Label Adversarial Learning for Skeleton-level to Pixel-level Adjustable Vessel Segmentation

You can have your cake and eat it too. Microvessel segmentation in optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) images remains challenging. Skeleton-level segmentation shows clear topology but without diameter information, while pixel-level segmentation shows a clear caliber but low topology. To close this gap, we propose a novel label adversarial learning (LAL) for skeleton-level to pixel-level adjustable vessel segmentation. LAL mainly consists of two designs: a label adversarial loss and an embeddable adjustment layer. The label adversarial loss establishes an adversarial relationship between the two label supervisions, while the adjustment layer adjusts the network parameters to match the different adversarial weights. Such a design can efficiently capture the variation between the two supervisions, making the segmentation continuous and tunable. This continuous process allows us to recommend high-quality vessel segmentation with clear caliber and topology. Experimental results show that our results outperform manual annotations of current public datasets and conventional filtering effects. Furthermore, such a continuous process can also be used to generate an uncertainty map representing weak vessel boundaries and noise

Systematic review: Factors influencing creativity in the design discipline and assessment criteria

Using psychological instrument to measure creativity is getting popular in design research. However, unlike quantifying general creativity using divergent thinking, the complexity and interdisciplinarity of the design discipline have made it difficult to explore research on design creativity. Therefore, to better quantify and measure design creativity, 31 relevant studies were retrieved by Google Scholar and the University of London Common Research in this article. This study summarizes the factors that influence design creativity in different design disciplines, the rules for setting the internal dimensions, and the valid instruments for measuring design creativity. The factors affecting design creativity can be divided into internal factors (aesthetic, spatial ability, and ambiguity tolerance) and external factors (environment and visual stimulation). Among these factors, different instruments and evaluation criteria considerably impact the result, while the measurement of design creativity is still not mature enough. A single scale evaluation or creative task evaluation cannot comprehensively evaluate the design creativity, which consists of aesthetic, functional, and technical aspects. In addition, the reference value of ordinary creativity remains to be further discussed in design. Under some professional design fields, the effect of widely recognized factors closely related to creativity, such as divergent thinking, imagination, and personality, is insignificant

On the Power Structure of Aquatic Product supply chain in China

It is helpful to keep the stability of aquatic product supply chain and promote higher development of fishery economy to research power structure of aquatic product supply chain. This paper analyzes the power structure of aquatic product supply chain via the behavior theory in marketing discipline, cased study by Beijing and Guangdong province. The result shows the main reasons for lower operational performance in aquatic product supply chain are rather unbalance cost and benefit of power structure across the supply chain

On Consumer's WTP(Willingness to Pay) for Fishery Product Traceability System in China

Quality safety traceability system has adopted by most fishery enterprises as an important part of the strategic management. As the consequence, the end product is supposed to be higher. That consumers whether to accept has a direct impact on system successful implementation. This paper proposes a framework to research consumer awareness of fishery product and the traceability system and the degree of willingness to pay, cased study of consumers in Beijing on. The results contribute to the effectively apply the traceability system by aquatic products enterprises

Revealing the role of regulatory T cells in the tumor microenvironment of lung adenocarcinoma: a novel prognostic and immunotherapeutic signature

BackgroundRegulatory T cells (Tregs), are a key class of cell types in the immune system. In the tumor microenvironment (TME), the presence of Tregs has important implications for immune response and tumor development. Relatively little is known about the role of Tregs in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD).MethodsTregs were identified using but single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) analysis and interactions between Tregs and other cells in the TME were investigated. Next, we used multiple bulk RNA-seq datasets to construct risk models based on marker genes of Tregs and explored differences in prognosis, mutational landscape, immune cell infiltration and immunotherapy between high- and low-risk groups, and finally, qRT-PCR and cell function experiments were performed to validate the model genes.ResultsThe cellchat analysis showed that MIF-(CD74+CXCR4) pairs play a key role in the interaction of Tregs with other cell subpopulations, and the Tregs-associated signatures (TRAS) could well classify multiple LUAD cohorts into high- and low-risk groups. Immunotherapy may offer greater potential benefits to the low-risk group, as indicated by their superior survival, increased infiltration of immune cells, and heightened expression of immune checkpoints. Finally, the experiment verified that the model genes LTB and PTTG1 were relatively highly expressed in cancer tissues, while PTPRC was relatively highly expressed in paracancerous tissues. Colony Formation assay confirmed that knockdown of PTTG1 reduced the proliferation ability of LUAD cellsConclusionTRAS were constructed using scRNA-seq and bulk RNA-seq to distinguish patient risk subgroups, which may provide assistance in the clinical management of LUAD patients

A Multiscale Simulation Method and Its Application to Determine the Mechanical Behavior of Heterogeneous Geomaterials

To study the micro/mesomechanical behaviors of heterogeneous geomaterials, a multiscale simulation method that combines molecular simulation at the microscale, a mesoscale analysis of polished slices, and finite element numerical simulation is proposed. By processing the mesostructure images obtained from analyzing the polished slices of heterogeneous geomaterials and mapping them onto finite element meshes, a numerical model that more accurately reflects the mesostructures of heterogeneous geomaterials was established by combining the results with the microscale mechanical properties of geomaterials obtained from the molecular simulation. This model was then used to analyze the mechanical behaviors of heterogeneous materials. Because kernstone is a typical heterogeneous material that comprises many types of mineral crystals, it was used for the micro/mesoscale mechanical behavior analysis in this paper using the proposed method. The results suggest that the proposed method can be used to accurately and effectively study the mechanical behaviors of heterogeneous geomaterials at the micro/mesoscales

Reflections and explorations on deep earth science and deep earth engineering technology

Deep earth science in the 21st century has entered a new stage of development. The laws of deep earth science have not yet been explored. Deep engineering activities generally have a certain degree of blindness, inefficiency and uncertainty, and the endogenous dynamics of the Earth’s deep part, structural evolutionary laws, and disaster-causing mechanisms need to be further cognised. Therefore, this paper firstly defines deep earth science from the perspective of geoscience: the deep and ultra-deep layers of the earth are the research objects from the shallow earth to the deep, aiming at exploring the scientific mysteries of the earth’s different layers and different depths of the earth (deep and ultra-deep); clarifies the difference and connection between the deep earth science and the earth science: that is to say, the deep earth science is an extension of the known knowledge system of the earth science, and it is the national strategic science and technology direction to expand the scientific horizons, and to deepen the earth’s cognition. It is a national strategic scientific and technological direction to expand scientific vision and deepen earth knowledge, which is included in earth science; it defines the essence of deep and deep earth engineering science: that is, for the difficulties that the existing scientific laws and technologies of shallow engineering cannot be applied to deep engineering, it is necessary to explore the relevant scientific laws of deep engineering, break through the key basic scientific problems of deep engineering, and meet the demand for geo-disaster prevention and control of human beings in the activities of deep engineering, and then guide the safe, efficient, and green development of deep resources and effective utilization of the space of deep engineering; at the same time, it further clarifies the difference and connection between deep earth science and earth science. This article proposes the definition of deep earth engineering technology, which refers to the engineering implementation technology and equipment required by humans to utilize and develop the Earth, as well as the necessary theoretical and technical means to explore the laws of deep earth science and develop deep earth engineering. Finally, to promote the development of deep earth science, the research content and strategic planning of deep earth science, and the connotation of deep earth engineering technology, have been further clarified (geomechanics and disaster mechanism of deep-earth engineering, intelligent construction and efficient mining, intelligent construction of deep-earth tunnels and giant cavern groups, intelligent disaster prevention and control as well as healthy operation and maintenance of deep-earth engineering)

Application of Relative Risk of Meteorological Factors in Power Grid Electricity Load Forecasting

[Introduction] Accurate and efficient short-term electricity load forecasting is a prerequisite for ensuring the safe and reliable operation of power system, and it is also the basis for the rational arrangement of power generation plans in the power grid. Therefore, studying the relationship between meteorology and electricity load is of great significance for load forecasting. [Method] Based on the electricity load data at 15 min intervals during the period between January 1 of 2013 and December 31 of 2021 provided by the State Grid Hebei Electric Power Co., Ltd. as well as the corresponding meteorological observation data of Shijiazhuang station, this paper analyzed the temporal variation characteristics of daily peak electricity load in Shijiazhuang, and in particular, the meteorological conditions corresponding to the samples with a daily peak electricity load that was 10% higher than that of the previous day were analyzed. The Spearman's rank correlation method was used to analyze the correlation between daily peak electricity load in Shijiazhuang and the meteorological factors of the previous day, and significantly correlated meteorological factors were identified. The response curves of the significantly correlated meteorological factors to the next day's peak electricity load were drawn using the smooth curve fitting method, and the analysis revealed the changing trend of daily peak electricity load with the variations of meteorological factors, as well as the response thresholds. For different threshold ranges, the relative risk of meteorological factors to the changes of the daily peak electricity load was calculated based on the Poisson distribution. On this basis, the variation magnitudes of daily peak electricity load caused by per unit change in each meteorological factor within different threshold ranges in Shijiazhuang were calculated, that is, the quantitative impacts of the changes in different meteorological factors on the variation of daily peak electricity load were revealed. [Result] Taking temperature as an example, when the daily average, maximum and minimum temperatures are higher (lower) than the thresholds, the relative risk to the next day′s peak electricity load increases (decreases) by 2.25% (0.62%), 1.92% (0.57%) and 2.07% (0.60%) respectively for every 1 °C increase in temperature. [Conclusion] Based on the relative risk of different meteorological factors to daily peak electricity load in Shijiazhuang, a method for predicting the next day′s peak electricity load is proposed. The test performed using the daily electricity load and meteorological data of Shijiazhuang in 2022 reveals that the prediction effect can meet the needs of daily electricity meteorological service

Experiences of Students Enrolled in Integrated Collaborative College/University Programs

Little is known about the student experience in collaborative college/university programs, where students are enrolled in two institutions simultaneously in integrated curriculum designs. This interpretive, descriptive, qualitative study explored these students’ perspectives. Sixty-eight participants enrolled in one of four collaborative programs from three different faculties engaged in student researcher-led focus groups. Results revealed that while all participants valued their respective academic programs, their day-to-day life experiences presented a different story. Some students had perceptions of belonging and thrived in a dual world. Others had perceptions of ambiguous belonging, which contributed to them perceiving themselves through a perpetual lens of being less than university-only students. Issues of how students are invited to engage in the university and college cultures, perceptions of power and control, and daily reminders of being different all contributed to positive or ambiguous student identities. The results raise preliminary questions for universities and colleges regarding how to enhance the student experience in these collaborative programs.  On en connaît peu sur l’expérience des étudiants dans les programmes collégiaux/universitaires collaboratifs, où les étudiants sont inscrits simultanément dans deux institutions dans un modèle de curriculum intégrés. Cette étude qualitative descriptive interprétative explore les perspectives de ces étudiants. Soixante-huit participants se sont inscrits dans l’un des quatre programmes collaboratifs de trois facultés différentes impliqués dans des groupes de discussion de chercheurs dirigés par les étudiants. Les résultats ont révélé que bien que tous les participants apprécient leurs programmes académiques respectifs, leurs expériences quotidiennes ont présenté une histoire différente. Certains étudiants ont eu la perception d’appartenance menant à prospérer dans un monde dual. D’autres ont eu la perception d’une appartenance ambiguë contribuant à percevoir à travers une lentille d’infériorité perpétuelle. Des problèmes sur la façon que les étudiants sont invités à participer dans les cultures universitaires et collégiales, les perceptions de pouvoir et de contrôle, et un rappel quotidien d’être différent ont tous contribué à l’identité positive ou ambiguë des étudiants. Les résultats soulèvent des questions préliminaires pour les universités et collèges sur la façon d’améliorer l’expérience des étudiants