New approach for near-infrared wavelength selection using a combination of MIC and firefly evolution.

Full-length spectral data analysis has a big problem that the variables are highly in collinearity and correlation. Spectral wavelength selection is a continuing hot topic in quantitative or qualitative analysis. In this paper, we propose a new approach for near-infrared (NIR) wavelength selection. The novel strategy mainly refers to the modification of maximum information coefficient (MIC) method and an improvement of firefly evolutionary algorithm. We introduce the orthogonal decomposition to modify the MIC method, so as to search the informative signals conceived in projection vectors. We also raise the common firefly algorithm (FA) as in the discretized mode, and design a novel adaptive mapping function to improve its intelligent computing effect. In experiment, the modified MIC (MICm) method and the adaptive discrete FA algorithm (DFAadp) are joint together for combined optimization of the NIR calibration model. The proposed combined modeling strategy is applied for quantitative analysis of the fishmeal samples, in the concern to select their informative variables/wavelengths. Experimental results indicate that the combination of MICm and DFAadp perform better than traditional MIC method and common DFA. We conclude that the proposed combined optimization strategy is beneficial for wavelength selection in NIR spectral analysis. It is anticipated to be validated for further applications in a wide range.

Research on Six-Wheel Distributed Unmanned Vehicle Path Tracking Strategy Based on Hierarchical Control.

For the multi-objective control problem of tracking effect and vehicle stability in the path tracking process of six-wheel distributed unmanned vehicles, a control strategy based on hierarchical control (HC) theory is proposed. A hierarchical kinematic model is designed considering the structural advantages of independent steering and independent driving of the unmanned vehicle, and this model is applied to the path tracking strategy. The strategy is divided into two levels of control. The upper level of control is to use the upper-level kinematic model as the prediction model of model predictive control (MPC), and to convert the solution problem of future control increments into the optimal solution problem of quadratic programming by setting the optimal objective function and constraints. The lower level of control is to map the optimal control quantities obtained from the upper level control to the six-wheel speeds and the four-wheel turning angles through the lower-level kinematics, and to design the six-wheel torque distribution rules based on deterministic torque and stability-based slip rate control for executing the control requirements of the upper level controller to prevent the unmanned vehicle from generating sideslip and precisely generating transverse moment to ensure the stable driving of the unmanned vehicle. Experiments were conducted on the Trucksim/Simulink simulation platform for a variety of road conditions, and the results showed that hierarchical control improved the accuracy of tracking the desired path and the driving stability on complex road surfaces more than MPC.

Exploring factors influencing the retention of nurses in a religious hospital in Taiwan: a cross-sectional quantitative study.

BACKGROUND: Long-term deficits in the nursing labor force and high turnover rates are common in the Taiwanese medical industry. Little research has investigated the psychological factors associated with the retention of nursing staff. However, in practice, religious hospitals often provide nursing staff with education in medicine or the medical humanities to enhance their psychological satisfaction. The objective of this study was to explore factors influencing nursing staff retention in their work in relation to different levels of needs. A further objective was to investigate whether medical humanities education was associated with the retention of nursing staff. METHODS: This study used self-administrated questionnaires to survey nurses working in northern areas of Taiwan. The questionnaire design was based on the six levels of Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Participation was voluntary, and the participants signed informed consent documents. Self-administrated questionnaires were distributed to a total of 759 participants, and 729 questionnaires were returned (response rate 96.04%). Logistic regression analysis was used to estimate the impact of seniority on nurses' reported intention to stay after adjustment for nurse characteristics (gender and age). RESULTS: In the Pearson correlation analysis, nurses' willingness to stay was moderately correlated with "physical needs", "safety needs", "love and belonging needs", and "esteem needs" (r = 0.559, P < 0.001; r = 0.533, P < 0.001; r = 0.393, P < 0.001; and r = 0.476, P < 0.001, respectively). Furthermore, nurses' willingness to stay was highly correlated with "self-actualization needs", "beyond self-actualization needs" and "medical humanities education-relevant needs" (r = 0.707, P < 0.001; r = 0.728, P < 0.001; and r = 0.678, P < 0.001, respectively). We found that the odds ratios (ORs) of retention of nursing staff with less than 1 year (OR = 4.511, P = 0.002) or 1-3 years (OR = 3.248, P = 0.003) of work experience were significantly higher than that of those with 5-10 years of work experience. CONCLUSIONS: With regard to medical humanities education, we recommend adjusting training, as the compulsory activities included in the official programs are inadequate, and adjusting the number of required hours of medical humanities education. Tailoring different educational programs to different groups (especially nurses who have worked 3-5 years or 5-10 years in the case study hospital) might improve acceptance by nursing staff.

Effect of spleen lymphocytes on the splenomegaly in hepatocellular carcinoma-bearing mice.

OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of spleen lymphocytes on the splenomegaly by hepatocellular carcinoma-bearing mouse model. METHODS: Cell counts, cell cycle distribution, the percentage of lymphocytes subsets and the levels of IL-2 were measured, and two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) was used to investigate the relationship between spleen lymphocytes and splenomegaly in hepatocellular carcinoma-bearing mice. RESULTS: Compared with the normal group, the thymus was obviously atrophied and the spleen was significantly enlarged in the tumor-bearing group. Correlation study showed that the number of whole spleen cells was positively correlated with the splenic index. The cell diameter and cell-cycle phase distribution of splenocytes in the tumor-bearing group showed no significant difference compared to the normal group. The percentage of CD3+ T lymphocytes and CD8+ T lymphocytes in spleen and peripheral blood of tumor-bearing mice were substantially higher than that in the normal mice. Meanwhile, the IL-2 level was also higher in the tumor-bearing group than in the normal group. Furthermore, two dysregulated protein, ß-actin and S100-A9 were identified in spleen lymphocytes from H22-bearing mice, which were closely related to cellular motility. CONCLUSION: It is suggested that dysregulated ß-actin and S100-A9 can result in recirculating T lymphocytes trapped in the spleen, which may explain the underlying cause of splenomegaly in H22-bearing mice.