Communication problems and solutions faced by Chinese college students entering the workplace

Communication skills are one of the key competences for employability in the 21st century that contribute freshly graduates’ successful career at the workplace. Furthermore, effective communication is one of the necessary competences for interpersonal communication and modern business management. For college students initially entering the workplace, the skills how to convey information and how to achieve actionable results at work are part of the key competences for communication and cooperation with colleagues and superiors at the workplace. It is a prerequisite and basis for decision making, a tool for unifying thoughts and actions, the key to establishing good interpersonal relationships and an important cornerstone for achieving harmonious development of the enterprise. This paper focuses on Chinese graduates entering the workplace as the research object and explores the communication barriers that hinder effective communication when entering the labor market. The quantitative research revealed that besides the problems resulted from the lack of communication awareness, ineffective and poor communication between fresh graduates and superiors at workplace might be the consequence of the inconsistency of thoughts with the communication targets and of poor communication skills. By detecting the above communication problems, this paper proposes communication management actions to mitigate the impacts at the workplace and improve Chinese students’ communication competences for employability

Mullite porous ceramics with high strength for high-temperature thermal insulation

To address the low thermal efficiency and serious energy consumption of industrial kilns, the gel casting method is used herein for the successful preparation of porous mullite thermal insulation materials with good thermal and mechanical properties. The effects of poly-γ-glutamic acid (γ-PGA) content (0.6–2.2 wt%) on the performances of the slurries, green bodies, and sintered bodies are comprehensively investigated based on the gelation mechanism. The mullite slurries show good flowability and stability, and the powders are evenly dispersed. Furthermore, the green bodies have sufficiently high mechanical strengths to meet the conditions of processing into complex shapes. The sample open porosity is shown to increase, and the pore size gradually becomes more uniform, as the γ-PGA content is increased. At a γ-PGA content of 1.8 wt%, the open porosity reaches 75.85 %, the compressive strength is 14.02 MP. The thermal conductivity increases from 0.263 W/(m⋅K) to 0.544 W/(m⋅K) as the temperature increases from 25 °C to 1000 °C. At the same time, the Gong model accurately describes the relationship between the thermal conductivity and porosity. In addition, infrared thermographic analysis and alcohol lamp ablation experiments macroscopically demonstrate the excellent thermal insulation performance of the porous mullite at high temperatures

Spatial Distribution Characteristics and Influencing Factors of the Success or Failure of China’s Overseas Arable Land Investment Projects—Based on the Countries along the “Belt and Road”

As globalization continues, overseas arable land investment is becoming a viable option for China to alleviate its agricultural growth constraints, and the “Belt and Road” initiative offers plenty of opportunities for China to invest in overseas arable land. This study used data from the Land Matrix, KOF, World Bank, CEPII, UNCTAD and other databases to analyze the spatial distribution characteristics and factors influencing the success or failure of China’s overseas farmland investment projects in countries along the “Belt and Road” project through spatial analysis and the Logit model. The results show that North America has the largest share of production versus contracted acreage in current acreage investment cases, and Asian projects have the highest success rate. Both successful and failed projects in China regarding arable land investment are highly correlated spatially and characterized by a strong concentration and low uniformity of distribution, with differences in the degree of concentration in Asia, Africa and other regions. The contracted area, host country participation and host country resource endowment, business environment and institutional quality have significant, inverted “U-shaped”, negative and positive effects on project success, respectively. In addition, the involvement of the host country has a significant negative impact on the success of investment projects in Africa, and the length of investment and the type of investment purpose have a significant positive and negative impact on the success of investment projects in Asian countries. Therefore, China’s overseas arable land investment should be based on a full examination of existing investment projects in each country, the selection of host countries with abundant resource endowments and a good business environment and institutional environment and the adoption of a model suitable for each location to carry out investments according to local conditions

Spatial Distribution Characteristics and Influencing Factors of the Success or Failure of China’s Overseas Arable Land Investment Projects—Based on the Countries along the “Belt and Road”

As globalization continues, overseas arable land investment is becoming a viable option for China to alleviate its agricultural growth constraints, and the “Belt and Road” initiative offers plenty of opportunities for China to invest in overseas arable land. This study used data from the Land Matrix, KOF, World Bank, CEPII, UNCTAD and other databases to analyze the spatial distribution characteristics and factors influencing the success or failure of China’s overseas farmland investment projects in countries along the “Belt and Road” project through spatial analysis and the Logit model. The results show that North America has the largest share of production versus contracted acreage in current acreage investment cases, and Asian projects have the highest success rate. Both successful and failed projects in China regarding arable land investment are highly correlated spatially and characterized by a strong concentration and low uniformity of distribution, with differences in the degree of concentration in Asia, Africa and other regions. The contracted area, host country participation and host country resource endowment, business environment and institutional quality have significant, inverted “U-shaped”, negative and positive effects on project success, respectively. In addition, the involvement of the host country has a significant negative impact on the success of investment projects in Africa, and the length of investment and the type of investment purpose have a significant positive and negative impact on the success of investment projects in Asian countries. Therefore, China’s overseas arable land investment should be based on a full examination of existing investment projects in each country, the selection of host countries with abundant resource endowments and a good business environment and institutional environment and the adoption of a model suitable for each location to carry out investments according to local conditions

Measurement of Investment Potential and Spatial Distribution of Arable Land among Countries within the “Belt and Road Initiative”

The belt and road initiative (BRI) is a mutual development approach projected by China, which delivers exceptional opportunities for multi-phased communication and cooperation across Asia, Africa, and Europe. It opens ample opportunities for China to easily invest in overseas arable land. Based on the macro data of 119 countries in 2010 and 2016 before and after the BRI, the study comprehensively uses fuzzy C-means clustering and the entropy method to evaluate the potential of arable land investment from four dimensions, which existing literature has not fully grasped. Moreover, the study uses the exploratory spatial data analysis methods (ESDA), kernel density estimation, and trend surface analysis to study the spatial pattern characteristics. The results show that: (i) there are noticeable regional differences in the investment potential of arable land in BRI countries. Asian countries, led by Kazakhstan and Indonesia, and African Unions, led by Ethiopia, South Africa, and Tanzania, generally have higher investment potential. However, South America and European countries are relatively lower. (ii) Resource endowment and production conditions significantly impact overseas arable land investment potential. Asia and Africa have advantages in resource endowment and production conditions, while European countries generally have better economic and political environments. (iii) From the perspective of time evolution, the investment potential in 2016 is generally higher than in 2010, and the negative correlation and dispersion are lower than in 2010. Based on these findings, it is recommended that Chinese enterprises should comprehensively consider the differences in resource endowments and agricultural development levels in various countries, optimize investment layout, and reduce investment risks. Chinese companies should collaborate with host nations on modernization and promote the long-term viability of arable land investments

Homochiral or Heterochiral: A Systematic Study of Threonine Clusters Using a FT ICR Mass Spectrometer

The strong chiral preferences of some magic clusters of amino acids have attracted continually increasing interests due to their unique structures, properties and possible roles in homochirogenesis. However, how chirality can influence the generation and stability of cluster ions in a wild range of cluster sizes is still unknown for most amino acids. In this study, the preference for threonine clusters to form homochiral and heterochiral complex ions has been investigated by electrospray ionization (ESI) mass spectrometry. Abundant cluster [Thrn+mH]m+ ions (7 ≤ n ≤ 78, 1 ≤ m ≤ 5) have been observed for both samples of enantiopure (100% L) and racemic (50:50 L:D) threonine solutions. Further analyses of the spectra show that the [Thr14+2H]2+ ion is characterized by its most outstanding homochiral preference, and [Thr7+H]+ and [Thr8+H]+ ions also clearly exhibit their homochiral preferences. Although most of the triply charged clusters (20 ≤ n ≤ 36) are characterized by heterochiral preferences, the quadruply charged [Thrn+4H]4+ ions (40 ≤ n ≤ 59) have no obvious chiral preference in general. On the other hand, a weak homochiral preference exists for most of the quintuply charged ions observed in the experiment

Decomplexation of Ni-EDTA by Three-Dimensional Electro-Fenton

Ni-ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (Ni-EDTA) poses serious threats to the ecological environment and human health, due to its acute toxicity and low biodegradability. The decomplexation efficiency of Ni-EDTA through the conventional Fenton process has been constrained to pH; thus, other appropriate approaches are required to destroy the stable chelate structure at a neutral pH. In this study, the effect of operating parameters such as the pH, Fe2+ concentration, particle electrode dosage, current density, and coexisting ions was studied. The results revealed that the 3D-EF system owned advantages for the removal of Ni-EDTA in the broadening of the pH application window. The Ni-EDTA removal efficiency in the 3D-EF system reached 84.89% after 120 min at a pH of 7. In addition, the presence of coexisting ions slightly affected the decomplexation efficiency of Ni-EDTA

Green synthesis of selenium/attapulgite nanocomposites and antibacterial activities evaluation

Se nanoparticles (NPs) with smaller size often exhibit higher antibacterial activity, thus size control of Se NPs is important to develop its application in the antibacterial field. In this study, Se NPs loaded attapulgite (APT) nanocomposites (Se/APT) were successfully prepared by a one-pot green method mediated by Aloe vera leaf extract, for which APT acts as a support to anchor Se NPs leading to the formation of small-sized and dispersed Se NPs. Structure characterization showed that the well-crystalline Se NPs with a size range of 1 ∼ 3 nm were uniformly distributed on the surface of APT nanorods. Antibacterial activities of the Se/APT nanocomposites were examined against S. aureus, and the result showed that the higher the Se loadings, the better the antibacterial activities of the nanocomposites, and the minimum inhibitory concentration of Se/APT-40% nanocomposite was up to 0.5 mg/mL. In addition, the green-synthesized nanocomposites have little cytotoxicity on mouse fibroblast cell L-929, and conversely promoted the growth and proliferation of the cells. The nanocomposites are expected to be candidates used in various antibacterial fields for preventing infections induced by S. aureus, such as suppuration of the wound

Resveratrol Induces Autophagy and Apoptosis in Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer Cells by Activating the NGFR-AMPK-mTOR Pathway

Resveratrol (RSV) has been reported to induce autophagy and apoptosis in non-small-cell lung cancer A549 cells, and the nerve growth factor receptor (NGFR) regulates autophagy and apoptosis in many other cells. However, the effect of NGFR on autophagy and apoptosis induced by RSV in A549 cells remains unclear. Here, we found that RSV reduced the cell survival rate in time- and concentration-dependent manners, activating autophagy and apoptosis. Lethal autophagy was triggered by RSV higher than 55 μM. The relationship between autophagy and apoptosis depended on the type of autophagy. Specifically, mutual promotion was observed between apoptosis and lethal autophagy. Conversely, cytoprotective autophagy facilitated apoptosis but was unaffected by apoptosis. RSV enhanced NGFR by increasing mRNA expression and prolonging the lifespan of NGFR mRNA and proteins. RSV antagonized the enhanced autophagy and apoptosis caused by NGFR knockdown. As the downstream pathway of NGFR, AMPK-mTOR played a positive role in RSV-induced autophagy and apoptosis. Overall, RSV-induced autophagy and apoptosis in A549 cells are regulated by the NGFR-AMPK-mTOR signaling pathway

Functions of Snake Sloughs in Bird Nests Vary with Habitats: A Test of the Anti-Predation Hypothesis

Snake sloughs in bird nests can reduce nest predation and serve as an anti-predator strategy. However, the anti-predator function of snake sloughs in nests has only been tested twice, and it is difficult to speculate around the origin of the differences, which may well include habitat, as predator species and predation risk vary in different habitat types. Habitat would be a good place to speculate as to how differences in habitats could explain differences in responses by nest predators. Thus, we selected three different habitats, namely, the Diaoluoshan National Nature Reserve in Hainan (DLS, tropical forest), the Hainan Normal University campus (HNU, urban area), and Qingchuifeng National Forest Park in Hebei (QCF, suburban area), to verify the anti-predator function of snake sloughs in bird nests. The experimental results showed that snake sloughs in the nests reduced the predation rate of the experimental nests in HNU, whereas no such effect occurred in DLS and QCF. This suggests that the anti-predatory function of snake sloughs may not be the same over some environmental gradients and could be dependent on the species of nest predators and food resources in the habitat, which does not apply to all types of habitats