%
Male Clients of Male Sex Workers in China: An Ignored High-Risk Population.
BackgroundThere is a high prevalence of HIV/syphilis among male sex workers, but no formal study has ever been conducted focusing on male clients of male sex workers (MCM). A detailed investigation was thus called for, to determine the burden and sociobehavioral determinants of HIV and syphilis among these MCM in China.MethodsAs part of a multicenter cross-sectional study, using respondent-driven and snowball sampling, 2958 consenting adult men who have sex with men (MSM) were recruited, interviewed, and tested for HIV and syphilis between 2008 and 2009. The distributions of sociodemographic characteristics, risk behaviors, and HIV/syphilis prevalence were determined and compared between MCM and other MSM.ResultsAmong recruited MSM, 5.0% (n = 148) were MCM. HIV prevalences for MCM and other MSM were 7.4% and 7.7%, whereas 18.9% and 14.0% were positive for syphilis, respectively. Condomless anal intercourse (CAI) was reported by 59.5% of MCM and 48.2% of MSM. Multiple logistic regression revealed that compared with other MSM, MCM were more likely to have less education [for ≤ elementary level, adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 3.13, 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 1.42 to 6.90], higher income (for >500 US Dollars per month, aOR = 2.97, 95% CI: 1.53 to 5.77), more often found partners at parks/restrooms (aOR = 4.01, 95% CI: 2.34 to 6.85), reported CAI (aOR = 1.49, 95% CI: 1.05 to 2.10), reported a larger sexual network (for ≥ 10, aOR = 2.70, 95% CI: 1.44 to 5.07), and higher odds of syphilis (aOR = 1.54, 95% CI: 1.00 to 2.38).ConclusionsThe greater frequency of risk behaviors and high prevalence of HIV and syphilis indicated that HIV/syphilis prevention programs in China need to pay special attention to MCM as a distinct subgroup, which was completely ignored until date
Visualization of multifractal superconductivity in a two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenide in the weak-disorder regime
Eigenstate multifractality is a distinctive feature of non-interacting
disordered metals close to a metal-insulator transition, whose properties are
expected to extend to superconductivity. While multifractality in three
dimensions (3D) only develops near the critical point for specific
strong-disorder strengths, multifractality in 2D systems is expected to be
observable even for weak disorder. Here we provide evidence for multifractal
features in the superconducting state of an intrinsic weakly disordered
single-layer NbSe by means of low-temperature scanning tunneling
microscopy/spectroscopy. The superconducting gap, characterized by its width,
depth and coherence peaks' amplitude, shows a characteristic spatial modulation
coincident with the periodicity of the quasiparticle interference pattern.
Spatial inhomogeneity of the superconducting gap width, proportional to the
local order parameter in the weak-disorder regime, follows a log-normal
statistical distribution as well as a power-law decay of the two-point
correlation function, in agreement with our theoretical model. Furthermore, the
experimental singularity spectrum f() shows anomalous scaling behavior
typical from 2D weakly disordered systems
Oriented Graphene Nanoribbons Embedded in Hexagonal Boron Nitride Trenches
Graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) are ultra-narrow strips of graphene that have the
potential to be used in high-performance graphene-based semiconductor
electronics. However, controlled growth of GNRs on dielectric substrates
remains a challenge. Here, we report the successful growth of GNRs directly on
hexagonal boron nitride substrates with smooth edges and controllable widths
using chemical vapour deposition. The approach is based on a type of template
growth that allows for the in-plane epitaxy of mono-layered GNRs in
nano-trenches on hexagonal boron nitride with edges following a zigzag
direction. The embedded GNR channels show excellent electronic properties, even
at room temperature. Such in-plane hetero-integration of GNRs, which is
compatible with integrated circuit processing, creates a gapped channel with a
width of a few benzene rings, enabling the development of digital integrated
circuitry based on GNRs.Comment: 32 pages, 4 figures, Supplementary informatio
Metallic surface states in a correlated d-electron topological Kondo insulator candidate FeSb2
The resistance of a conventional insulator diverges as temperature approaches
zero. The peculiar low temperature resistivity saturation in the 4f Kondo
insulator (KI) SmB6 has spurred proposals of a correlation-driven topological
Kondo insulator (TKI) with exotic ground states. However, the scarcity of model
TKI material families leaves difficulties in disentangling key ingredients from
irrelevant details. Here we use angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy
(ARPES) to study FeSb2, a correlated d-electron KI candidate that also exhibits
a low temperature resistivity saturation. On the (010) surface, we find a rich
assemblage of metallic states with two-dimensional dispersion. Measurements of
the bulk band structure reveal band renormalization, a large
temperature-dependent band shift, and flat spectral features along certain high
symmetry directions, providing spectroscopic evidence for strong correlations.
Our observations suggest that exotic insulating states resembling those in SmB6
and YbB12 may also exist in systems with d instead of f electrons
SpeechX: Neural Codec Language Model as a Versatile Speech Transformer
Recent advancements in generative speech models based on audio-text prompts
have enabled remarkable innovations like high-quality zero-shot text-to-speech.
However, existing models still face limitations in handling diverse audio-text
speech generation tasks involving transforming input speech and processing
audio captured in adverse acoustic conditions. This paper introduces SpeechX, a
versatile speech generation model capable of zero-shot TTS and various speech
transformation tasks, dealing with both clean and noisy signals. SpeechX
combines neural codec language modeling with multi-task learning using
task-dependent prompting, enabling unified and extensible modeling and
providing a consistent way for leveraging textual input in speech enhancement
and transformation tasks. Experimental results show SpeechX's efficacy in
various tasks, including zero-shot TTS, noise suppression, target speaker
extraction, speech removal, and speech editing with or without background
noise, achieving comparable or superior performance to specialized models
across tasks. See https://aka.ms/speechx for demo samples.Comment: See https://aka.ms/speechx for demo sample
Gay mobile apps and the evolving virtual risk environment: a cross-sectional online survey among men who have sex with men in China
The expansion of gay sex-seeking application (gay app) use among men who have sex with men (MSM) may create new virtual risk environments that are associated with STI transmission. The goals of this study were to compare sexual behaviors between gay app users and non-users, and to describe sexual behaviors among gay app users in China
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