[Application of modified Frosch approach for Schatzker typeâ ¡tibial plateau fractures with posterolateral column].

OBJECTIVE: To explore clnical efficacy of modified Frosch approach for Schatzker typeⅡtibial plateau fracture with posterolateral column. METHODS: From January 2019 to September 2020, totally 11 patients with Schatzker typeⅡtibial plateau fractures with posterolateral column were treated, including 7 males and 4 females, aged from 21 to 49 years old. Modified Frosch approach was adopted for lateral decubitus position, and posterolateral fractures were fixed with support plates or posterolateral screws. Anterolateral fixation with conventional tibial plateau lateral locking plate. Tibial plateau varus angle and posterior inclination angle were measured by X-ray immediately and 12 months after operation, as well as knee motion at 12 months after operation. Knee function at 12 months after operation was evaluated by knee score of Hospital for Special Surgery(HSS). RESULTS: Eleven patients were followed up for 12 to 15 months. Varus angle and inclination angle at immediately after operation ranged from 76° to 86° and 6° to 10°, respectively, and 79° to 88° and 6° to 10°, respectively at 12 months after operation. The range of extension of knee ranged from 0° to 5°, and flexion was 106° to 137° at 12 months after operation. Postoperative HSS knee score at 12 months ranged from 74 to 94 scores, 8 patients were excellent and 3 good. CONCLUSION: Modified Frosch approach is an effective surgical method for Schatzker typeⅡtibial plateau fracture with posterolateral column. A single incision is used to complete fracture exposure and fixation at two sites, avoiding use of combined incisions, and could obtain good postoperative knee joint function. During operation, popliteal fossa structure should be familiar, and the common peroneal nerve should be protected to avoid injury.

The Synthesis of Amino-Acid-Anchored Two-Dimensional Silicoaluminophosphates and Congo Red Adsorption Application.

Two-dimensional (2D) materials with nanometer thickness have the advantage of a large specific surface area and excellent surface accessibility. They have great potential for adsorption, catalysis, and many other applications. 2D zeolitic silicoaluminophosphates (SAPOs) can be synthesized through a dual structure directing agent (SDA) strategy. But the materials have been primarily used in their organic-free form. In this work, we demonstrate that the same synthesis strategy is effective for developing amino-acid-anchored 2D SAPOs through a one-step synthesis. Because of the addition of amino acids, the surficial amino and carboxylic groups serve as active sites for adsorption and catalysis. Congo red adsorption is used to evaluate the potential of using the organic functional groups as active adsorption sites. The 2D SAPO materials have demonstrated excellent Congo red removal efficiency with close to complete removal for certain concentrations. The effects of the amino acid concentration and hydrothermal synthesis time on material morphology development will be discussed. Thorough characterization by SEM, TEM, FTIR, XRD, and nitrogen adsorption has been done to reveal the properties of the amino-acid-anchored 2D SAPOs.

Relationship between leaf vein traits of three dominant Quercus species and ecological factors in the Qinling Mountains, China.

We investigated the inter- and intra-species differences of leaf vein traits of three dominant Quercus species, Q. wutaishanica, Q. aliena var. acutiserrata, and Q. variabilis of Niubeiling (subtropical humid climate) and Taohuagou (warm temperate semi-humid climate), located in the eastern and western Qinling Mountains. The nine examined leaf vein traits included primary leaf vein width, secondary leaf vein width, mean fine vein width, primary vein density, fine vein density, vein areole diameter, areole density, 3D fine vein surface area, and fine vein volume. We further elucidated the influencing mechanisms and regulatory pathways of biotic and abiotic factors on leaf vein traits. The results showed that species identity had significant effects on eight out of nine leaf vein traits except 3D fine vein surface area, while habitat had significant effects on primary leaf vein width, secondary leaf vein width, vein areole diameter, fine vein density, and areole density. Altitude had significant effects on primary vein density, mean fine vein width, vein areole diameter, fine vein density and areole density. Habitat, tree species identity, and altitude had significantly interactive effects on primary leaf vein density, 3D fine vein surface area, and fine vein volume. There were significant differences in primary leaf vein width, mean fine vein width, areole density, 3D fine vein surface area, fine vein volume, primary vein density of Q. wutaishanica between the two studied habitats, but the differences were only found in secondary leaf vein width and areole density of Q. aliena var. acutiserrata and Q. variabilis. The examined leaf vein traits were influenced both by biotic and abiotic factors, with varying effect sizes. Among the biotic factors, petiole length, leaf length and width ratio had strong effect on leaf vein traits. Among the abiotic factors, climatic and soil factors had high effect size on vein traits, with the former being higher than the latter. Leaf vein traits were affected directly by biotic factors, but indirectly by abiotic factors (soil and climatic factors) via regulating biotic factors (leaf stoichiometry and leaf phenotypic traits).

Regulation of depressive-like behaviours by palmitoylation: Role of AKAP150 in the basolateral amygdala.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Protein palmitoylation is involved in learning and memory, and in emotional disorders. Yet, the underlying mechanisms in these processes remain unclear. Herein, we describe that A-kinase anchoring protein 150 (AKAP150) is essential and sufficient for depressive-like behaviours in mice via a palmitoylation-dependent mechanism. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH: Depressive-like behaviours in mice were induced by chronic restraint stress (CRS) and chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS). Palmitoylated proteins in the basolateral amygdala (BLA) were assessed by an acyl-biotin exchange assay. Genetic and pharmacological approaches were used to investigate the role of the DHHC2-mediated AKAP150 palmitoylation signalling pathway in depressive-like behaviours. Electrophysiological recording, western blotting and co-immunoprecipitation were performed to define the mechanistic pathway. KEY RESULTS: Chronic stress successfully induced depressive-like behaviours in mice and enhanced AKAP150 palmitoylation in the BLA, and a palmitoylation inhibitor was enough to reverse these changes. Blocking the AKAP150-PKA interaction with the peptide Ht-31 abolished the CRS-induced AKAP150 palmitoylation signalling pathway. DHHC2 expression and palmitoylation levels were both increased after chronic stress. DHHC2 knockdown prevented CRS-induced depressive-like behaviours, as well as attenuating AKAP150 signalling and synaptic transmission in the BLA in CRS-treated mice. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS: These results delineate that DHHC2 modulates chronic stress-induced depressive-like behaviours and synaptic transmission in the BLA via the AKAP150 palmitoylation signalling pathway, and this pathway may be considered as a promising novel therapeutic target for major depressive disorder.

New Insight into the Electronic Effect for Cu Porphyrin Catalysts in Electrocatalytic of CO2 into CH4.

Perturbation of the copper (Cu) active site by electron manipulation is a crucial factor in determining the activity and selectivity of electrochemical carbon dioxide (CO2 ) reduction reaction (e-CO2 RR) in Cu-based molecular catalysts. However, much ambiguity is present concerning their electronic structure-function relationships. Here, three molecular Cu-based porphyrin catalysts with different electron densities at the Cu active site, Cu tetrakis(4-methoxyphenyl)porphyrin (Cu─T(OMe)PP), Cu tetraphenylporphyrin (Cu─THPP), and Cu tetrakis(4-bromophenyl)porphyrin (Cu─TBrPP), are prepared. Although all three catalysts exhibit e-CO2 RR activity and the same reaction pathway, their performance is significantly affected by the electronic structure of the Cu site. Theoretical and experimental investigations verify that the conjugated effect of ─OCH3 and ─Br groups lowers the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO)-lowest unoccupied molecular orbitals (LUMO) gap of Cu─T(OMe)PP and Cu─TBrPP, promoting faster electron transfer between Cu and CO2 , thereby improving their e-CO2 RR activity. Moreover, the high inductive effect of ─Br group reduces the electron density of Cu active site of Cu─TBrPP, facilitating the hydrolysis of the bound H2 O and thus creating a preferable local microenvironment, further enhancing the catalytic performance. This work provides new insights into the relationships between the substituent group characteristics with e-CO2 RR performance and is highly instructive for the design of efficient Cu-based e-CO2 RR electrocatalysts.

The Mediating Role of Attitudes Towards Dementia on the Relationship Between Dementia Knowledge and Behaviors Towards Persons with Dementia: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Purpose: To examine the mediating effect of attitudes towards dementia on the relationship between dementia knowledge and behaviors towards persons with dementia. Participants and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 313 adults (age ≤ 20 years). Participants were recruited using non-probability convenience sampling from medical clinics, community centers, and supermarkets located in the Wanhua District of Taipei City. Data were collected with the following self-report questionnaires: a demographic survey, validated instruments for dementia knowledge and attitudes towards dementia (assessed using the Alzheimer's Disease Knowledge Scale and the Approaches to Dementia Questionnaire, respectively), and a researcher-developed survey on unfriendly behaviors towards persons with dementia. Results: Pearson's correlation and multiple linear regression analysis indicated that higher scores for dementia knowledge and more positive attitudes about dementia were significantly associated with lower levels of unfriendly behaviors towards persons living with dementia. Mediation analysis using a robust bootstrap test with 5000 samples indicated that attitudes toward dementia had a partial mediating effect on the relationship between dementia knowledge and unfriendly behaviors. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that increasing public awareness and knowledge about dementia could help the general population develop better attitudes towards dementia, which could subsequently help improve behaviors towards persons living with dementia.

Construction of Low-Coordination Cu-C2 Single-Atoms Electrocatalyst Facilitating the Efficient Electrochemical CO2 Reduction to Methane.

Constructing Cu single-atoms (SAs) catalysts is considered as one of the most effective strategies to enhance the performance of electrochemical reduction of CO2 (e-CO2 RR) towards CH4 , however there are challenges with activity, selectivity, and a cumbersome fabrication process. Herein, by virtue of the meta-position structure of alkynyl in 1,3,5-triethynylbenzene and the interaction between Cu and -C≡C-, a Cu SAs electrocatalyst (Cu-SAs/HGDY), containing low-coordination Cu-C2 active sites, was synthesized through a simple and efficient one-step method. Notably, this represents the first achievement of preparing Cu SAs catalysts with Cu-C2 coordination structure, which exhibited high CO2 -to-CH4 selectivity (72.1 %) with a high CH4 partial current density of 230.7 mA cm-2 , and a turnover frequency as high as 2756 h-1 , dramatically outperforming currently reported catalysts. Comprehensive experiments and calculations verified the low-coordination Cu-C2 structure not only endowed the Cu SAs center more positive electricity but also promoted the formation of H•, which contributed to the outstanding e-CO2 RR to CH4 electrocatalytic performance of Cu-SAs/HGDY. Our work provides a novel H⋅-transferring mechanism for e-CO2 RR to CH4 and offers a protocol for the preparation of two-coordinated Cu SAs catalysts.

Comparison of species composition and community characteristics of Quercus forests on south and north slopes of Taibai Mountain, China.

We examined species composition, community characteristics, diversity, and community similarity of five Quercus communities composed of three Quercus species (Q. variabilis, Q. aliena var. acutiserrata, Q. wutaishanica) on the altitudinal gradient on the south and north slopes of Taibai Mountain. The results showed that there was an altitudinal transition pattern from Q. variabilis pure forest to Q. variabilis-Q. aliena var. acutiserrata mixed forest, Q. aliena var. acutiserrata pure forest, Q. aliena var. acutiserrata-Q. wutaishanica mixed forest and Q. wutaishanica pure forest on the south and north slopes of Taibai Mountain. The main companion species of Quercus community on the north slope were Pinus armandii, Castanea seguinii, and Sorbus alnifolia, and were Pinus tabuliformis, C. seguinii, Carpinus cordata, and Q. spinosa on the south slope. Species richness, woody plant density, and Quercus species dominance on the north slope of Taibai Mountain were higher than those on the south slope. α diversity of tree layer in Quercus community on the south and north slopes of Taibai Mountain increased first, then decreased and then increased with altitude. α diversity of tree layer was higher in mixed forests than pure forests. α diversity of shrub layer was higher than that of tree layer and herb layer in Quercus community on south and north slopes. ß diversity fluctuated greatly along the altitudinal gradient on the south and north slopes, indicating that species composition changed greatly with altitude. Results of redundancy analysis showed that mean warmest month temperature, altitude and tree height accounted for 79.0% of the community diversity on the north slope, and that soil water content, tree height, canopy density and mean annual temperature accounted for 79.6% of the community diversity on the south slope. Overall, Quercus dominance was higher on the north slope of Taibai Mountain, and the substitution distribution pattern of Quercus species was clearer than that on the south slope. Environmental factors related to temperature and precipitation jointly affected α diversity of Quercus communities.

DHHC2 regulates fear memory formation, LTP, and AKAP150 signaling in the hippocampus.

Palmitoyl acyltransferases (PATs) have been suggested to be involved in learning and memory. However, the underlying mechanisms have not yet been fully elucidated. Here, we found that the activity of DHHC2 was upregulated in the hippocampus after fear conditioning, and DHHC2 knockdown impaired fear induced memory and long-term potentiation (LTP). Additionally, the activity of DHHC2 and its synaptic expression were increased after high frequency stimulation (HFS) or glycine treatment. Importantly, fear learning selectively augmented the palmitoylation level of AKAP150, not PSD-95, and this effect was abolished by DHHC2 knockdown. Furthermore, 2-bromopalmitic acid (2-BP), a palmitoylation inhibitor, attenuated the increased palmitoylation level of AKAP150 and the interaction between AKAP150 and PSD-95 induced by HFS. Lastly, DHHC2 knockdown reduced the phosphorylation level of GluA1 at Ser845, and also induced an impairment of LTP in the hippocampus. Our results suggest that DHHC2 plays a critical role in regulating fear memory via AKAP150 signaling.

Construction of Synergistic Ni3 S2 -MoS2 Nanoheterojunctions on Ni Foam as Bifunctional Electrocatalyst for Hydrogen Evolution Integrated with Biomass Valorization.

The intrinsic sluggish kinetics of the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) limit the improvement of hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) performance, and substituting the anodic oxidation of biomass materials is an alternative approach, given its lower oxidation potential and higher added value compared to those of OER. In this study, a Ni3 S2 -MoS2 nanoheterojunction catalyst with strong electronic interactions is prepared. It exhibits high efficiency for both the HER and the electrooxidation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF). In a two-electrode cell with Ni3 S2 -MoS2 serving as both the anode and cathode, the potential is only 1.44 V at a current density of 10 mA cm-2 , which is much lower than that of pure water splitting. Density functional theory calculations confirm that the strong chemisorption of H and HMF at the interface leads to outstanding electrocatalytic activity. The findings not only provide a strategy for developing efficient electrocatalysts, but also provide an approach for the continuous production of high value-added products and H2 .

High-Performance Zeolitic Hollow-Fiber Membranes by a Viscosity-Confined Dry Gel Conversion Process for Gas Separation.

Zeolite membranes show great potential for gas and hydrocarbon separations, but high manufacturing cost has been one of the main hurdles in their industrial application. Here we demonstrate a method termed viscosity-confined dry gel conversion (VCDGC) for zeolite hollow fiber membrane fabrication. We demonstrate in detail the VCDGC synthesis of small-pore CHA zeolite membranes. Extensive permeation measurements reveal that dry gel-processed CHA zeolite hollow fiber membranes have excellent gas and hydrocarbon separation characteristics well exceeding or comparable to current membranes. Medium-pore MFI membranes are also fabricated, and their favorable hydrocarbon separation characteristics indicate the versatility and reliability of the VCDGC method.

The Impact of Global Budgeting on the Efficiency of Healthcare under a Single-Payer System in Taiwan.

Since 1995, a national health insurance (NHI) program has been in operation in Taiwan, which provides uniform comprehensive coverage. Forced by severe financial deficit, global budgeting reimbursement was adopted in the healthcare sector to control healthcare expenditures in 2002. A two-stage data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach was used to measure the efficiency of hospital resource allocation among stakeholders in Taiwan's NHI system, and to further explore the changes in resource allocation after the introduction of a global budgeting payment scheme. The dataset was collected from the annual statistical reports of Taiwan's Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) and was used to estimate the efficiency of resource allocation in hospital-based healthcare services under global budgeting. In terms of efficiency during the period from 2003 to 2009, one-third of decision-making units (DMUs) improved their productivity in stage I, and seven out of the total of eighteen DMUs saw falls in financial efficiency in stage II. After global budgeting was implemented, there were significant positive impacts on the efficiency of hospital resource allocation in Taiwan. The two-stage DEA model for analyzing the effects of the global budgeting reimbursement system on productivity and financial efficiency represents a key decision-making tool for hospital administrators and policymakers.

Muscle Mass and Gait Characteristics in Older Women Fallers vs. Non-Fallers.

BACKGROUND: Falling is a major public health concern of elderly people. We aimed to determine if lean mass and spatiotemporal gait parameters could predict the risk of falling in elderly women and also study the relationships between lean mass and gait characteristics. METHODS: Twenty-four community women were prospectively recruited (mean age, 72.30 ± 5.31 years). Lean mass was measured using dual-energy fan-beam X-ray absorptiometry. Gait characteristics were assessed using spatiotemporal analysis. Fall risks were assessed using the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) and the Falls Efficacy Scale-International. Fall histories were recorded. Appropriate statistical analyses were applied to determine lean mass and gait characteristics in predicting the risk of fall and the associations between lean mass and gait characteristics. RESULTS: There were 14 participants (58.33%) with fall histories. Patients with fall histories had a significantly narrower base of support and lower BBS score. However, only the base of support was significantly associated with fall risk (odds ratio, 0.415; p = 0.022). Lean mass was significantly negatively associated with proportion of swing phase and positively associated with proportions of stance and double-support phases. CONCLUSION: Fall risk among elderly women can be predicted using base of support, where a narrower base predicts a greater fall risk. Although the lean mass was not related to risk of fall, lean mass is still related to some gait characteristics.

Cu-doped cerium oxide-based nanomedicine for tumor microenvironment-stimulative chemo-chemodynamic therapy with minimal side effects.

CeO2 nanoenzyme possesses multiple enzyme-mimicking activities and excellent biocompatibility. However, its weak peroxidase (POD)-mimicking property in the tumor microenvironment (TME) hinders its further tumor therapy application. To enhance CeO2 nanoenzyme's POD activity and overcome limitations of single therapeutic modality, a novel antitumor controlled drug release system (CCCs NPs) was designed using Cu doped cerium oxide nanoparticles (Cu-CeO2 NPs) loaded with clinical anti-cancer drug doxorubicin (DOX) as the core and the breast cancer cell membrane as the outer shell. Cu doping endowed CeO2 NPs' with significantly enhanced POD-mimicking activity in the TME due to a remarkably higher Ce3+/Ce4+ ratio. The cancer cell membrane coating enabled our nanomedicine with homotypic targeting property. Combined with chemotherapeutic drug DOX, a selective and nearly complete tumor suppression was demonstrated in vitro and in vivo. Remarkably, under physiological condition, CCCs NPs worked as a radical scavenger to protect normal cells from oxidative stress caused by anti-cancer drug DOX and OH generated via Fenton-like reaction. Collectively, our CCCs NPs offered a therapeutic potential for effective breast cancer therapy while being free of side effects.

Determining the stability of minimally displaced lateral humeral condyle fractures in children: ultrasound is better than arthrography.

BACKGROUND: Evaluating of the articular cartilage status of the distal humeral epiphysis is difficult. Ultrasound imaging of the elbow is increasingly being used to confirm the integrity of the articular cartilage of minimally displaced lateral humeral condyle fractures in children with minimally displaced fractures. The aims of this study were to assess the correlations between ultrasound and arthrography findings for predicting the integrity of the cartilage hinge and to describe the utility of ultrasound in determining the need for pre-treatment. METHODS: Thirty-nine patients with minimally displaced lateral humeral condyle fractures who underwent ultrasound and arthrography examinations before surgery from May 2018 to December 2019 were included in this study. Ultrasound and arthrography predictors of the cartilage hinge status were independently measured. The ultrasound and arthrography results were compared. RESULTS: The mean displacement of the fractures was 3.1 mm (range, 2.0~5.0 mm). Arthrography showed incomplete fractures in 24 patients (61.5%) and complete fractures in 15 patients (38.5%). Ultrasound showed incomplete fractures in 25 patients (64.1%) and complete fractures in 14 patients (35.9%). The ultrasound and arthrography results of the integrity of the articular surface were consistent in 92.3% of the cases, including 23 that were predicted to have an intact articular surface and 13 that were predicted to have an incongruity articular surface. There was no correlation between the displacement and the fracture appearing complete on the ultrasound scan. The Pearson coefficient between ultrasound and arthrography for assessing the integrity of the articular surface was 0.837. CONCLUSIONS: Ultrasound and arthrography assessments of the integrity of the cartilage hinge status appear to be highly consistent. Ultrasound can be used as a complementary tool with arthrography to predict the integrity of the cartilage hinge status in children with minimally displaced lateral humeral condyle fractures. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Prospective study; level II.

Entropy-Based Effect Evaluation of Delineators in Tunnels on Drivers' Gaze Behavior.

Driving safety in tunnels has always been an issue of great concern. Establishing delineators to improve drivers' instantaneous cognition of the surrounding environment in tunnels can effectively enhance driver safety. Through a simulation study, this paper explored how delineators affect drivers' gaze behavior (including fixation and scanpath) in tunnels. In addition to analyzing typical parameters, such as fixation position and fixation duration in areas of interest (AOIs), by modeling drivers' switching process as Markov chains and calculating Shannon's entropy of the fit Markov model, this paper quantified the complexity of individual switching patterns between AOIs under different delineator configurations and with different road alignments. A total of 25 subjects participated in this research. The results show that setting delineators in tunnels can attract drivers' attention and make them focus on the pavement. When driving in tunnels equipped with delineators, especially tunnels with both wall delineators and pavement delineators, the participants exhibited a smaller transition entropy H t and stationary entropy H s , which can greatly reduce drivers' visual fatigue. Compared with left curve and right curve, participants obtained higher H t and H s values in the straight section.

All-Nanoporous Hybrid Membranes: Incorporating Zeolite Nanoparticles and Nanosheets with Zeolitic Imidazolate Framework Matrices.

Metal-organic framework (MOF) membranes have attractive molecular separation properties but require challenging thin-film deposition techniques on expensive/specialty supports to obtain high performance relative to conventional polymer membranes. We demonstrate and analyze in detail the new concept of all-nanoporous hybrid membranes (ANHMs), which combines two or more nanoporous materials of different morphologies into a single membrane without the use of any polymeric materials. This allows access to a previously inaccessible region of very high permeability and selectivity properties, a feature that enables ANHMs to show high performance even when fabricated with simple coating and solvent evaporation methods on low-cost supports. We synthesize several types of ANHMs that combine the MOF material ZIF-8 with the high-silica zeolite MFI (the latter being employed in both nanoparticle and nanosheet forms). We show that continuous ANHMs can be obtained with high (∼50%) volume fractions of both MOF and zeolite components. Analysis of the multilayer microstructures of these ANHMs by multiple techniques allows estimation of the propylene/propane separation properties of individual ANHM layers, providing initial insight into the dramatically increased permeability and selectivity observed in ANHMs in relation to single-phase nanoporous membranes.

Detecting normal pediatric brain development with diffusional kurtosis imaging.

PURPOSE: To characterise the pattern of change of diffusional kurtosis imaging (DKI) parameters (including kurtosis and diffusion parameters) in both white matter and gray matter in normal brain development with a large sample of subjects from term-born neonates to 14-years old children. METHODS: Two hundred and eighteen normal children (136 male, 82 female) underwent conventional magnetic resonance imaging and DKI. Regions of interest (ROIs) were placed in 7 white matter areas and 4 gray matter areas. Then the DKI-derived parameters were automatically calculated, including fractional anisotropy (FA), mean diffusivity (MD), axial diffusivity (Da), radial diffusivity (Dr), mean kurtosis (MK), axial kurtosis (Ka) and radial kurtosis (Kr). The correlation between the DKI parameters and ages were analyzed using nonlinear fit, and the rate of parameter change was computed compared to the baseline value of the neonates. RESULTS: For all ROIs in the white matter and gray matter, the FA, MK, Kr, Ka values increased with age, while the MD and Dr values decreased with age. The correlations were good to excellent, which changed rapidly within the first 2 years and relatively slowly after 2 years. The Da values in peripheral white matters and some gray matter structures (caudate nucleus and putamen) decreased with age. The amplitude of kurtosis parameters variation was greater than that of the diffusion parameters in both white matter and gray matter. CONCLUSIONS: The DKI parameters correlated well with age, and kurtosis parameters showed a potential advantage in detecting the normal brain development of children.

Hyperspectral indirect inversion of heavy-metal copper in reclaimed soil of iron ore area.

To explore a rapid detection technology for detecting heavy metals in soil based on hyperspectral data, this paper took an iron mine in Daye Country, Hubei Province, as the research area, used a FieldSpec4 portable ground object spectrometer to obtain soil spectral reflectance and combine the measured data, and used three spectral transformation methods: first-order differential, second-order differential, and continuum removal. We studied the indirect hyperspectral inversion of heavy metals in reclaimed soils in the iron mine area by using three models: partial least squares regression, support vector machine, and back propagation (BP) neural network. The results show that spectral transformation can effectively highlight the position of spectral characteristic bands and improve the correlation between spectral curves and iron (Fe) element concentration. The partial least squares regression model based on first-order differential had the highest inversion accuracy for Fe element concentration in the study area, R2 and RMSE were 0.88 and 0.53, respectively. The correlation analysis of soil elements showed that the highest correlation coefficient between Cu and Fe was 0.81. We selected the copper (Cu) element with the largest correlation coefficient with the Fe element as an example and realized the indirect prediction of soil Cu concentration using a linear regression model and BP neural network model. Among them, the model based on BP neural network is better, R2 was 0.82, RMSE was 0.62, compared with the direct method, the model R2 increased by about 0.2, and the root mean square error decreased by about 0.1. The effect of the indirect method was better than that of the direct method. We selected the optimum statistical interpolation method for spatial analysis of Fe and Cu concentrations in the soil of the study area and further demonstrated the feasibility of the indirect inversion method of heavy metals in the soil of iron mine areas based on hyperspectral data. These results provide a theoretical basis and new ideas for the application of near-earth sensing technology in soil and for efficient detection of heavy metals in iron ore areas.

Evaluating the sustainable traffic flow operational features of an exclusive spur dike U-turn lane design.

The traditional U-turn design has significantly improved traffic operations for relieving traffic congestion. However, the U-turn diversion and merge segments still cause traffic conflicts and delays. In this paper, an exclusive spur dike U-turn lane (ESUL) is proposed with the aim of addressing the disadvantages of the traditional U-turn design. ESUL provides a separate U-turn lane to diverge, decelerate, U-turn, accelerate and merge without interacting with through traffic. The effectiveness of ESUL is demonstrated through a field data investigation, simulation and analysis with VISSIM software. The proposed design is evaluated in terms of three parameters: travel time, delay and number of stops. Compared to the traditional U-turn design, ESUL can reduce travel time by 29.15%, delay by 66.70% and the number of stops by 100% at most. The results showed that ESUL has better performance than the traditional U-turn design and could be implemented to reduce traffic congestion and the potential hazards caused by U-turn maneuvers.