Shear behavior and off-fault damage of saw-cut smooth and tension-induced rough joints in granite

The damage of rock joints or fractures upon shear includes the surface damage occurring at the contact asperities and the damage beneath the shear surface within the host rock.The latter is commonly known as off-fault damage and has been much less investigated than the surface damage.The main contribution of this study is to compare the results of direct shear tests conducted on saw-cut planar joints and tension-induced rough granite joints under normal stresses ranging from 1 MPa to 50 MPa.The shear-induced off-fault damages are quantified and compared with the optical microscope observation.Our results clearly show that the planar joints slip stably under all the normal stresses except under 50 MPa,where some local fractures and regular stick-slip occur towards the end of the test.Both post-peak stress drop and stick-slip occur for all the rough joints.The residual shear strength envelopes for the rough joints and the peak shear strength envelope for the planar joints almost overlap.The root mean square(RMS)of asperity height for the rough joints decreases while it increases for the planar joint after shear,and a larger normal stress usually leads to a more significant decrease or increase in RMS.Besides,the extent of off-fault damage(or damage zone)increases with normal stress for both planar and rough joints,and it is restricted to a very thin layer with limited micro-cracks beneath the planar joint surface.In comparison,the thickness of the damage zone for the rough joints is about an order of magnitude larger than that of the planar joints,and the coalesced micro-cracks are generally inclined to the shear direction with acute angles.The findings obtained in this study contribute to a better understanding on the frictional behavior and damage characteristics of rock joints or fractures with different roughness.

Reannotation of the cultivated strawberry genome and establishment of a strawberry genome database

Cultivated strawberry(Fragaria×ananassa)is an important fruit crop species whose fruits are enjoyed by many worldwide.An octoploid of hybrid origin,the complex genome of this species was recently sequenced,serving as a key reference genome for cultivated strawberry and related species of the Rosaceae family.The current annotation of the F.ananassa genome mainly relies on ab initio predictions and,to a lesser extent,transcriptome data.Here,we present the structure and functional reannotation of the F.ananassa genome based on one PacBio full-length RNA library and ninety-two Illumina RNA-Seq libraries.This improved annotation of the F.ananassa genome,v1.0.a2,comprises a total of 108,447 gene models,with 97.85%complete BUSCOs.The models of 19,174 genes were modified,360 new genes were identified,and 11,044 genes were found to have alternatively spliced isoforms.Additionally,we constructed a strawberry genome database(SGD)for strawberry gene homolog searching and annotation downloading.Finally,the transcriptome of the receptacles and achenes of F.ananassa at four developmental stages were reanalyzed and qualified,and the expression profiles of all the genes in this annotation are also provided.Together,this study provides an updated annotation of the F.ananassa genome,which will facilitate genomic analyses across the Rosaceae family and gene functional studies in cultivated strawberry.

Investigation of the Severity of Modular Construction Adoption Barriers with Large-Scale Group Decision Making in an Organization from Internal and External Stakeholder Perspectives

Modular construction as an innovativemethod aids the construction industry in transforming to off-site construction production with high efficiency and environmental friendliness.Despite the obvious advantages,the uptake of modular construction is not booming as expected.However,previous studies have investigated and summarized the barriers to the adoption ofmodular construction.In this research,a Large-ScaleGroupDecisionMaking(LSGDM)-based analysis is first made of the severity of barriers to modular construction adoption from the perspective of construction stakeholders.In addition,the Technology-Organization-Environment(TOE)framework is utilized to identify the barriers based on three contexts(technology,organization,and environment).The Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution(TOPSIS)and LSGDM models are both implemented for the first time to analyze the severity of the barriers to modular adoption based on questionnaire results from internal and external stakeholders in an organization.Finally,in this research,in-depth insights into the severity of barriers are gained,providing a reference for construction organizations to manage modular adoption.

Rosaceae fruit transcriptome database(ROFT)-a useful genomic resource for comparing fruits of apple,peach,strawberry,and raspberry

Rosaceae is a large plant family consisting of many economically important fruit crops including peach,apple,pear,strawberry,raspberry,plum,and others.Investigations into their growth and development will promote both basic understanding and progress toward increasing fruit yield and quality.With the ever-increasing high-throughput sequencing data of Rosaceae,comparative studies are hindered by inconsistency of sample collection with regard to tissue,stage,growth conditions,and by vastly different handling of the data.Therefore,databases that enable easy access and effective utilization of directly comparable transcript data are highly desirable.Here,we describe a database for comparative analysis,ROsaceae Fruit Transcriptome database(ROFT),based on RNA-seq data generated from the same laboratory using similarly dissected and staged fruit tissues of four important Rosaceae fruit crops:apple,peach,strawberry,and red raspberry.Hence,the database is unique in allowing easy and robust comparisons among fruit gene expression across the four species.ROFT enables researchers to query orthologous genes and their expression patterns during different fruit developmental stages in the four species,identify tissue-specific and tissue-/stage-specific genes,visualize and compare ortholog expression in different fruit types,explore consensus co-expression networks,and download different data types.The database provides users access to vast amounts of RNA-seq data across the four economically important fruits,enables investigations of fruit type specification and evolution,and facilitates the selection of genes with critical roles in fruit development for further studies.

Insights into effects of thermotolerant nitrifying and sulfur-oxidizing inoculants on nitrogen-sulfur co-metabolism in sewage sludge composting

In this study,high temperature thermotolerant nitrifying bacteria(TNB)and high temperature thermotolerant sulfide oxidizing bacteria(TSOB)were obtained from compost samples and inoculated into sewage sludge(SS)compost.The effects of inoculation on physical and chemical parameters,ammonia and hydrogen sulfide release,nitrogen form and sulfur compound content change and physical-chemical properties during nitrogen and sulfur conversion were studied.The results showed that inoculation of TNB and TSOB increased the temperature,pH,OM degradation,C/N ratio and germination index(GI)of compost.Compared with the control treatment(CK),the addition of inoculants reduced the release of NH3 and H2S,and transformed them into nitrogen and sulfur compounds,the hydrolysis of polymeric ferrous sulfate was promoted,resulting in relatively high content of sulfite and sulfate.At the same time,the physical and chemical properties of SS have a strong correlation with nitrogen and sulfur compounds.

Zwitterionic polymers:Addressing the barriers for drug delivery

Nanocarriers play an important role in drug delivery for disease treatment.However,nanocarriers face a series of physiological barriers after administration such as blood clearance,nonspecific tissue/cell localization,poor cellular uptake,and endosome trapping.These physiological barriers seriously reduce the accumulation of drugs in target action site,which results in poor therapeutic efficiency.Although polyethylene glycol(PEG)can increase the blood circulation time of nanocarriers,its application is limited due to the“PEG dilemma”.Zwitterionic polymers have been emerging as an appealing alternative to PEG owing to their excellent performance in resisting nonspecific protein adsorption.Importantly,the diverse structures bring functional versatility to zwitterionic polymers beyond nonfouling.This review focuses on the structures and characters of zwitterionic polymers,and will discuss and summarize the application of zwitterionic polymers for drug delivery.We will highlight the strategies of zwitterionic polymers to address the physiological barriers during drug delivery.Finally,we will give some suggestions that can be utilized for the development of zwitterionic polymers for drug delivery.This review will also provide an outlook for this field.Our aim is to provide a comprehensive and systemic review on the application of zwitterionic polymers for drug delivery and promote the development of zwitterionic polymers.

Properties of multi‑GNSS uncalibrated phase delays with considering satellite systems,receiver types,and network scales

The Wide-Lane(WL)and Narrow-Lane(NL)Uncalibrated Phase Delays(UPDs)are the prerequisites in the traditional Precise Point Positioning(PPP)Ambiguity Resolution(AR).As the generation mechanism of various biases becomes more complex,we systematically studied the impact factors of four satellite systems WL and NL UPDs from the perspective of parameter estimation.Approximately 100 stations in a global network are used to generate the UPDs.The results of different satellite systems show that the estimation method,update frequency,and solution mode need to be treated differently.Two regional networks with different receiver types,JAVAD,and Trimble,are also adopted.The results indicate that the receiver-dependent bias has an influence on UPD estimation.Also,the hardware delays can inhibit the satellite-side UPDs if these receiver-specific errors are not fully deployed or even misused.Furthermore,the temporal stability and residual distribution of NL UPDs are significantly enhanced by utilizing a regional network,with the improvements by over 68%and 40%,respectively.It demonstrates that different network scales exhibit the different implication of unmodeled errors,and the unmodeled errors cannot be ignored and must be handled in UPD estimation.

Combined Echocardiography and Lung Ultrasound for Extubation Outcome Prediction in Children after Cardiac Surgery

Background:Children are at risk of extubation failure after congenital heart disease surgery.Such cases should be identified to avoid possible adverse consequences of failed extubation.This study aimed to identify ultrasound predictors of successful extubation in children who underwent cardiac surgery.Methods:Children aged 3 months to 6 years who underwent cardiac surgery(if they were intubated for>6 h and underwent a spontaneous breathing trial)were included in this study.Results:We included 83 children who underwent surgery for congenital heart disease.Transthoracic echocardiography and lung ultrasound were performed immediately before spontaneous breathing trials.Upon spontaneous breathing trial completion,respiratory parameters,including arterial blood gas analysis and frequency-to-tidal volume ratio,were similarly recorded.For outcome assessment,all children were followed up for 48 h after extubation.We successfully extubated 57 children(68.7%).These children were significantly older and weighed more but had shorter aortic cross-clamp and cardiopulmonary bypass times.Children who could not be weaned or extubated had prolonged total mechanical ventilation and pediatric intensive care unit stay.In the multivariate regression analysis,a lung ultrasound score≥12 and ejection fraction≥40%immediately before spontaneous breathing trials were the only independent predictors of successful extubation.When combined,the lung ultrasound score and an ejection fraction≥40%showed a better diagnostic performance than every other isolated variable(lung ultrasound,N-terminal-pro-B-type natriuretic peptide,and frequency-to-tidal volume ratio).Conclusions:The combination of lung ultrasound and transthoracic echocardiography immediately before the spontaneous breathing trial effectively predicts extubation outcomes in children after cardiac surgery.

Color Elements and Creative Design of Xiuzhou Folk Painting

Xiuzhou folk painting,also known as the Xiuzhou modern folk painting,is a significant carrier of the folk culture in the south of Yangtze River in China.Abundant in forms and themes,the painting unfolds the customs and practices in the region with its conspicuous appearance,rich colors,full composition and simple style,providing important research value for the study of the region's humanities and culture.With the case study of Xu Zhenzhai,this paper aims to study the color application in Xiuzhou folk painting,facilitate creative design of its packaging and endow it with more practical significance and cultural value of intangible cultural heritage so as to facilitate the protection and inheritance of traditional local culture in the region.