Analysis of ecosystem resilience in Jiuzhaigou Valley Scenic Area under the effect of geohazards

The effects of geohazards on the ecological environment and ecological spatial pattern have received wide attention from scholars. However, the positive role played by ecological restoration projects on the environment and in the reduction of geohazards has usually been neglected. Jiuzhaigou Valley Scenic Area is a world natural heritage area, has a high incidence of geohazards, and is a demonstration area for ecological restoration projects. Based on remote sensing technology, this paper adopted an InVEST model (Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs) and ecological landscape index to extract information about spatio-temporal changes in Jiuzhaigou from 2013 to 2020. This study utilized a quantitative analysis of the ecological recoverability of Jiuzhaigou in cases of artificial restoration and spontaneous restoration under different types of geohazards. Results showed that forests play a vital role in maintaining and controlling habitat quality; artificial restoration can significantly ameliorate the impact of geohazards on the scenic area. As of 2020, the forested scenic area recovered 3.868 km2, and the habitat quality index rebounded to 98.88% of the historical high. The ecological restoration project significantly shortened the scenic area recover time of its ecosystem service capability

Synthetic Data (Almost) from Scratch: Generalized Instruction Tuning for Language Models

We introduce Generalized Instruction Tuning (called GLAN), a general and scalable method for instruction tuning of Large Language Models (LLMs). Unlike prior work that relies on seed examples or existing datasets to construct instruction tuning data, GLAN exclusively utilizes a pre-curated taxonomy of human knowledge and capabilities as input and generates large-scale synthetic instruction data across all disciplines. Specifically, inspired by the systematic structure in human education system, we build the taxonomy by decomposing human knowledge and capabilities to various fields, sub-fields and ultimately, distinct disciplines semi-automatically, facilitated by LLMs. Subsequently, we generate a comprehensive list of subjects for every discipline and proceed to design a syllabus tailored to each subject, again utilizing LLMs. With the fine-grained key concepts detailed in every class session of the syllabus, we are able to generate diverse instructions with a broad coverage across the entire spectrum of human knowledge and skills. Extensive experiments on large language models (e.g., Mistral) demonstrate that GLAN excels in multiple dimensions from mathematical reasoning, coding, academic exams, logical reasoning to general instruction following without using task-specific training data of these tasks. In addition, GLAN allows for easy customization and new fields or skills can be added by simply incorporating a new node into our taxonomy.Comment: Work in progres

Signet ring B cell lymphoma: A potential diagnostic pitfall

Signet ring B cell lymphoma is an unusual non-Hodgkin lymphoma. It is similar to signet ring cell carcinoma and liposarcoma in morphology which should be distinguished. We treated a 63-year-old male patient who suffered from abdominal pain for two months. Multiple enlarged lymph nodes were found in the retroperitoneum by CT scan. The needle biopsy showed neoplastic cells distributed uniformly with clear cytoplasm and the nucleus squeezed to the side mimicking the appearance of signet ring in morphology. By special staining, the neoplastic cells were positive for CD45, Vimentin, Bcl-2 and CD20 but negative for AE1/AE3, S-100, CD3, EMA, CD5, CD10, Bcl-6, MUM1 , Kappa, Lambda and PAS . Ki67 proliferation index was much more than 80%. Based on the histological characters, a diagnosis of signet ring B cell lymphoma was made. Although the patient received six courses of R-CHOP therapy, he died of tumor recurrence at the 34th month after diagnosis

Clinical characteristics and survival outcomes in patients with ovarian strumal carcinoid

Ovarian strumal carcinoid is an extremely rare ovarian malignant tumor with limited data on clinical characteristics and survival outcomes

Clinical characteristics and survival outcomes in patients with ovarian strumal carcinoid

Ovarian strumal carcinoid is an extremely rare ovarian malignant tumor with limited data on clinical characteristics and survival outcomes

In situ grown nanoscale platinum on carbon powder as catalyst layer in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs)

An extensive study has been conducted on the proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) with reducing Pt loading. This is commonly achieved by developing methods to increase the utilization of the platinum in the catalyst layer of the electrodes. In this paper, a novel process of the catalyst layers was introduced and investigated. A mixture of carbon powder and Nafion solution was sprayed on the glassy carbon electrode (GCE) to form a thin carbon layer. Then Pt particles were deposited on the surface by reducing hexachloroplatinic (IV) acid hexahydrate with methanoic acid. SEM images showed a continuous Pt gradient profile among the thickness direction of the catalytic layer by the novel method. The Pt nanowires grown are in the size of 3 nm (diameter)×10 nm (length) by high solution TEM image. The novel catalyst layer was characterized by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) as compared with commercial Pt/C black and Pt catalyst layer obtained from sputtering. The results showed that the platinum nanoparticles deposited on the carbon powder were highly utilized as they directly faced the gas diffusion layer and offered easy access to reactants (oxygen or hydrogen).</p

Nanomaterial Delivery Vehicles for the Development of Neoantigen Tumor Vaccines for Personalized Treatment

Tumor vaccines have been considered a promising therapeutic approach for treating cancer in recent years. With the development of sequencing technologies, tumor vaccines based on neoantigens or genomes specifically expressed in tumor cells, mainly in the form of peptides, nucleic acids, and dendritic cells, are beginning to receive widespread attention. Therefore, in this review, we have introduced different forms of neoantigen vaccines and discussed the development of these vaccines in treating cancer. Furthermore, neoantigen vaccines are influenced by factors such as antigen stability, weak immunogenicity, and biosafety in addition to sequencing technology. Hence, the biological nanomaterials, polymeric nanomaterials, inorganic nanomaterials, etc., used as vaccine carriers are principally summarized here, which may contribute to the design of neoantigen vaccines for improved stability and better efficacy

Sustainability Evaluation of the Maize–Soybean Intercropping System and Maize Monocropping System in the North China Plain Based on Field Experiments

Monocropping systems, which currently dominate China&#8217;s major grain production regions, contribute to resource scarcity and environmental pollution. Intercropping has the potential to improve resource use efficiency. However, prior studies of intercropping systems have generally focused on ecological, economic, and social consequences. Here, we make a comparative ecological sustainability analysis on energy capture and efficiency of maize monocropping and maize&#8315;soybean intercropping systems through emergy evaluation based on field experiments performed from 2012 to 2014. We find that maize monocropping shows higher sustainability than maize&#8315;soybean intercropping in the North China Plain at present. Quantitative results indicate that for maize monocropping, the emergy yield ratio (EYR) and emergy sustainability index (ESI) are 13.7% and 21.1% higher than that of intercropping systems, and the environmental loading ratio (ELR) is 7.3% lower than that of intercropping systems. To further test, we applied three levels of nitrogen fertilizer in intercropping systems (120 kg ha&#8722;1, 180 kg ha&#8722;1, 240 kg ha&#8722;1), and find that a reduced rate of N fertilizer for intercropped system leads to higher sustainability (ESI 5.3% higher) but still lower sustainability than maize monocropping. Key drivers of the different sustainability outcomes are decreased energy output and a larger proportion of labor input associated with intercropping systems