Data Analytics of an Information System Based on a Markov Decision Process and a Partially Observable Markov Decision Process

Data analytics of an information system is conducted based on a Markov decision process(MDP)and a partially observable Markov decision process(POMDP)in this paper.Data analytics over a finite planning horizon and an infinite planning horizon for a discounted MDP is performed,respectively.Value iteration(VI),policy iteration(PI),and Q-learning are utilized in the data analytics for a discounted MDP over an infinite planning horizon to evaluate the validity of the MDP model.The optimal policy to minimize the total expected cost of states of the information system is obtained based on the MDP.In the analytics for a discounted POMDP over an infinite planning horizon of the information system,the effects of various parameters on the total expected cost of the information system are studied.

Electroacupuncture diminishes P2X_2 and P2X_3 purinergic receptor expression in dorsal root ganglia of rats with visceral hypersensitivity

Electroacupuncture at Shangjuxu （ST37） and Tianshu （ST25） can improve visceral hypersensitivity in rats. Colorectal distension was used to establish a rat model of chronic visceral hypersensitivity. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect P2X2 and P2X3 receptor expression in dorsal root ganglia from rats with chronic visceral hypersensitivity. Results demonstrated that abdominal withdrawal reflex scores obviously increased following establishment of the model, indicating visceral hypersensitivity. Simultaneously, P2X2 and P2X3 receptor expression increased in dorsal root ganglia. After bilateral electroacupuncture at Shangjuxu and Tianshu, abdominal withdrawal reflex scores and P2X2 and P2X3 receptor expression decreased in rats with visceral hypersensitivity. These results indicated that electroacupuncture treatment improved visceral hypersensitivity in rats with irritable bowel syndrome by reducing P2X2 and P2X3 receptor expression in dorsal root ganglia.

Characterization of 500 Chinese patients with cervical esophageal cancer by clinicopathological and treatment outcomes

Objective: There are no comprehensive studies on survival outcomes and optimal treatment protocols for cervical esophageal cancer(CEC), due to its rare clinical prevalence. Our objective was to determine the relationship between pathological characteristics, treatment protocols, and survival outcomes in Chinese CEC patients.Methods: A total of 500 Chinese CEC patients were selected from our 500,000 esophageal and gastric cardia carcinoma database(1973–2018). There were two main groups: patients treated with surgery, and patients receiving non-surgical treatments(radiotherapy, radiochemotherapy, and chemotherapy). The Chi-square test and Kaplan–Meier method were used to compare the continuous variables and survival.Results: Among the 500 CEC patients, 278(55.6%) were male, and the median age was 60.9 ± 9.4 years. A total of 496 patients(99.2%) were diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma. In 171(34.2%) patients who received surgery, 22(12.9%) had undergone laryngectomy. In 322(64.4%) patients who received non-surgical treatments, 245(76.1%) received radiotherapy. Stratified survival analysis showed that only T stage was related with survival outcomes for CEC patients in the surgical group, and the outcomes between laryngectomy and non-laryngectomy patients were similar. It was noteworthy that the 5-year survival rate was similar in CEC patients among the different groups treated with surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, or radiochemotherapy(P = 0.244). Conclusions: The CEC patients had similar survival outcomes after curative esophagectomy and radiotherapy, including those with or without total laryngectomy. These findings suggest that radiotherapy could be the initial choice for treatment of Chinese CEC patients.

河南人群中基质金属蛋白酶3Lys45G1u基因多态性与食管鳞癌遗传易感性的关联分析(英文)

Objective: The aim of the study was to investigate the association of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) genetic susceptibility with the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs679620 (-Lys45Glu-) in exon 2 of the mmp3 gene, and the population in high incidence region of Henan (China) was selected for exploring the mechanism by case-control study. Methods: The mmp3 SNP was genotyped by PCR-RFLP analysis in total 605 cases of Henan population, in which there were 227 ESCC cases and 197 controls of An-yang in Henan plus 181 controls of emigrants in Hubei from Xi-chuan of Henan, China. Results: The statistic data showed that G/G and G/A genotype frequencies of SNP rs679620 were significantly different between the controls of emigrants of Xi-chuan in Hubei and controls of An-yang in Henan (P < 0.01) also the ESCC cases of An-yang in Henan (P < 0.01), respectively. Conclusion: This study suggests that the SNP rs679620 (-Lys45Glu-) in exon 2 of the mmp3 gene might be associated with ESCC genetic susceptibility.

Reflections on the withdrawal of medical articles and the development of writing and publishing standards

In recent years,the withdrawal of several batches of articles from international academic journals has negatively affected Chinese scholars.The Chinese government,the scientific community,and many scientific researchers have made substantial efforts to rectify this problem.This Editorial reviews the mass withdrawal events as a whole;identifies their causes;and systematically investigates China’s policy adjustments,institutional arrangements,and regulatory mechanisms in response.We hope that,in addition to reminding authors to pay greater attention to avoiding withdrawals,this Editorial will provide guidance to help them conduct scientific research and present their achievements in a more standardized manner.

Catalytic urea hydrolysis by composite metal oxide catalyst towards efficient urea-based SCR process:performance evaluation and mechanism investigation

As a promising option to provide gaseous NH_(3) for SCR system,catalytic urea hydrolysis has aroused great attention,and improving surface area and activity of catalysis are the crucial issues to be solved for efficient urea hydrolysis.Therefore,a composite metal oxide(TiO_(2)@Al_(2)O_(3))catalyst was prepared by a simple hydrothermal method,with mesoporous alumina(γ-Al_(2)O_(3))as substrate.The results verify the mesoporous structure and submicron cluster of TiO_(2)@Al_(2)O_(3),with exposed crystal faces of(101)and(400)for TiO_(2)andγ-Al_(2)O_(3),respectively.The electronegativity difference of Ti4+and Al3+changes the charge distribution scheme around the interface,which provides abundant acid/base sites to boost the urea hydrolysis.Consequently,for an optimal proportioning with nano TiO_(2)content at 10 wt.%,the hydrolysis efficiency can reach up to 35.2%at 100℃ in 2 h,increasing by~7.1%than that of the blank experiment.^(13)C NMR spectrum measurements provide the impossible intermediate species during urea hydrolysis.Theoretical calculations are performed to clarify the efficient H_(2)O decomposition at the interface of TiO_(2)@Al_(2)O_(3).The result offers a favorable technology for energy-efficiency urea hydrolysis.

Constructing heterojunction interface of Co_(3)O_(4)/TiO_(2) for efficiently accelerating acetaminophen degradation via photocatalytic activation of sulfite

Achieving efficient degradation of organic pollutants via activation of sulfite is meaningful but challenging.Herein,we have constructed a heterogeneous catalyst system involving Co_(3)O_(4) and TiO_(2) nanoparticles to form the p-n heterojunction(Co_(3)O_(4)/TiO_(2)) to degrade acetaminophen(ACE) through photocatalytic activation of sulfite.Specifically,X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis and theoretical calculations provide compelling evidence of electron transfer from Co_(3)O_(4) to TiO_(2) at the heterointerface.The interfacial electron redistribution of Co_(3)O_(4)/TiO_(2) tunes the adsorption energy of HSO_(3)^(-)/SO_(3)^(2-) in sulfite activation process for enhanced the catalytic activity.Owing to its unique heterointerface,the degradation efficiency of ACE reached 96.78%within 10 min.The predominant active radicals were identified as ·OH,h^(+),and SO_(x)^(·-) through radical quenching experiments and electron spin resonance capture.Besides,the possible degradation pathway was deduced by monitoring the generated intermediate products.Thereafter,the enhanced roles of well-engineered compositing interface in photocatalytic activation of sulfite for complete degradation of ACE were unveiled that it can improve light absorption ability,facilitate the generation of active species,and optimize reactive pathways.Considering that sulfite is a waste from flue gas desulfurization process,the photocatalytic activation of sulfite system will open up new avenues of beneficial use of air pollutants for the removal of pharmaceutical wastewater.

钼酸铵生产流程中含钾矿物的释钾机理研究

钾在钼酸铵及后续钼产品中作为一种有害元素,通常希望其含量越低越好。本工作通过模拟不同实验条件对水洗降钾的影响,用ICP、分光光度计及SEM-EDS等传统物相检测方法对钼酸铵生产流程中各阶段矿物进行定性分析,并结合先进的自动矿物参数分析系统(MLA)进行定量分析,得出提高水洗温度、细磨钼焙砂和添加Na2CO3可提高水洗降钾效果。实验数据和热力学分析结果进一步表明,在钼精矿焙烧过程中云母会生成正长石和钡铁云母,在此基础上进一步分析了不同含钾矿物的释钾行为,得出4种含钾矿物进入钼酸铵产品的难易程度为:正长石>云母>钡铁云母>伊利石。研究结果对低钾钼产品的生产及其应用具有重要意义。

Effect of Ball Milling on the Defeat of Few-Layer Graphene and Properties of Copper Matrix Composites

Graphene-reinforced copper composites recently have attracted more attention, since they exhibited excellent mechanical properties and could be used widely in many fields. Few-layer graphene （FLG） and copper powder were mixed by ball milling to produce homogeneous composite powders. Then, FLG-reinforced copper composites （FLG/Cu） were fabricated by spark plasma sintering （SPS） using the composite powders with a FLG volume fraction of 2.4 vol%. The effects of the rotating speed and the time of ball milling were analyzed based on the microstructure evolution and properties of the FLG/Cu composites. Obvious strengthening effect of FLG was found for the composites, and the conductance of the composite reaches 70.4% of IACS. The yield strength of the composite produced by ball milling at a speed of 100 r/rain for 4 h is 376 MPa, which is 2.5 times higher than that of copper and higher than that of copper composite enhanced by 5 vol% CNTs （360 MPa）. The defects produced in FLG with the increase of rotating speed and time could reduce the mechanical and conductive properties of the composites.

Effect of H_2 Reduction Temperature on the Properties of Reduced Graphene Oxide and Copper Matrix Composites

Reduced graphene oxide （RGO） and copper composites （RGO/Cu） were successfully fabricated based on a molecular-level mixing method （MLM）. The composite powders were reduced in H2 at 350, 450, and 550℃ and then consolidated by spark plasma sintering （SPS） in order to evaluate the effect of H2 reduction temperature on the properties of the composites. The results indicate that the strengths of the composite decrease with the increase of H2 reduction temperature, while the electrical conductivity reaches its maximum at 450 ℃ and minimum at 550 ℃. Hot rolling could benefit the electrical conductivity. The yield strength of the RGO/Cu composite reduced to 337 MPa at 350℃. The electrical conductivity of the RGO/Cu composite reduced at 450℃ after hot rolling reaches 60.26% IACS. The properties of the RGO/Cu composites can be designed by adjusting the reduction degree of RGO and by hot rolling.

Selenium uptake and simultaneous catalysis of sulfite oxidation in ammonia-based desulfurization

Accelerating the(NH_4)_(2)SO_(3) oxidation gives rise to the reclaiming of byproduct, while there are secondary environmental risks from reduction of the coexisted selenium species by sulfite. In this study, a bi-functional Co-SBA-15-SH, were synthesized through Co impregnation and sulfhydryl(-SH) decoration, which can simultaneously uptake Se and accelerate sulfite oxidation efficiently. Meanwhile, the adsorption kinetics and migration mechanism of Se species were revealed through characterization and density functional calculations, with maximum adsorption capacity of 223 mg/g. The inhibition of Se~0 re-emission and poisonous effect of Se on sulfite oxidation was also investigated. Using the findings of this study, the ammonia desulfurization can be improved by enabling purification of the byproduct and lowering the toxicity of effluent by removing toxic pollutants.