Preprocessing of Separating Leukocytes Based on Setting Parameters of Lightness Transformation

This paper proposed a new algorithm to separate leukocytes from cytological image by setting parameters of lightness transformation based on the RGB color space, which can make the targets’ color in different areas. In our procedure, an operator is employed in using color features. According to their histogram distribution of hue component in HSL color space after enhancing the contrast of image in RGB color space, the threshold of segmentation between leukocyte and erythrocyte could be achieved well. Especially, this algorithm is more efficient than monochrome for leukocyte segmentation, and the results of experiments show that it provides a good tool for cytological image, which can increase accuracy of segmentation of leukocyte.

Both climate and socioeconomic drivers contribute to vegetation greening of the Loess Plateau

The Loess Plateau(LP)is an ecologically fragile region due to its sensitivities to climate variations and anthropogenic influences[1].The Chinese government recognized the ecological significance of the LP and implemented a series of ecological restoration and conservation policies since 1999.Revegetation of degraded ecosystems of the LP is mainly attributed to the environmental protection policies.These policies are led by Grain for Green(GFG)project,supported by some vegetation conservation programs.The GFG project,also known as the Conversion of Cropland to Forest and Grassland Program,was launched in 1999,and the LP is one of the pilot regions of this project.The first phase of GFG was implemented between 1999 and 2014,and the second phase started in 2015.The local farmers were accommodated by providing grain and cash subsidies for converting their agriculture land into forests and/or grasslands[2].The GFG program has converted approximately 16,000 km^(2)of rain-fed agriculture land to grassland and forests,resulting in a 25%increase in vegetation cover of the LP during 1999 and 2010[3].

Drought Risk Assessment of China’s Mid-Season Paddy

China has the world’s largest population and a large and critically important agricultural sector. Sixty-five percent of the Chinese population lives on paddy rice. However, drought disasters frequently afflict China’s rural population and threate n its food security. It is therefore of paramount importance to assess the drought risk of paddy in China. We establish a quantitative risk assessment model for the drought risk of mid-season paddy and regional-specific vulnerability curves, evaluate the drought risk of mid-season paddy, and compile a series of risk maps. The drought disaster risk rating results indicate that risk is highest in Northeast China, followed by Northwest China, North China, and South China, showing a decreasing trend from north to south. The mid-season paddy area of Northeast China has the highest mean risk index(0.58–0.71), followed by northwestern provinces such as Inner Mongolia and Xinjiang(0.5–0.6), while risk indices in provinces of North China such as Hebei and Shandong range from 0.3–0.5, and the southern provinces show a relatively low level of risk. This article presents the preliminary results of a scientific inquiry on where the high drought risk areas of mid-season paddy are and how high the risk is. These results provide a regional-specific basis for drought risk governance of paddy in China.

Long-term exposure to air pollution and cerebrovascular disease:findings from Beijing Health Management Cohort study

The relationship between air pollution and cerebrovascular disease has become a popular topic,yet research findings are highly heterogeneous.This study aims to investigate this association based on detailed individual health data and a precise evaluation of their exposure levels.The integrated models of generalized additive model,land use regression model and back propagation neural network were used to evaluate the exposure concentrations.And doubly robust additive model was conducted to explore the association between cerebrovascular disease and air pollution after adjusted for demographic characteristics,physical examination,disease information,geographic and socioeconomic status.A total of 25097 subjects were included in the Beijing Health Management Cohort from 2013 to 2018.With a 1µg/m^(3)increase in the concentrations of PM_(2.5),SO_(2)and NO_(2),the incidence risk of cerebrovascular disease increased by 1.02(95%CI:1.008–1.034),1.06(95%CI:1.034–1.095)and 1.02(95%CI:1.010–1.029)respectively.Whereas CO exposure could decrease the risk,with an odds ratio of 0.38(95%CI:0.212–0.626).In the subgroup analysis,individuals under the age of 50 with normal BMI were at higher risk caused by PM2.5,and So2 was considered more hazardous to women.Meanwhile,the protective effect of CO on women and those with normal BMI was stronger.Successful reduction of long-term exposure to PM2.5,SO_(2)and NO_(2)would lead to substantial benefits for decrease the risk of cerebrovascular disease especially for the health of the susceptible individuals.