The Aristotelian Catharsis: From Degradation to Salvation: A Study of King Lear and the Metamorphoses of His Character

In The Tragedy of King Lear, King Lear is always considered as a complex character and hard to be analyzed for his childlike, passionate, playful and sympathetic character. His misfortune comes form his rash haste, his childlike character, his blindness to everything under the control of his passions or affections. His miserable destiny is worth of considering and being analyzed.  According to the Freudian Personality Theory, human’s personality can be divided into three parts: the id, the ego, and the superego. Originally, the personality structure theory is used primarily to treat mental illness, and then it is developed into a critical method in literary criticism. Guided by the theory of personality structure, this thesis attempts to make a thorough exploration of the psychic conflicts and growth of King Lear in the formation of his healthy personality through the storm.

Feature screening for ultrahigh-dimensional binary classification via linear projection

Linear discriminant analysis (LDA) is one of the most widely used methods in discriminant classification and pattern recognition. However, with the rapid development of information science and technology, the dimensionality of collected data is high or ultrahigh, which causes the failure of LDA. To address this issue, a feature screening procedure based on the Fisher's linear projection and the marginal score test is proposed to deal with the ultrahigh-dimensional binary classification problem. The sure screening property is established to ensure that the important features could be retained and the irrelevant predictors could be eliminated. The finite sample properties of the proposed procedure are assessed by Monte Carlo simulation studies and a real-life data example

The synthesis and characterization of a xanthan gum-acrylamide-trimethylolpropane triglycidyl ether hydrogel

peer-reviewedTo improve the thermal stability and adsorption performance, xanthan gum was modified with acrylamide and trimethylolpropane triglycidyl ether (TTE). The modified xanthan gum (XGTTE) was characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffractogram (XRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The characteristic peaks at 3449, 1655, 1611 and 1420 cm−1 in the FT-IR confirm the modification. The XGTTE crystal grew well upon addition of TTE. The XRD and DSC data revealed that the XGTTE enhanced its thermal stability. Analysis of SEM revealed that the grafting introduced major changes on the microstructure making it porous and resulting in the adsorption of crystal violet (CV) with flocculation. The CV adsorption capacity of the hydrogel with different dosages of TTE (XGTTE2, XGTTE3, XGTTE4, XGTTE5 and XGTTE6) were between 28.13 with 35.12 mg/g. In addition, the adsorption capacity, thermal stability, and swelling property of XGTTE4 were the best

Flexible pressure sensors via engineering microstructures for wearable human-machine interaction and health monitoring applications

Flexible pressure sensors capable of transducing pressure stimuli into electrical signals have drawn extensive attention owing to their potential applications for human-machine interaction and healthcare monitoring. To meet these application demands, engineering microstructures in the pressure sensors are an efficient way to improve key sensing performances, such as sensitivity, linear sensing range, response time, hysteresis, and durability. In this review, we provide an overview of the recent advances in the fabrication and application of high-performance flexible pressure sensors via engineering microstructures. The implementation mechanisms and fabrication strategies of microstructures including micropatterned, porous, fiber-network, and multiple microstructures are systematically presented. The applications of flexible pressure sensors with microstructures in the fields of wearable human-machine interaction, and ex vivo and in vivo healthcare monitoring are comprehensively discussed. Finally, the outlook and challenges in the future improvement of flexible pressure sensors toward practical applications are presented

A Roadmap for Functional Structural Variants in the Soybean Genome

Gene structural variation (SV) has recently emerged as a key genetic mechanism underlying several important phenotypic traits in crop species. We screened a panel of 41 soybean (Glycine max) accessions serving as parents in a soybean nested association mapping population for deletions and duplications in more than 53,000 gene models. Array hybridization and whole genome resequencing methods were used as complementary technologies to identify SV in 1528 genes, or approximately 2.8%, of the soybean gene models. Although SV occurs throughout the genome, SV enrichment was noted in families of biotic defense response genes. Among accessions, SV was nearly eightfold less frequent for gene models that have retained paralogs since the last whole genome duplication event, compared with genes that have not retained paralogs. Increases in gene copy number, similar to that described at the Rhg1 resistance locus, account for approximately one-fourth of the genic SV events. This assessment of soybean SV occurrence presents a target list of genes potentially responsible for rapidly evolving and/or adaptive traits

A Roadmap for Functional Structural Variants in the Soybean Genome

Gene structural variation (SV) has recently emerged as a key genetic mechanism underlying several important phenotypic traits in crop species. We screened a panel of 41 soybean (Glycine max) accessions serving as parents in a soybean nested association mapping population for deletions and duplications in more than 53,000 gene models. Array hybridization and whole genome resequencing methods were used as complementary technologies to identify SV in 1528 genes, or approximately 2.8%, of the soybean gene models. Although SV occurs throughout the genome, SV enrichment was noted in families of biotic defense response genes. Among accessions, SV was nearly eightfold less frequent for gene models that have retained paralogs since the last whole genome duplication event, compared with genes that have not retained paralogs. Increases in gene copy number, similar to that described at the Rhg1 resistance locus, account for approximately one-fourth of the genic SV events. This assessment of soybean SV occurrence presents a target list of genes potentially responsible for rapidly evolving and/or adaptive traits

Preparation of molecularly imprinted polymer for selective solid-phase extraction and simultaneous determination of five sulfonylurea herbicides in cereals

Molecular imprinting polymer (MIP) has been increasingly employed for sulfonylurea herbicides (SUHs) detection in different matrices. A novel MIP that was effective as a highly class-selective sorbent in molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction (MISPE) was successfully prepared for isolation and purification of SUHs, namely, metsulfuron-methyl, chlorsulfuron, chlorimuron-ethyl, prosulfuron, and pyrazosulfuron-ethyl, in rice, corn and soybean samples. The MIP was synthesized by precipitation polymerization using metsulfuron-methyl as the template, 4-vinylpyridine as the functional monomer, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as the crosslinker, and MeCN as the porogen. The polymerization system of the MIP was optimized, and its adsorption performances were evaluated by comparing its adsorption isotherms and adsorption kinetics with those of a non-imprinted polymer (NIP). Following MISPE for extracting and enriching SUHs from rice, corn and soybean samples, high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) was performed. Acceptable recoveries were observed at SUHs contaminant concentrations of 10, 20 and 40 μg/L: from 77.56 to 99.81%, with relative standard deviations of <13.8% (n = 5) for all samples. The limits of detection for the five SUHs were 0.21-0.26 μg/L. The results demonstrated that the proposed MISPE-HPLC-MS/MS method is an effective approach for the simultaneous and sensitive determination of the five SUHs in rice, corn and soybean samples

MARVEL: A Randomized Double‐Blind, Placebo‐Controlled Trial in Patients Undergoing Endovascular Therapy: Study Rationale and Design

BACKGROUND Steroids have pleiotropic neuroprotective actions including the regulation of inflammation and apoptosis which may influence the effects of ischemia on neurons, glial cells, and blood vessels. The effect of low‐dose methylprednisolone in patients with acute ischemic stroke in the endovascular therapy era remains unknown. This trial investigates the efficacy and safety of low‐dose methylprednisolone (2 mg/kg IV for 3 days) as adjunctive therapy for patients with acute ischemic stroke undergoing endovascular therapy within 24 hours from symptom onset. METHODS The MARVEL(Methylprednisolone as Adjunctive Therapy for Acute Large Vessel Occlusion: A Randomized Double‐Blind, Placebo‐Controlled Trial in Patients Undergoing Endovascular Therapy) trial is an investigator‐initiated, prospective, randomized, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled multicenter clinical trial. Up to 1672 eligible patients with anterior circulation large‐vessel occlusion stroke presenting within 24 hours from symptom onset are planned to be consecutively randomized to receive methylprednisolone or placebo in a 1:1 ratio across 82 stroke centers in China. RESULTS The primary outcome is the ordinal shift in the modified Rankin scale score at 90 days. Secondary outcomes include 90‐day functional independence (modified Rankin scale score, 0–2). The primary safety end points include mortality rate at 90 days and symptomatic intracerebral hemorrhage within 48 hours of endovascular therapy. CONCLUSION The MARVEL trial will provide evidence of the efficacy and safety of low‐dose methylprednisolone as adjunctive therapy for patients with anterior circulation large‐vessel occlusion stroke undergoing endovascular therapy