Effects of pooling,specialization,and discretionary task completion on queueing performance

Pooling,unpooling/specialization,and discretionary task completion are typical operational strategies in queueing systems that arise in healthcare,call centers,and online sales.These strategies may have advantages and disadvantages in different operational environments.This paper uses the M/M/1 and M/M/2 queues to study the impact of pooling,specialization,and discretionary task completion on the average queue length.Closed-form solutions for the average M/M/2 queue length are derived.Computational examples illustrate how the average queue length changes with the strength of pooling,specialization,and discretionary task completion.Finally,several conjectures are made in the paper.

Nondestructive and active interrogation system for special nuclear material:proof of principle and initial results

Herein,we employ the threshold energy neutron analysis(TENA)technique to introduce the world's first active interrogation system to detect special nuclear materials(SNMs),including U-235 and Pu-239.The system utilizes a DD neutron generator based on inertial electrostatic confinement(IEC)to interrogate suspicious objects.To detect secondary neutrons produced during fission reactions induced in SNMs,a tensioned metastable fluid detector(TMFD)is employed.The current status of the system's development is reported in this paper,accompanied by the results from experiments conducted to detect 10 g of highly enriched uranium(HEU).Notably,the experimental findings demonstrate a distinct difference in the count rates of measurements with and without HEU.This difference in count rates surpasses two times the standard deviation,indicating a confidence level of more than 96% for identifying the presence of HEU.The paper presents and extensively discusses the proof-of-principle experimental results,along with the system's planned trajectory.

Rural Development Transformation and Social Governance from the Perspective of Specialization:A Case Study of Ruiling Village in Guangzhou City,China

The reorganization of the global production network and the increased mobility of urban-rural elements have accelerated the differentiation of rural spaces,resulting in a trend towards specialization in rural areas.This paper focuses on the concept of specialization,and takes a renowned bonsai specialized village in Guangzhou City,China as a typical case to explore its transformation and development process,action logic and coupling mechanism with the social governance.The results show that:1)the development of rural specialization in Ruiling Village is shaped by several key actors,such as local governments,grassroots organizations,villagers,social organizations,policies,markets and infrastructure.The transfer of these key actors and the reconstruction of actor-networks in different stages have an important influence on the transformation and realization of rural development goals.2)Through subjects-driven,organization management and resource connection,social governance supports the specialization of rural industrial organization,operation,technology and mode.The governance structure shifts from decentralization to networking,refinement and integration.A coupling community of social governance and specialization is created by the social governance system of‘local government-grassroots organizationseconomic cooperatives-villagers’,which links industries,industrial chains and cooperatives.3)Social governance integrates into the value chain extension process of rural specialized development with a central,multi-level organizational structure.It promotes the construction of the whole value chain through organizational planning,resource integration and image shaping,thus realizing the value,branding and organization of the industry,as well as the integration of rural sustainable development and governance mechanism.Social governance has a profound impact on the development of rural specialization in terms of subject,structure and mode,and participates in the construction of the whole value chain of rural areas.This paper provides a new perspective for understanding the coupling effect of social governance in the rural development transformation,and promotes the rural sustainable development and governance.

The Hesitance of Nurses to Apply for Midwifery Specialization: Explorative Qualitative Study

Background: Many countries across the world are facing an ongoing shortage of midwife practitioners due to several reasons such as increased workload, working overtime, poor-quality midwifery care, low staff morale, stress and burnout, lack of opportunity for training, lack of management support, financial issues and lack of recognition and compromised autonomy. Purpose: To explore the reasons behind nurses’ hesitance to apply for midwifery specialization. The objectives of this study were to understand the challenges that lie in front of Omani nurses and the motivational factors to apply for a midwifery programme. Method: Exploratory qualitative study was conducted at the largest tertiary hospital in Oman. Purposive sampling was applied for participant recruitment. Face-to-face interviews and focus group discussions were used as data collection methods. The study included general nurses, nurses in charge working in the maternity unit as well as nurses whose applications were accepted for midwifery education. Qualified midwives were excluded. The data collection process yielded twenty-five nurses. The interview protocol highlighted the impact and perception of the midwifery specialization on nurses’ careers. Thematic analysis was employed for data analysis. Results: Three over-arching major themes were identified. These are 1) nurses’ perceptions about the nature of work in maternity wards, the nurses have positive perception toward working in maternity wards and labor room because of working exclusively with female patients and their babies 2) factors influencing the decision to study midwifery specialization, work overload, stress, lack of support from administration were the most common reason behind the nurses not to apply for midwifery specialization and 3) support and recommendations required for midwives, the nurses mentioned that their identity, promotions and support from the administration will encourage them to apply for midwifery specialization. Conclusion: One of the main reasons that hindered nurses from applying to midwifery specialization is the false belief that midwives cannot work outside the delivery suite (DS). The second reason was the stress that midwives encounter at DS, and this was perceived by general nurses who did not work at DS. These challenges could be mitigated by leadership support, midwifery profession identity, as well as financial recognition for the midwives.

Psychological Emotion Analysis System for Special Needs Children Based on Neural Network

With the development of modern society and the improvement of living standards,care for special needs children has been increasingly highlighted,and numerous corresponding measures such as welfare homes,special education schools,and youth care centers have emerged.Due to the lack of systematic emotional companionship,the mental health of special needs children are bound to be affected.Nowadays,emotional education,analysis,and evaluation are mostly done by psychologists and emotional analysts,and these measures are unpopular.Therefore,many researchers at home and abroad have focused on the solution of psychological issues and the psychological assessment and emotional analysis of such children in their daily lives.In this paper,a special children’s psychological emotional analysis based on neural network is proposed,where the system sends the voice information to a cloud platform through intelligent wearable devices.To ensure that the data collected are valid,a series of pretreatments such as Chinese word segmentation,de-emphasis,and so on are put into the neural network model.The model is based on the further research of transfer learning and Bi-GRU model,which can meet the needs of Chinese text sentiment analysis.The completion rate of the final model test has reached 97%,which means that it is ready for use.Finally,a web page is designed,which can evaluate and detect abnormal psychological state,and at the same time,a personal emotion database can also be established.

Relationship between the unique microstructures and behaviors of high-entropy alloys

High-entropy alloys(HEAs),which were introduced as a pioneering concept in 2004,have captured the keen interest of nu-merous researchers.Entropy,in this context,can be perceived as representing disorder and randomness.By contrast,elemental composi-tions within alloy systems occupy specific structural sites in space,a concept referred to as structure.In accordance with Shannon entropy,structure is analogous to information.Generally,the arrangement of atoms within a material,termed its structure,plays a pivotal role in dictating its properties.In addition to expanding the array of options for alloy composites,HEAs afford ample opportunities for diverse structural designs.The profound influence of distinct structural features on the exceptional behaviors of alloys is underscored by numer-ous examples.These features include remarkably high fracture strength with excellent ductility,antiballistic capability,exceptional radi-ation resistance,and corrosion resistance.In this paper,we delve into various unique material structures and properties while elucidating the intricate relationship between structure and performance.

Intraclonal Resource Sharing and Functional Specialization of Ramets in Response to Resource Heterogeneity in Three Stoloniferous Herbs

Environments with reciprocal patchiness of resources, in which the availability of two resources such as light and soil nutrients are patchily distributed in horizontal space and negatively correlated in each patch, are common in many ecosystems. The strategies by which clonal plants adapt to this type of heterogeneous environment were examined in three stoloniferous herbs,Potentilla reptans L. var. sericophylla Franch., P. anserina L. and Halerpestes ruthenica (Jacq.) Qvcz., commonly inhabiting forest understories, grasslands and low saline meadows, respectively. As pairs of connected ramets were subjected to reciprocal patchiness of light and nutrients, stolon connection between the two ramets significantly enhanced biomass of both ramet growing in low light intensity but high soil nutrient condition (LH ramet) and ramet growing in high light intensity but low soil nutrient condition (HL ramet) as well as whole ramet pairs (consisting of LH ramets and HL ramets). Additionally, stolon connection greatly increased root/shoot ratio of LH ramet while significantly decreased that of HL ramet. The results indicate that a reciprocal transportation of resources between interconnected ramets and a functional specialization of ramets in uptake of abundant resources occurred. By resource sharing and functional specialization, clonal plants can efficiently acquire locally abundant resources and buffer the stress caused by reciprocal patchiness of resources.

DEVELOPMENT AND PRELIMINARY APPLICATION OF OBJECTIFYING SYSTEM FOR TCM COLOR INSPECTION

An objectifying system for color inspections of traditional Chinese medicine （CITCM） is developed. The entire system includes two parts ： The hardware and the software. The hardware is an image acquiring device under a standard lighting condition, and it mainly includes a xenon lamp with color temperature of 5 500 K as light source, an integrating sphere used for diffusing light and a high resolution CCD camera. The software is used for digital image processing, and the procedure is divided into three steps. Firstly the skin/non-skin classifi- cation is performed by utilizing the threshold in chrominance channels of the RGB color space. Secondly, the fa- cial features are localized by using the image segmentation and coordinates sorting. Finally, the facial special re- gion（SR） corresponding to five internal organs is achieved by utilizing masks designed to take advantage of mor- phology. Subsequently, the chromaticity is calculated. The system is tested by taking 83 samples of 30 young and 53 elderly people. The experiment shows that there is significant difference of all SRs between the young and the elderly, and the system has better performance for objectifying research of CITCM.

Application of Specialized Group Management in the Quality Control of Perioperative Nursing

Objective:To explore the role of specialized group management in the quality control of perioperative nursing.Methods:45 surgical nurses from our hospital were selected as the research subjects.Traditional operating room management was adopted from July 2019 to June 2020,and specialized group management was adopted from July 2020 to June 2021.The surgeon’s satisfaction,surgical nurses’core professional competence,and surgical patients’satisfaction were obtained through surveys and the results were analyzed.Results:Surgeon satisfaction before the implementation of specialized group management was significantly lower than after its implementation(P<0.05).Besides,surgical nurses’core professional competency scores before the implementation of specialized group management were significantly lower than after its implementation(P<0.05).Lastly,surgical patients’satisfaction before the implementation of specialized group management was significantly lower than after its implementation(P<0.05).Conclusion:Specialized group management helps to improve the quality of perioperative care and should be applied in clinical practice.

Postdoctoral Openings in Wenzhou University(China)for Chemistry,Chemical Engineering and Materials Science

About us:The College of Chemistry and Materials Engineering(CME)in Wenzhou University(Zhejiang Province,China)is looking for postdoctoral candidates(up to 25)specialized in Chemistry,Chemnical Engineering and Materials Science.The college has its Chemistry program ranking ESI Top 6‰ worldwide,and Materials Science program ranking 589th in the world since 2023.

Pro-resolving lipid mediator reduces amyloid-β42–induced gene expression in human monocyte–derived microglia

Specialized pro-resolving lipid mediators including maresin 1 mediate resolution but the levels of these are reduced in Alzheimer's disease brain, suggesting that they constitute a novel target for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease to prevent/stop inflammation and combat disease pathology. Therefore, it is important to clarify whether they counteract the expression of genes and proteins induced by amyloid-β. With this objective, we analyzed the relevance of human monocyte–derived microglia for in vitro modeling of neuroinflammation and its resolution in the context of Alzheimer's disease and investigated the pro-resolving bioactivity of maresin 1 on amyloid-β42–induced Alzheimer's disease–like inflammation. Analysis of RNA-sequencing data and secreted proteins in supernatants from the monocyte-derived microglia showed that the monocyte-derived microglia resembled Alzheimer's disease–like neuroinflammation in human brain microglia after incubation with amyloid-β42. Maresin 1 restored homeostasis by down-regulating inflammatory pathway related gene expression induced by amyloid-β42 in monocyte-derived microglia, protection of maresin 1 against the effects of amyloid-β42 is mediated by a re-balancing of inflammatory transcriptional networks in which modulation of gene transcription in the nuclear factor-kappa B pathway plays a major part. We pinpointed molecular targets that are associated with both neuroinflammation in Alzheimer's disease and therapeutic targets by maresin 1. In conclusion, monocyte-derived microglia represent a relevant in vitro microglial model for studies on Alzheimer's disease-like inflammation and drug response for individual patients. Maresin 1 ameliorates amyloid-β42–induced changes in several genes of importance in Alzheimer's disease, highlighting its potential as a therapeutic target for Alzheimer's disease.

Does astrocytic L-lactate enhance cognition through myelination?

Introduction:Astrocytes,the predominant glial cell in the brain,play a vital role in a plethora of central nervous system functions.They are the major storage site of glycogen in the central nervous system.They produce L-lactate by glycogenolysis and glycolysis which is then transported to neurons(Magistretti and Allaman,2018).Multiple evidence using diverse behavioral paradigms,such as fear conditioning,conditioned place avoidance,rat gambling task(RGT),and flavor-place paired associate(PA)learning suggest that L-lactate has a beneficial effect on various aspects of cognition(Wang et al.,2017;Akter et al.,2023b).While the molecular mechanisms underlying the cognitive benefits of L-lactate are still emerging,it is well-established that astrocytic L-lactate can be used as an energy substrate by neurons and can induce N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor-dependent plasticity-driven gene expression during cognition(Magistretti and Allaman,2018).Additionally,recent evidence has revealed more roles of L-lactate which include myelination,neuronal mitochondrial biogenesis,and antioxidant defense(Sanchez-Abarca et al.,2001;Ichihara et al.,2017;Akter et al.,2023a,b).Myelin in the central nervous system is a specialized lipid-rich membrane formed by oligodendrocytes.

Attributes of Specialized Households'Resilience and Its Impact on Rural Industrial Advancement:A Case Study of National Musical Instrument Production Specialized Households in Lankao County,Henan,China

Specialized households serve as the primary units within specialized villages in China,and their capacity to withstand risks and external influences significantly shapes the future trajectory of specialized villages and the overall vitality of the rural economy.In this study,we established a measurement indicator system based on the definition of specialized households’resilience,elucidating the logical connection between specialized households’resilience and rural industrial development in China.The musical instrument industry in Lankao County,Henan Province of China,was employed as a case;survey data,the entropy method,and an obstacle diagnosis model were used to examine how instrument production specialized households responded to the challenges posed by Corona Virus Disease 2019(COVID-19)and the tightening of national environmental protection policies,yielding the following key findings:1)there exists substantial variation in the comprehensive resilience levels among different specialized households;2)the ability to learn and adapt is the most significant contributor to the overall resilience level of specialized households;3)technological proficiency and access to skilled talent emerge as pivotal factors influencing specialized households’resilience;4)the positioning of specialized households within the industrial supply chain and the stability of their income have a direct bearing on their resilience level.The influence of specialized households’resilience on industrial development primarily manifests in the following ways:stronger resilience correlates with increased stability in production and sales,fostering a more proactive approach to future actions.However,heightened exposure to the external macroeconomic environment can lead to a higher rate of export reduction.To enhance the development resilience of entities like specialized households and family farms,and to invigorate rural economic development,escalating investments in rural science and technology and prioritizing the training of technical talent become imperative.

AGGREGATE SPECIAL FUNCTIONS TO APPROXIMATE PERMUTING TRI-HOMOMORPHISMS AND PERMUTING TRI-DERIVATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH A TRI-ADDITIVEψ-FUNCTIONAL INEQUALITY IN BANACH ALGEBRAS

In this paper,we define a new class of control functions through aggregate special functions.These class of control functions help us to stabilize and approximate a tri-additiveψ-functional inequality to get a better estimation for permuting tri-homomorphisms and permuting tri-derivations in unital C*-algebras and Banach algebras by the vector-valued alternative fixed point theorem.

A Brief Introduction to Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences

Established in 1958,Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences(SASS)is a public institutionguided by the People’s Government of Sichuan Province.It is a comprehensive and specializedresearch institution in social sciences that integrates research,education,editing,andconsulting services.It holds the registered trademark of“Tianfu Think Tank”and owns twocampuses:Baihuatan and Banzhuyuan.

Effect of special types of bread with select herbal components on postprandial glucose levels in diabetic patients

BACKGROUND Nutrition recommendations in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2DM)are to consume rye or integral bread instead of white bread.A positive effect on glucoregulation has been achieved by enriching food with various biologically active substances of herbal origin,so we formulated an herbal mixture that can be used as a supplement for a special type of bread(STB)to achieve better effects on postprandial glucose and insulin levels in patients with T2DM.AIM To compare organoleptic characteristics and effects of two types of bread on postprandial glucose and insulin levels in T2DM patients.METHODS This trial included 97 patients with T2DM.A parallel group of 16 healthy subjects was also investigated.All participants were given 50 g of rye bread and the same amount of a STB with an herbal mixture on 2 consecutive days.Postprandial blood glucose and insulin levels were compared at the 30^(th),60^(th),90^(th) and 120th min.A questionnaire was used for subjective estimation of the organoleptic and satiety features of the two types of bread.RESULTS Compared to patients who consumed rye bread,significantly lower postprandial blood glucose and insulin concentrations were found in T2DM patients who consumed STB.No relevant differences were found among the healthy subjects.Subjectively estimated organoleptic and satiety characteristics are better for STB than for rye bread.CONCLUSION STB have better effects than rye bread on postprandial glucoregulation in T2DM patients.Subjectively estimated organoleptic and satiety characteristics are better for STB than for rye bread.Therefore,STB can be recommended for nutrition in T2DM patients.

A Brief Introduction to Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences

Established in 1958,Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences(SASS)is a public institution guided by the People’s Government of Sichuan Province.It is a comprehensive and specialized research institution in social sciences that integrates research,education,editing,and consulting services.It holds the registered trademark of“Tianfu Think Tank”and owns two campuses:Baihuatan and Banzhuyuan.

A Brief Introduction to Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences

Established in 1958, Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences (SASS) is a public institution guided by the People’s Government of Sichuan Province. It is a comprehensive and specialized research institution in social sciences that integrates research, education, editing, and consulting services. It holds the registered trademark of “Tianfu Think Tank” and owns two campuses:Baihuatan and Banzhuyuan.

Impact of specialized nursing outpatient case management on postcoronary artery bypass grafting patients

BACKGROUND Some patients with coronary atherosclerotic heart disease experience major adverse cardiac events(MACE)and require readmission after Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting(CABG)surgery.This is often attributed to patients'unhealthy lifestyles and dietary habits,inadequate understanding of the disease,and poor disease management compliance.Thus,searching for more targeted nursing intervention models that can enhance patients'self-management abilities and reduce the risk of readmission after CABG surgery is significant.AIM To observe the impact of specialized nursing outpatient case management on patients after CABG surgery.METHODS A total of 103 patients who underwent CABG surgery in our hospital between April 2021 and April 2022 comprised the study sample.The patients were divided into two groups using an odd-even number grouping method.The control group received routine nursing care,while the case management group received specialized nursing outpatient case management.The differences in psychological status,adherence to medical treatment,self-care ability,knowledge mastery,quality of life scores,and the occurrence rate of MACE were compared between the two groups.RESULTS After the intervention,the case management group had lower scores on the selfrating depression scale and self-rating anxiety scale and lower MACE rate,as well as higher scores for adherence to a healthy diet,medication adherence,good lifestyle habits,regular exercise,and timely follow-up,higher scores on the Coronary Heart Disease Self-Management Scale,higher scores for managing adverse habits,symptoms,emotional cognition,emergency response,disease knowledge,general lifestyle,and treatment adherence,higher scores for understanding coronary heart disease,recognizing the importance of medication adherence,understanding selfcare points after CABG surgery,and being aware of post-CABG precautions,higher scores for physical well-being,disease condition,general health,social-psychological well-being,and work-related aspects(P<0.05).CONCLUSION Specialized nursing outpatient case management can enhance patient adherence to medical treatment,knowledge mastery,psychological well-being,and overall quality of life in patients after CABG surgery.

Maxillofacial Surgery Education: Where Is It Heading?

Oral and maxillofacial surgery have a long history dating back to ancient civilizations such as the Egyptians. Since then, surgeons have treated craniofacial trauma and alveolodental fractures. In 1846, Hullihen performed a mandibular body osteotomy to correct prognathism, marking a significant milestone in the field. Over time, the specialty has evolved significantly. The field of craniofacial surgery has undergone several phases, including its involvement in conflicts during world wars and the treatment of craniofacial fractures and discrepancies. The process of learning and teaching specialties has evolved differently in various countries throughout the 20th century. Currently, there is no uniformity in the training and registration of specialized professionals, resulting in distinct scenarios. Considering the accessibility of scientific knowledge through technology and globalization, it is crucial to provide an objective overview of the current state of education in the field. This paper focuses on effective professional training as the primary subject of residency courses in this specialty. A proposal is presented for education, emphasizing the significance of providing quality professional training that is tailored to the specific legislation of each country.