A stability evaluation method for deep-seated toppling in the upper Lancang river,Southwestern China

Deep-seated toppling in the upper reaches of the Lancang River,southwest China involves deformations exceeding 100 m in depth.The slope deformation is initiated by river downcutting and evolves distinctive characteristics with a depth of river incision.In this study,we propose a system for evaluating the stability of deep-seated toppled slopes in different evolutionary stages.This system contains identification criteria for each evolutionary stage and provides the corresponding stability evaluation methods.Based on the mechanical and kinematic analysis of slope blocks,the specific stage of slope movement can be identified in the field through outcrop mapping,in situ tests,surface displacement monitoring,and adit and borehole explorations.The stability evaluation methods are established based on the limiting equilibrium theory and the strain compatibility between the undisturbed zone and the toppled zone.Finally,several sample slopes in different evolution stages have been investigated to verify the applicability and accuracy of the proposed stability evaluation system.The results indicate that intense tectonic activity and rapid river incision lead to a maximum principal stress ratio exceeding 10 near the slope surface,thus triggering widespread toppling deformations along the river valley.When considering the losses of joint cohesion during the further rotation process,the safety factor of the slope drops by 7%e28%.The self-stabilization of toppling deformation can be recognized by the layer symmetry configuration after the free rotation of the deflected layers.Intensely toppled rock blocks mainly suffer sliding failures beyond the layer symmetry condition.The factor of safety of the K73 rockslide decreased from 1.17 to 0.87 by considering the development of the potential sliding surface and the toesaturated zone.

Inconsistency of changes in uniaxial compressive strength and P-wave velocity of sandstone after temperature treatments

It is generally accepted that the uniaxial compressive strength(UCS)and P-wave velocity of rocks tend to decrease simultaneously with increasing temperature.However,based on a great number of statistical data and systematic analysis of the microstructure variation of rocks with temperature rising and corresponding propagation mechanism of elastic wave,the results show that(1)There are three different trends for the changes of UCS and P-wave velocity of sandstone when heated from room temperature(20C or 25C)to 800C:(i)Both the UCS and P-wave velocity decrease simultaneously;(ii)The UCS increases initially and then decreases,while the P-wave velocity decreases continuously;and(iii)The UCS increases initially and then fluctuates,while the P-wave velocity continuously decreases.(2)The UCS changes at room temperaturee400C,400Ce600C,and 600Ce800C are mainly attributed to the discrepancy of microstructure characteristics and quartz content,the transformation plasticity of clay minerals,and the balance between the thermal cementation and thermal damage,respectively.(3)The inconsistency in the trends of UCS and P-wave velocity changes is caused by the change of quartz content,phase transition of water and certain minerals.

Finite-time control of linear parameter-varying systems with norm-bounded exogenous disturbance

In this paper, a new approach is presented for finite-time control problems for linear systems subject to time-varying parametric uncertainties and exogenous disturbance. The disturbance is assumed to be time varying and bounded. Sufficient conditions are obtained for the existence of a linear parameter-dependent state feedback gain, which can ensure that the closed-loop system is finite-time bounded （FTB）. The conditions can be reduced to feasibility problems involving LMIs. Numerical examples show the validity of the proposed methodology.

Sandstone-concrete interface transition zone (ITZ) damage and debonding micromechanisms under freeze-thaw

The sufficient bond between concrete and rock is an important prerequisite to ensure the effect of shotcrete support. However, in cold regions engineering protection system, the bond condition of rock and concrete surface is easily affected by freeze-thaw cycles, resulting in interface damage, debonding and even supporting failure. Understanding the micromechanisms of the damage and debonding of the rock-concrete interface is essential for improving the interface protection.Therefore, the micromorphology, micromechanical properties, and microdebonding evolution of the sandstone-concrete interface transition zone(ITZ) under varying freeze-thaw cycles(0, 5, 10, 15, 20) were studied using scanning electron microscope, stereoscopic microscope, and nano-indentation. Furthermore, the distribution range and evolution process of ITZ affected by freeze-thaw cycles were defined. Major findings of this study are as follows:(1) The microdamage evolution law of the ITZ under increasing freeze-thaw cycles is clarified, and the relationship between the number of cracks in the ITZ and freeze-thaw cycles is established;(2) As the number of freeze-thaw cycles increases, the ITZ's micromechanical strength decreases, and its development width tends to increase;(3) The damage and debonding evolution mechanisms of sandstone-concrete ITZ under freeze-thaw cycles is revealed, and its micromechanical evolution model induced by freeze-thaw cycles is proposed.

Two Ultraviolet Radiation Datasets that Cover China

Ultraviolet（UV） radiation has significant effects on ecosystems, environments, and human health, as well as atmospheric processes and climate change. Two ultraviolet radiation datasets are described in this paper. One contains hourly observations of UV radiation measured at 40 Chinese Ecosystem Research Network stations from 2005 to 2015. CUV3 broadband radiometers were used to observe the UV radiation, with an accuracy of 5%, which meets the World Meteorology Organization＇s measurement standards. The extremum method was used to control the quality of the measured datasets. The other dataset contains daily cumulative UV radiation estimates that were calculated using an all-sky estimation model combined with a hybrid model. The reconstructed daily UV radiation data span from 1961 to 2014. The mean absolute bias error and root-mean-square error are smaller than 30% at most stations, and most of the mean bias error values are negative, which indicates underestimation of the UV radiation intensity. These datasets can improve our basic knowledge of the spatial and temporal variations in UV radiation. Additionally, these datasets can be used in studies of potential ozone formation and atmospheric oxidation, as well as simulations of ecological processes.

An improved approach to H-two control withregional stability constraints

This paper presents an improved method for H-two control with regional stability constraints for the closedloop system. The controller is given by the convex combination of a set of fixed gains. Both continuous and discrete-time systems in a known polytopic domain are investigated. New LMI-based sufficient conditions for the existence of parameterdependent Lyapunov functions are proposed. Numerical examples are given to show the proposed conditions provide useful and less conservative results for the problems of H-two control with regional stability constraints.

Flocking Control of a Group of Agents Using a Fuzzy-Logic-Based Attractive/Repulsive Function

In this study, a novel procedure is presented for control and analysis of a group of autonomous agents with point mass dynamics achieving flocking motion by using a fuzzy-logic-based attractive/repulsive function. Two cooperative control laws are proposed for a group of autonomous agents to achieve flocking formations related to two different centers (mass center and geometric center) of the flock. The first one is designed for flocking motion guided at mass center and the other for geometric center. A virtual agent is introduced to represent a group objective for tracking purposes. Smooth graph Laplacian is introduced to overcome the difficulties in theoretical analysis. A new fuzzy-logic-based attractive/repulsive function is proposed for separation and cohesion control among agents. The theoretical results are presented to indicate the stability (separation, collision avoidance and velocity matching) of the control systems. Finally, simulation example is demonstrated to validate the theoretical results.

Enlarged fins of Tibetan catfish provide new evidence of adaptation to high plateau

The uplift of the Tibetan Plateau significantly altered the geomorphology and climate of the Euroasia by creating large mountains and rivers.Fishes are more likely to be affected relative to other organisms,as they are largely restricted to river systems.Faced with the rapidly flowing water in the Tibetan Plateau,a group of catfish has evolved greatly enlarged pectoral fins with more numbers of fin-rays to form an adhesive apparatus.However,the genetic basis of these adaptations in Tibetan catfishes remains elusive.In this study,we performed comparative genomic analyses based on the chromosome-level genome of Glyptosternum maculatum in family Sisoridae and detected some proteins with conspicuously high evolutionary rates in particular in genes involved in skeleton development,energy metabolism,and hypoxia response.We found that the hoxd12a gene evolved faster and a loss-of-function assay of hoxd12a supports a potential role for this gene in shaping the enlarged fins of these Tibetan catfishes.Other genes with amino acid replacements and signatures of positive selection included proteins involved in low temperature(TRMU)and hypoxia(VHL)responses.Functional assays reveal that the G.maculatum TRMU allele generates more mitochondrial ATP than the ancestral allele found in low-altitude fishes.Functional assays of VHL alleles suggest that the G.maculatum allele has lower transactivation activity than the low-altitude forms.These findings provide a window into the genomic underpinnings of physiological adaptations that permit G.maculatum to survive in the harsh environment of the Tibetan Himalayas that mirror those that are convergently found in other vertebrates such as humans.

Decadal water storage decrease driven by vegetation changes in the Yellow River Basin

The Yellow River is the second largest river in China,and it is of paramount importance as it serves various hydro-ecological functions for its inhabitants and environment.It consumes 12%of the water in China,with annual runoff accounting for 2%of the whole country.For sustainable water resources management under climate change and land cover changes(mainly the vegetation change),it is essential to understand the terrestrial water storage change(WSC)and its major driving factors in the Yellow River Basin(YRB)[1].

Comparison of winter wheat yield sensitivity to climate variables under irrigated and rain-fed conditions

Crop simulation models provide alternative, less time-consuming, and cost-effective means of deter- mining the sensitivity of crop yield to climate change. In this study, two dynamic mechanistic models, CERES （Crop Environment Resource Synthesis） and APSIM （Agricultural Production Systems Simulator）, were used to simulate the yield of wheat （Triticum aestivum L.） under well irrigated （CFG） and rain-fed （YY） conditions in relation to different climate variables in the North China Plain （NCP）. The study tested winter wheat yield sensitivity to different levels of temperature, radiation, precipitation, and atmospheric carbon dioxide （COa） concentration under CFG and YY conditions at Luancheng Agro-ecosystem Experimental Stations in the NCR The results from the CERES and APSIM wheat crop models were largely consistent and suggested that changes in climate variables influenced wheat grain yield in the NCR There was also significant variation in the sensitivity of winter wheat yield to climate variables under different water （CFG and YY） conditions. While a temperature increase of 2℃ was the threshold beyond which temperature negatively influenced wheat yield under CFG, a temperature rise exceeding 1℃ decreased winter wheat grain yield under YY. A decrease in solar radiation decreased wheat grain yield under both CFG and YY conditions. Although the sensitivity of winter wheat yield to precipitation was small under the CFG, yield decreased significantly with decreasing precipitation under the rain- fed YY treatment. The results also suggest that wheat yield under CFG linearly increased by ≈ 3.5% per 60 ppm （parts per million） increase in CO2 concentration from 380 to560ppm, and yield under YY increased linearly by ≈ 7.0% for the same increase in CO2 concentration.

Molecular phylogeny and divergence time estimates using the mitochondrial genome for the hadal snailfish from the Mariana trench

Snailfishes are an important component of the hadal fish fauna[1].Based on osteological and other morphological characters,Kido[2]recognized the Cyclopteridae as a sister group to the Liparidae and the superfamily Cottoidea as a sister group to the two families.The close relationship between Liparidae and Cyclopteridae is