In memory of Professor Ping Wu(1957–2014)

Sadly and miserably, our beloved and respected colleague, Prof. Ping Wu, a renowned plant biologist and the vice- president of Zhejiang University passed away in a car accident in Hangzhou, China, in the morning of June 12, 2014, aged 57.

Shear wave velocity-based liquefaction evaluation in the great Wenchuan earthquake: a preliminary case study

The great Wenchuan earthquake （Ms= 8.0） in 2008 caused severe damage in the western part of the Chengdu Plain. Soil liquefaction was one of the major causes of damage in the plain areas, and proper evaluation of liquefaction potential is important in the definition of the seismic hazard facing a given region and post-earthquake reconstruction. In this paper, a simplified procedure is proposed for liquefaction assessment of sandy deposits using shear wave velocity （V）, and soil liquefaction from the Banqiao School site was preliminarily investigated after the earthquake. Boreholes were made at the site and shear wave velocities were measured both by SASW and down-hole methods. Based on the in-situ soil information and V profiles, the liquefaction potential of this site was evaluated. The results are reasonably consistent with the actual field behavior observed after the earthquake, indicating that the proposed procedure is effective. The possible effects of gravel and fines contents on liquefaction of sandy soils were also briefly discussed.

Preliminary analysis of the hanging wall effect and velocity pulse of the 5.12 Wenchuan earthquake

A preliminary study of the PGA attenuation, hanging wall effect and velocity pulse characteristics from the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake ofMS -8.0 is described in this paper. The study was carried out through analyses in the time and frequency domains of main earthquake records. In the PGA attenuation study, records from 316 stations less than 1000 km from the surface rupture of the fault were used as a database and attenuation relationships were developed and compared with some existing relationships that are widely used in China's Mainland, Chinese Taiwan and the US. At the same time, records from 28 stations less than 100 km from the fault were used to study the hanging wall effect and velocity pulse characteristics of this earthquake based on the distribution of PGA, PGV, spectral acceleration, and the velocity pulse peak, and the results are compared with the 1999 Chi-Chi earthquake. In addition, the large PGAs of the UD components observed in this event are also discussed in this paper. From the results of the preliminary study, some conclusions are developed and suggestions for further research are proposed.

A new framework for evaluating along-wind responses of a transmission tower

In this paper, an analytical framework to evaluate the along-wind-induced dynamic responses of a transmission tower is presented. Two analytical models and a new method are developed： （1） a higher mode generalized force spectrum （GFS） model of the transmission tower is deduced; （2） an analytical model that includes the contributions of the higher modes is further derived as a rational algebraic formula to estimate the structural displacement response; and （3） a new approach, applying load with displacement （ALD） instead of force, to solve the internal force of transmission tower is given. Unlike conventional methods, the ALD method can avoid calculating equivalent static wind loads （ESWLs）. Finally, a transmission tower structure is used as a numerical example to verify the feasibility and accuracy of the ALD method.

A new look at the response surface method for reliability analysis using chaos theory

To overcome excessive computation errors and convergence failures encountered in an iterative calculation of the reliability index using the response surface method （RSM） for some nonlinear limit state functions, this study investigates an essential factor based on chaotic dynamics theory. The bifurcation diagrams of the reliability index are presented for some typical nonlinear limit state functions, and the computation results from the mapping functions due to the RSM iterations show the complicated dynamic phenomena such as the periodic oscillation, as well as bifurcation and chaos. From the numerical examples, it is concluded that the parameter of selection range fplays an important role in the convergence of the RSM iteration, and an improved RSM iterative algorithm is proposed with regard to the incorporation of the iterative sequential function of selection rangef The proposed method is shown to be efficient and to yield accurate results.

Experimental investigation of damage behavior of RC frame members including non-seismically designed columns

Reinforced concrete （RC） frame structures are one of the mostly common used structural systems, and their seismic performance is largely determined by the performance of columns and beams. This paper describes horizontal cyclic loading tests often column and three beam specimens, some of which were designed according to the current seismic design code and others were designed according to the early non-seismic Chinese design code, aiming at reporting the behavior of the damaged or collapsed RC frame strctures observed during the Wenchuan earthquake. The effects of axial load ratio, shear span ratio, and transverse and longitudinal reinforcement ratio on hysteresis behavior, ductility and damage progress were incorporated in the experimental study. Test results indicate that the non-seismically designed columns show premature shear failure, and yield larger maximum residual crack widths and more concrete spalling than the seismically designed columns. In addition, longitudinal steel reinforcement rebars were severely buckled. The axial load ratio and shear span ratio proved to be the most important factors affecting the ductility, crack opening width and closing ability, while the longitudinal reinforcement ratio had only a minor effect on column ductility, but exhibited more influence on beam ductility. Finally, the transverse reinforcement ratio did not influence the maximum residual crack width and closing ability of the seismically designed columns.

Surgical trauma and postoperative nutrition:A longitudinal study of muscle protein metabolism

A catabolic state develops following surgical trau-ma.including weight loss and muscle wasting,whichleads to an increased loss of nitrogen in the urineThere is a decrease in muscle protein synthesis and anincreased translocation of amino acids from muscle tothe splanchnic area.This results in an impoverish-ment of muscle free amino acids.mainly GLN,andeventually impairment of muscle function which can-not be counteracted by conventional TPN.However,TPN supplemented with GLN improves nitrogen bal-