Ballistic Thermal Rectification in Asymmetric Three-Terminal Mesoscopic Dielectric Systems

By coupling the asymmetric three-terminal mesoscopic dielectric system with a temperature probe, at low temperature, the ballistic heat flux flow through the other two asymmetric terminals in the nonlinear response regime is studied based on the Landauer formulation of transport theory. The thermal rectification is attained at the quantum regime. It is a purely quantum effect and is determined by the dependence of the ratio $\tau_{RC}(\omega)/\tau_{RL}(\omega)$ on $\omega$, the phonon's frequency. Where $\tau_{RC}(\omega)$ and $\tau_{RL}(\omega)$ are respectively the transmission coefficients from two asymmetric terminals to the temperature probe, which are determined by the inelastic scattering of ballistic phonons in the temperature probe. Our results are confirmed by extensive numerical simulations.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figure

A genome-wide association study identifies a genomic region for the polycerate phenotype in sheep (Ovis aries)

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Decoupled advection-dispersion method for determining wall thickness of slurry trench cutoff walls

Low-permeability slurry trench cutoff walls are commonly constructed as barriers for containment of subsurface point-source pollution or as part of seepage-control systems on contaminated sites. A method to estimate wall thickness in slurry wall design is proposed based on decoupling the advective and dispersive components of contaminant fluxes through the wall. The relative error of the result obtained by the proposed method compared with that by an analytical solution was found to increase as the ratio of the specified breakthrough exit concentration (c*) to the source concentration (c0) increased. For c*/c0 of less than 0.1, which covers common practical situations, the relative error was not greater than 4% and was always conservative, indicating that the proposed method provides sufficient accuracy for design. For a given breakthrough criterion (i.e., c*/c0), the relative error was low for the scenarios having either a low or high column Peclet number, where either dispersion or advection dominates the contaminant migration, respectively, and the relative error was high for the scenario having an intermediate column Peclet number, in which case the coupling effect of advective and dispersive migrations is relatively high

Eliminating Plasmodium falciparum in Hainan, China: a study on the use of behavioural change communication intervention to promote malaria prevention in mountain worker populations

BACKGROUND: In the island of Hainan, the great majority of malaria cases occur in mountain worker populations. Using the behavioral change communication (BCC) strategy, an interventional study was conducted to promote mountain worker malaria prevention at a test site. This study found the methods and measures that are suitable for malaria prevention among mountain worker populations. METHODS: During the Plasmodium falciparum elimination stage in Hainan, a representative sampling method was used to establish testing and control sites in areas of Hainan that were both affected by malaria and had a relatively high density of mountain workers. Two different methods were used: a BCC strategy and a conventional strategy as a control. Before and after the intervention, house visits, core group discussions, and structural surveys were utilized to collect qualitative and quantitative data regarding mountain worker populations (including knowledge, attitudes, and practices [KAPs]; infection status; and serological data), and these data from the testing and control areas were compared to evaluate the effectiveness of BCC strategies in the prevention of malaria. RESULTS: In the BCC malaria prevention strategy testing areas, the accuracy rates of malaria-related KAP were significantly improved among mountain worker populations. The accuracy rates in the 3 aspects of malaria-related KAP increased from 37.73%, 37.00%, and 43.04% to 89.01%, 91.53%, and 92.25%, respectively. The changes in all 3 aspects of KAP were statistically significant (p < 0.01). In the control sites, the changes in the indices were not as marked as in the testing areas, and the change was not statistically significant (p > 0.05). Furthermore, in the testing areas, both the percentage testing positive in the serum malaria indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) and the number of people inflicted decreased more significantly than in the control sites (p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: The use of the BCC strategy significantly improved the ability of mountain workers in Hainan to avoid malarial infection. Educational and promotional materials and measures were developed and selected in the process, and hands-on experience was gained that will help achieve the goal of total malaria elimination in Hainan

Potential biomarkers relating pathological proteins, neuroinflammatory factors and free radicals in PD patients with cognitive impairment: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: Cognitive impairment strikingly reduces the quality of life of Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients. Studies find that pathological proteins, neuroinflammatory factors and free radicals may involve in the pathogenesis of cognitive impairment of PD, however, results are inconclusive. METHODS: We recruited 62 PD patients and 31 healthy controls. PD patients were identified with cognitive impairment, including PD with mild cognitive impairment (PD-MCI) and PD with dementia (PDD) according to the diagnostic criteria for PD-MCI and PDD issued by Movement Disorder Society Task Force. The levels of pathological proteins, including β-amyloid 1–42 (Aβ1-42),Total-tau (T-tau) and phosphorelated tau (P-tau), neuroinflammatory factors,including tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interferon-γ (INF-γ) and prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)), free radicals, including hydroxyl radical (·OH), hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) and nitric oxide (NO) in cerebrospinal fluid(CSF) were detected. The levels of above factors in CSF were compared among healthy controls and patients with and without cognitive impairment. Correlation analyses were performed between Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score and the levels of above factors in CSF. RESULTS: T-tau level in CSF from PD-CI patients are significantly elevated comparing with those without cognitive impairment and controls (P = 0.016 and 0.004, respectively). The levels of P-tau (S396) and · OH in PD-CI patients are significantly higher than controls (P = 0.001 and 0.014, respectively). IL-6 levels in PD-CI patients are strikingly enhanced comparing with those without cognitive impairment (P = 0.005). MoCA score is negatively correlated with the levels of T-tau (r = -0.340), P-tau (S396) (r = -0.448), IL-6 (r = -0.489) and · OH (r = -0.504) in PD-CI patients. CONCLUSIONS: Elevated levels of T-tau, P-tau (S396), IL-6 and · OH in CSF are significantly correlated with cognitive impairment in PD patients. This investigation may suggest the potential biomarkers relating pathological proteins, neuroinflammatory factors and free radicals in PD patients with cognitive impairment

A simulation study on the measurement of D0-D0bar mixing parameter y at BES-III

We established a method on measuring the \dzdzb mixing parameter $y$ for BESIII experiment at the BEPCII $e^+e^-$ collider. In this method, the doubly tagged $\psi(3770) \to D^0 \overline{D^0}$ events, with one $D$ decays to CP-eigenstates and the other $D$ decays semileptonically, are used to reconstruct the signals. Since this analysis requires good $e/\pi$ separation, a likelihood approach, which combines the $dE/dx$, time of flight and the electromagnetic shower detectors information, is used for particle identification. We estimate the sensitivity of the measurement of $y$ to be 0.007 based on a $20fb^{-1}$ fully simulated MC sample.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figure