Coalescence of Pickering emulsion droplets induced by an electric field

Combining high-speed photography with electric current measurement, we investigate the electrocoalescence of Pickering emulsion droplets. Under high enough electric field, the originally-stable droplets coalesce via two distinct approaches: normal coalescence and abnormal coalescence. In the normal coalescence, a liquid bridge grows continuously and merges two droplets together, similar to the classical picture. In the abnormal coalescence, however, the bridge fails to grow indefinitely; instead it breaks up spontaneously due to the geometric constraint from particle shells. Such connecting-then-breaking cycles repeat multiple times, until a stable connection is established. In depth analysis indicates that the defect size in particle shells determines the exact merging behaviors: when the defect size is larger than a critical size around the particle diameter, normal coalescence will show up; while abnormal coalescence will appear for coatings with smaller defects.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure

Glucose-fueled Micromotors with Highly Efficient Visible Light Photocatalytic Propulsion

Synthetic micro/nanomotors fueled by glucose are highly desired for numerous practical applications because of the biocompatibility of their required fuel. However, currently all of the glucose-fueled micro/nanomotors are based on enzyme-catalytic-driven mechanisms, which usually suffer from strict operation conditions and weak propulsion characteristics that greatly limit their applications. Here, we report a highly efficient glucose-fueled cuprous oxide@N-doped carbon nanotube (Cu_2O@N-CNT) micromotor, which can be activated by environment-friendly visible-light photocatalysis. The speeds of such Cu_2O@N-CNT micromotors can reach up to 18.71 μm/s, which is comparable to conventional Pt-based catalytic Janus micromotors usually fueled by toxic H_2O_2 fuel. In addition, the velocities of such motors can be efficiently regulated by multiple approaches, such as adjusting the N-CNT content within the micromotors, glucose concentrations, or light intensities. Furthermore, the Cu_2O@N-CNT micromotors exhibit a highly controllable negative phototaxis behavior (moving away from light sources). Such motors with outstanding propulsion in biological environments and wireless, repeatable, and light-modulated three-dimensional motion control are extremely attractive for future practical applications

A Contrastive Study of Image Repair Strategies Between Chinese and English Corporate Apologies

In the era of globalization, social media have become important communication tools for enterprises in crisis. Corporate apologies are issued via social media to repair the tarnished corporate image, which might affect their survival. However, the way of apologizing varies from language/culture to language/culture. This study aims to investigate how Chinese and English corporate apologies are linguistically presented and to explore how damaged corporate image in different culture is repaired respectively. Under the framework of Benoit’s image repair strategies and CCSARP, and based on quantitative and qualitative analysis of the collected data, this paper makes a contrastive study of Chinese and English corporate apologies. The results show that Chinese and English corporate apologies share great similarities in using the strategies of mortification and corrective actions, while they are different in terms of other specific tactics such as bolstering, good intentions, defeasibility and minimization. It is also found that the denial is the least used strategy by both Chinese and English corporations to repair their tarnished image. Furthermore, they are quite t similar in using IFIDs, while intensifiers and hedges are more frequently employed in Chinese corporate apologies

A Survey of Blockchain Applications in Different Domains

Blockchains have received much attention recently since they provide decentralized approaches to the creation and management of value. Many banks, Internet companies, car manufacturers, and even governments worldwide have incorporated or started considering blockchains to improve the security, scalability, and efficiency of their services. In this paper, we survey blockchain applications in different areas. These areas include cryptocurrency, healthcare, advertising, insurance, copyright protection, energy, and societal applications. Our work provides a timely summary for individuals and organizations interested in blockchains. We envision our study to motivate more blockchain applications.Comment: Published in Proceedings of the 2018 International Conference on Blockchain Technology and Application (ICBTA

Analytical Modeling of Acoustic Exponential Materials and Physical Mechanism of Broadband Anti-Reflection

Spatially exponential distributions of material properties are ubiquitous in many natural and engineered systems, from the vertical distribution of the atmosphere to acoustic horns and anti-reflective coatings. These media seamlessly interface different impedances, enhancing wave transmission and reducing internal reflections. This work advances traditional transfer matrix theory by integrating analytical solutions for acoustic exponential materials, which possess exponential density and/or bulk modulus, offering a more accurate predictive tool and revealing the physical mechanism of broadband anti-reflection for sound propagation in such non-uniform materials. Leveraging this method, we designed an acoustic dipole array that effectively mimics exponential mass distribution. Through experiments with precisely engineered micro-perforated plates, we demonstrate an ultra-low reflection rate of about 0.86% across a wide frequency range from 420 Hz to 10,000 Hz. Our modified transfer matrix approach underpins the design of exponential materials, and our layering strategy for stacking acoustic dipoles suggests a pathway to more functional gradient acoustic metamaterials.Comment: 13 pages, 5 figure

Solid lipid nanoparticle suspension enhanced the therapeutic efficacy of praziquantel against tapeworm

Hydatid disease caused by tapeworm is an increasing public health and socioeconomic concern. In order to enhance the therapeutic efficacy of praziquantel (PZQ) against tapeworm, PZQ-loaded hydrogenated castor oil solid lipid nanoparticle (PZQ-HCO-SLN) suspension was prepared by a hot homogenization and ultrasonication method. The stability of the suspension at 4°C and room temperature was evaluated by the physicochemical characteristics of the nanoparticles and in-vitro release pattern of the suspension. Pharmacokinetics was studied after subcutaneous administration of the suspension in dogs. The therapeutic effect of the novel formulation was evaluated in dogs naturally infected with Echinococcus granulosus. The results showed that the drug recovery of the suspension was 97.59% ± 7.56%. Nanoparticle diameter, polydispersivity index, and zeta potential were 263.00 ± 11.15 nm, 0.34 ± 0.06, and −11.57 ± 1.12 mV, respectively and showed no significant changes after 4 months of storage at both 4°C and room temperature. The stored suspensions displayed similar in-vitro release patterns as that of the newly prepared one. SLNs increased the bioavailability of PZQ 5.67-fold and extended the mean residence time of the drug from 56.71 to 280.38 hours. Single subcutaneous administration of PZQ-HCO-SLN suspension obtained enhanced therapeutic efficacy against tapeworm in infected dogs. At the dose of 5 mg/kg, the stool-ova reduction and negative conversion rates and tapeworm removal rate of the suspension were 100%, while the native PZQ were 91.55%, 87.5%, and 66.7%. When the dose reduced to 0.5 mg/kg, the native drug showed no effect, but the suspension still got the same therapeutic efficacy as that of the 5 mg/kg native PZQ. These results demonstrate that the PZQ-HCO-SLN suspension is a promising formulation to enhance the therapeutic efficacy of PZQ

Dilated FCN: Listening Longer to Hear Better

Deep neural network solutions have emerged as a new and powerful paradigm for speech enhancement (SE). The capabilities to capture long context and extract multi-scale patterns are crucial to design effective SE networks. Such capabilities, however, are often in conflict with the goal of maintaining compact networks to ensure good system generalization. In this paper, we explore dilation operations and apply them to fully convolutional networks (FCNs) to address this issue. Dilations equip the networks with greatly expanded receptive fields, without increasing the number of parameters. Different strategies to fuse multi-scale dilations, as well as to install the dilation modules are explored in this work. Using Noisy VCTK and AzBio sentences datasets, we demonstrate that the proposed dilation models significantly improve over the baseline FCN and outperform the state-of-the-art SE solutions.Comment: 5 pages; will appear in WASPAA conferenc

The effects and mechanisms of deep free trade agreements on agricultural global value chains

IntroductionIn the context of the growing global trend toward the deep integration of free trade agreements (FTAs), enhanced regional agricultural collaboration has significantly impacted the agricultural global value chains (AGVCs). Clarifying how FTA depth affects a country’s AGVC participation is crucial for promoting high-quality agricultural development and deepening international agricultural cooperation.Methods and goalsThis paper constructs and calculates indicators for FTA depth and the AGVC index, employing fixed effects models, PPML models, and other methods, aiming to empirically analyze how the depth of FTAs influences a country’s participation in AGVC and the mechanisms involved.ResultsThe findings indicate that an increase in FTA depth enhances a country’s degree of participation and position within the AGVC. Both the ‘WTO+’ and ‘WTO-X’ provision depth indices exert a significant positive influence on increasing participation and position within the AGVC, with the ‘WTO-X’ provision depth index demonstrating a more pronounced effect than the ‘WTO+’ provision. Furthermore, the positive effects of increased FTA depth on the integration of developed countries into the AGVC are greater than those on developing countries. Additional analysis reveals that FTA depth promotes trade liberalization and investment facilitation, thereby enhancing countries’ participation and position in the AGVC.DiscussionThe findings of this paper provide reliable empirical evidence for understanding the influence of FTA depth on AGVC and offer valuable policy insights for countries actively pursuing deeper FTAs.Policy recommendationsTo further advance the evolution of AGVC, it is recommended that countries actively promote the signing of deeper FTAs to accelerate trade liberalization and investment facilitation. At the same time, developed countries should strengthen agricultural technology research and development, assisting developing countries through technology transfer to jointly build a sustainable GVC; developing countries should enhance agricultural cooperation and improve their negotiating power in FTA discussions