Indigo Naturalis(青黛)Comes from Blue,but It Excels Blue

Indigo naturalis(青黛)is also called“indigo flower,”“bright cyan,”and“cyan clam powder.”The alias“indigo flower”shows its complex progress about producing dyes.The alias“bright cyan”vividly displays the visual characteristics of indigo naturalis.Its another alias“cyan clam powder”implies its properties,flavors,and particular morphologic characteristics.The name of“indigo naturalis”emphasizes its wide use in ancient times to paint their eyebrows.Indigo naturalis,which comes from the Persian Kingdom,wins the favor and praise of customers in the respects of dye and cosmetics in both Eastern and Western Regions.It not only shows the infinite charm of dye culture in the Western Regions and provides a visual sensation for people,but also adds new color for Chinese medicine culture.

Frankincense,a Special Spice Walking Along the Silk Road

Frankincense is also called“Fumigated land,”“Horsetail spice,”and“Godsend spice.”The alias“Fumigated land”shows its strong fragrance that can cover the whole land.The name of“Horsetail spice”implies its morphologic characteristics and mild effects,and another name of“Godsend spice”indicates its functions of relieving swelling and pain,healing sore,and growing muscle,as if it is the grace donated by God.The name of“Frankincense”displays its complex productive progress.With thick quality and strong fragrance,frankincense acts as daily supplies for religious activities and folk activities due to its low price and a wide range of uses in medicine and daily life.Frankincense shows the infinite charm of spice culture along the Silk Road from the distant Western Regions to the East.At the same time,it enriches the treasure house of traditional Chinese medicine and becomes one of the most popular spices in both eastern and western,nobility and common.

Styrax, Emperor’s Cream from the Western Regions

Styrax is also called“emperor’s cream”and“consciousness-regaining spice.”The alias“emperor’s cream”shows its rarity and preciousness with a strong aroma,and another name of“consciousness-regaining spice”implies its functions of active brain and regaining consciousness,dispelling filth with aroma,and relieving pain.The name of“Styrax”displays its complex productive progress and place of origin.With thick quality,heavyweight,and fragrant smell,Styrax gets further application in beauty,skin care,clothes fumigating,and health keeping after introduced into the Central Plains(central China)from the Western Regions.The name of Styrax not only embodies the mellow appeal of spice culture in the Western Regions but also suggests the history of relationship between foreign culture and traditional Chinese medicine.Furthermore,it indicates the broad mind of“all rivers running into sea”and inclusiveness of Chinese culture.

Design of the Pneumatic Pressure Smart Shoes for an Ankle-Assisted Exoskeleton

Ankle injury is one of the most common joint diseases that people experience during exercise.Most people have suffered ankle injuries at least once in their lives.The studies have shown that the ankle joint provides the most power and torques during the act of walking,compared to the knee and hip joints.This paper presents an ankle joint exoskeleton device,which is mainly used to provide assistance and protection to the human ankle joint with a pneumatic assist drive during walking.The pneumatic pressure smart shoes for this ankle exoskeleton were designed for detecting the human gaits to control the exoskeleton with certain supporting forces to the ankle joints at the appropriate timing.Each smart shoe has two sensors placed in between the wearable layer and the sole.The changes of the foot pressures were measured by the sensors for a microcontroller to control the exoskeleton.Two sets of experimental tests which were 2-month trials and gait selection were used to test the shoes.The experiments of 2-month trials were made to evaluate the stability of the shoes.The results showed that the shoes had no damages,no air leakage,and no malfunctions after the trials.The trials of gait selection were made to test the recognition rate which reached at 99.9%for the shoe system.The results showed that the design of the pneumatic smart shoes for the ankle-assisted exoskeleton met the requirements.