Mapping the 2021 October Flood Event in the Subsiding Taiyuan Basin By Multi-Temporal SAR Data

A flood event induced by heavy rainfall hit the Taiyuan basin in north China in early October of 2021. In this study, we map the flood event process using the multi-temporal synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images acquired by Sentinel-1. First, we develop a spatiotemporal filter based on low-rank tensor approximation (STF-LRTA) for removing the speckle noise in SAR images. Next, we employ the classic log-ratio change indicator and the minimum error threshold algorithm to characterize the flood using the filtered images. Finally, we relate the flood inundation to the land subsidence in the Taiyuan basin by jointly analyzing the multi-temporal SAR change detection results and interferometric SAR (InSAR) time-series measurements (pre-flood). The validation experiments compare the proposed filter with the Refined-Lee filter, Gamma filter, and an SHPS-based multi-temporal SAR filter. The results demonstrate the effectiveness and advantage of the proposed STF-LRTA method in SAR despeckling and detail preservation, and the applicability to change scenes. The joint analyses reveal that land subsidence might be an important contributor to the flood event, and the flood recession process linearly correlates with time and subsidence magnitude.This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant numbers 41904001 and 41774006), the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (grant number 2018M640733), the National Key Research and Development Program of China (grant number 2019YFC1509201), and the National Postdoctoral Program for Innovative Talents (grant number BX20180220)

CR Cistrome: a ChIP-Seq database for chromatin regulators and histone modification linkages in human and mouse

Diversified histone modifications (HMs) are essential epigenetic features. They play important roles in fundamental biological processes including transcription, DNA repair and DNA replication. Chromatin regulators (CRs), which are indispensable in epigenetics, can mediate HMs to adjust chromatin structures and functions. With the development of ChIP-Seq technology, there is an opportunity to study CR and HM profiles at the whole-genome scale. However, no specific resource for the integration of CR ChIP-Seq data or CR-HM ChIP-Seq linkage pairs is currently available. Therefore, we constructed the CR Cistrome database, available online at http://compbio.tongji.edu.cn/cr and http://cistrome.org/cr/, to further elucidate CR functions and CR-HM linkages. Within this database, we collected all publicly available ChIP-Seq data on CRs in human and mouse and categorized the data into four cohorts: the reader, writer, eraser and remodeler cohorts, together with curated introductions and ChIP-Seq data analysis results. For the HM readers, writers and erasers, we provided further ChIP-Seq analysis data for the targeted HMs and schematized the relationships between them. We believe CR Cistrome is a valuable resource for the epigenetics community

The United States COVID-19 Forecast Hub dataset

Academic researchers, government agencies, industry groups, and individuals have produced forecasts at an unprecedented scale during the COVID-19 pandemic. To leverage these forecasts, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) partnered with an academic research lab at the University of Massachusetts Amherst to create the US COVID-19 Forecast Hub. Launched in April 2020, the Forecast Hub is a dataset with point and probabilistic forecasts of incident cases, incident hospitalizations, incident deaths, and cumulative deaths due to COVID-19 at county, state, and national, levels in the United States. Included forecasts represent a variety of modeling approaches, data sources, and assumptions regarding the spread of COVID-19. The goal of this dataset is to establish a standardized and comparable set of short-term forecasts from modeling teams. These data can be used to develop ensemble models, communicate forecasts to the public, create visualizations, compare models, and inform policies regarding COVID-19 mitigation. These open-source data are available via download from GitHub, through an online API, and through R packages

Research on the City Network of Guangdong, Hongkong and Macao from the Perspective of Information Flow: Analysis based on Baidu Index

In the context of the rapid development of informatization and globalization, the theoretical methods of urban scholars have shifted from a 'space of places' appraoch, which looks at geographical areas, to a 'space of flows' approach, which is based on flows of people, goods, capital, and information between cities. The rapid development of the Internet makes the connections between cities more dynamic than ever before. The subject of this study are cities in three provincial administrative units in Southern China: Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao. The development of the Internet provides an opportunity to analyse the relationships between the cities in this region from the viewpoint of information flow. Using the area distribution model in Baidu Index (a website of the Baidu company), this study recorded the web search volume, simulated the information flows, and analysed the network correlation degrees between the cities in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau. The conclusions are: (1) from the perspective of information flow, the city network in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao has a clear 'core-periphery' structure, which amplifies the difference in urban hierarchy between big and small cities; (2) the cities in the traditional Pearl River Delta core region have a stronger ability to aggregate information flows and geographical proximity reflects information flow; (3) information flows between the cities in Guangdong and Hong Kong and Macao are not smooth, and thus needs to be improved.Keywords. City network; area of Guangdong-Hongkong-Macau; information flow; Baidu Index.Abstrak. Dalam konteks perkembangan informatisasi dan globalisasi yang pesat, metode teoritis para peneliti perkotaan telah bergeser dari pendekatan 'ruang tempat' yang melihat wilayah geografis, ke pendekatan 'ruang arus' yang didasarkan pada arus manusia, barang, kapital, dan informasi antar kota. Pesatnya perkembangan internet membuat hubungan antar kota lebih dinamis dari sebelumnya. Subyek penelitian ini adalah kota-kota di tiga unit administrasi provinsi di Cina Selatan: Guangdong, Hong Kong, dan Macao. Perkembangan Internet memberi kesempatan untuk menganalisis hubungan antara kota-kota di wilayah ini dari sudut pandang arus informasi. Dengan menggunakan model distribusi area pada indeks Baidu (sebuah situs perusahaan Baidu), makalah ini mencatat jumlah pencarian web, mensimulasikan arus informasi, dan menganalisis tingkat korelasi jaringan di antara kota-kota di Guangdong, Hong Kong dan Macau. Kesimpulannya adalah: (1) Dari perspektif arus informasi, jaringan kota di Guangdong, Hong Kong dan Macao memiliki struktur 'inti-pinggiran' yang jelas, yang memperkuat perbedaan dalam struktur hirarki perkotaan antara kota-kota besar dan kecil; (2) Kota-kota di wilayah inti Pearl River Delta tradisional memiliki kemampuan yang lebih kuat untuk mengumpulkan arus informasi dan kedekatan geografis juga mencerminkan arus informasi; (3) Arus informasi antara kota-kota Guangdong dan Hong Kong dan Macao tidak lancar, sehingga perlu ditingkatkan.Kata Kunci. Jaringan kota; wilayah Guangdong-Hongkong-Macau; arus informasi; Indeks Baidu

Optimization Design of X-ray Conveyer Belt Length for Subway Security Check Systems in Beijing, China

The frequent terrorist attacks in subways has dramatically increased the necessity and importance of security check systems (SCSs). The implementation of a SCS in China has successfully eliminated lots of potential safety hazards. However, the excessive waiting time due to the SCS is also an issue. SCS efficiency is greatly affected by the length of the conveyer belt of the X-ray machine (CBXM). A scheme for optimizing the CBXM length to accommodate different passenger flows is proposed in this paper. A modeling framework is developed for associating the CBXM length with the queuing waiting time based on a M/M/1/N queuing model. The optimal scheme of CBXM length calculated from the model demonstrates that the passenger queuing time is saved by 15.7%, 16.0%, and 23.3% with the passenger arrival rate of 4000, 5000, and 6000, respectively, greatly reducing queuing crowdedness. The scheme can be used to select X-ray machines for subway stations by their passenger arrival rates. In addition, the findings of this paper could be a crucial supplement and perfect the design code of subway SCSs

Research of online monitoring of high voltage cable insulation degradation of coal mine

Electrical characteristics of coal mine high voltage cable was analyzed under situation of water tree aging, electrical tree aging and overall uniform deterioration. Wavelet noise canceling technology and signal separation technology based on orthogonal decomposition were used for noise signal processing of grounding line current. Changing trends and set threshold of grounding line current were used to determine whether cable insulation deterioration occurs. Matlab simulation results show that researching relationship between insulation parameters changing of each line and different components of corresponding grounding-line current enables extraction of characteristic signal of online monitoring of high voltage cable insulation degradation of coal mine

Critical Signaling Transduction Pathways and Intestinal Barrier: Implications for Pathophysiology and Therapeutics

The intestinal barrier is a sum of the functions and structures consisting of the intestinal mucosal epithelium, mucus, intestinal flora, secretory immunoglobulins, and digestive juices. It is the first-line defense mechanism that resists nonspecific infections with powerful functions that include physical, endocrine, and immune defenses. Health and physiological homeostasis are greatly dependent on the sturdiness of the intestinal barrier shield, whose dysfunction can contribute to the progression of numerous types of intestinal diseases. Disorders of internal homeostasis may also induce barrier impairment and form vicious cycles during the response to diseases. Therefore, the identification of the underlying mechanisms involved in intestinal barrier function and the development of effective drugs targeting its damage have become popular research topics. Evidence has shown that multiple signaling pathways and corresponding critical molecules are extensively involved in the regulation of the barrier pathophysiological state. Ectopic expression or activation of signaling pathways plays an essential role in the process of shield destruction. Although some drugs, such as molecular or signaling inhibitors, are currently used for the treatment of intestinal diseases, their efficacy cannot meet current medical requirements. In this review, we summarize the current achievements in research on the relationships between the intestinal barrier and signaling pathways. The limitations and future perspectives are also discussed to provide new horizons for targeted therapies for restoring intestinal barrier function that have translational potential

Illumination on Chemical Compounds from Qufeng Zhitong Capsule and Its Potential Pharmacological Mechanism against Rheumatoid Arthritis Based on UHPLC/Q-Orbitrap-MS Combined with Network Pharmacology Analysis

Qufeng Zhitong capsule (QZC), a Chinese patent medicine officially approved in China for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and other diseases, possesses the primary effects of dispelling wind, relieving pain, and promoting blood circulation, whose clinical applications have been confined owing to the incomplete elucidation of its chemical compositions and the underlying molecular mechanism for the treatment of RA. In this study, 61 compounds including 16 phenylpropanoids, 15 organic acids, 13 alkaloids, seven flavonoids, six iridoids, one saccharide, two aldehydes, and one saponin in QZC were simultaneously identified and traced to their herbal origins by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography tandem Q-Exactive Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC/Q-Orbitrap-MS), where 31 of them were unambiguously identified by reference compounds, and the other 30 were tentatively characterized. Besides, all these compounds were proven to have potential pharmacological activity in the treatment of RA based on network pharmacology analysis. In conclusion, this study first investigated the chemical composition and potential pharmacological effects of the main chemical compounds in QZC, which will contribute to the revelation of bioactive compounds in QZC and provide evidence for clinical application