Formation and ecological response of sand patches in the protection system of Shapotou section of the Baotou-Lanzhou railway,China

The development of bare patches typically signifies a process of ecosystem degradation.Within the protection system of Shapotou section of the Baotou-Lanzhou railway,the extensive emergence of bare sand patches poses a threat to both stability and sustainability.However,there is limited knowledge regarding the morphology,dynamic changes,and ecological responses associated with these sand patches.Therefore,we analyzed the formation and development process of sand patches within the protection system and its effects on herbaceous vegetation growth and soil nutrients through field observation,survey,and indoor analysis methods.The results showed that sand patch development can be divided into three stages,i.e.,formation,expansion,and stabilization,which correspond to the initial,actively developing,and semi-fixed sand patches,respectively.The average dimensions of all sand patch erosional areas were found to be 7.72 m in length,3.91 m in width,and 0.32 m in depth.The actively developing sand patches were the largest,and the initial sand patches were the smallest.Throughout the stage of formation and expansion,the herbaceous community composition changed,and the plant density decreased by more than 50.95%.Moreover,the coverage and height of herbaceous plants decreased in the erosional area and slightly increased in the depositional lobe;and the fine particles and nutrients of soils in the erosional area and depositional lobe showed a decreasing trend.In the stabilization phases of sand patches,the area from the inlet to the bottom of sand patches becomes initially covered with crusts.Vegetation and 0-2 cm surface soil condition improved in the erosional area,but this improvement was not yet evident in the depositional lobe.Factors such as disturbance,climate change,and surface resistance to erosion exert notable influences on the formation and dynamics of sand patches.The results can provide evidence for the future treatment of sand patches and the management of the protection system of Shapotou section of the Baotou-Lanzhou railway.

Comprehensive Overview and Analytical Study on Automatic Bird Repellent Laser System for Crop Protection

Birds are a huge hazard to agriculture all around the world,causing harm to profitable field crops.Growers use a variety of techniques to keep them away,including visual,auditory,tactile,and olfactory deterrents. This study presents a comprehensive overview of current bird repellant approaches used in agricultural contexts,as well as potential new ways. The bird repellent techniques include Internet of Things technology,Deep Learning,Convolutional Neural Network,Unmanned Aerial Vehicles,Wireless Sensor Networks and Laser biotechnology. This study’s goal is to find and review about previous approach towards repellent of birds in the crop fields using various technologies.

The future of artificial hibernation medicine:protection of nerves and organs after spinal cord injury

Spinal cord injury is a serious disease of the central nervous system involving irreversible nerve injury and various organ system injuries.At present,no effective clinical treatment exists.As one of the artificial hibernation techniques,mild hypothermia has preliminarily confirmed its clinical effect on spinal cord injury.However,its technical defects and barriers,along with serious clinical side effects,restrict its clinical application for spinal cord injury.Artificial hibernation is a futureoriented disruptive technology for human life support.It involves endogenous hibernation inducers and hibernation-related central neuromodulation that activate particular neurons,reduce the central constant temperature setting point,disrupt the normal constant body temperature,make the body adapt"to the external cold environment,and reduce the physiological resistance to cold stimulation.Thus,studying the artificial hibernation mechanism may help develop new treatment strategies more suitable for clinical use than the cooling method of mild hypothermia technology.This review introduces artificial hibernation technologies,including mild hypothermia technology,hibernation inducers,and hibernation-related central neuromodulation technology.It summarizes the relevant research on hypothermia and hibernation for organ and nerve protection.These studies show that artificial hibernation technologies have therapeutic significance on nerve injury after spinal co rd injury through inflammatory inhibition,immunosuppression,oxidative defense,and possible central protection.It also promotes the repair and protection of res pirato ry and digestive,cardiovascular,locomoto r,urinary,and endocrine systems.This review provides new insights for the clinical treatment of nerve and multiple organ protection after spinal cord injury thanks to artificial hibernation.At present,artificial hibernation technology is not mature,and research fa ces various challenges.Neve rtheless,the effort is wo rthwhile for the future development of medicine.

Network pharmacology and subsequent experimental validation reveal the synergistic myocardial protection mechanism of Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge.and Carthamus tinctorius L.

Objective:To reveal the molecular mechanism underlying the compatibility of Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge(S.miltiorrhiza,Dan Shen)and C.tinctorius L.(C.tinctorius,Hong Hua)as an herb pair through network pharmacology and subsequent experimental validation.Methods:Network pharmacology was applied to construct an active ingredient-efficacy target-disease protein network to reveal the unique regulation pattern of s.miltiorrhiza and C.tinctorius as herb pair.Molecular docking was used to verify the binding of the components of these herbs and their potential targets.An H9c2 glucose hypoxia model was used to evaluate the efficacy of the components and their synergistic effects,which were evaluated using the combination index.Western blot was performed to detect the protein expression of these targets.Results:Network pharmacology analysis revealed 5 pathways and 8 core targets of s.miltiorrhiza and C.tinctorius in myocardial protection.Five of the core targets were enriched in the hypoxia-inducible factor-1(HIF-1)signaling pathway.S.miltiorrhiza-C.tinctorius achieved vascular tone mainly by regulating the target genes of the HIF-1 pathway.As an upstream gene of the HIF-1 pathway,STAT3 can be activated by the active ingredients cryptotanshinone(Ctan),salvianolic acid B(Sal.B),and myricetin(Myric).Cell experiments revealed that Myric,Sal.B,and Ctan also exhibited synergistic myocardial protective activity.Molecular docking verified the strong binding of Myric,Sal.B,and Ctan to STAT3.Western blot further showed that the active ingredients synergistically upregulated the protein expressionof STAT3.Conclusion:The pharmacodynamic transmission analysis revealed that the active ingredients of S.miltiorrhiza and C.tinctorius can synergistically resist ischemia through various targets and pathways.This study provides a methodological reference for interpreting traditional Chinese medicine compatibility.

A spotlight on dosage and subject selection for effective neuroprotection: exploring the central role of mitochondria

Neurons are notoriously vulnerable cell types.Even the slightest change in their internal and/or external environments will cause much distress and dysfunction,leading often to their death.A range of pathological conditions,including stroke,head trauma,and neurodegenerative disease,can generate stress in neurons,affecting their survival and proper function.In most neural pathologies,mitochondria become dysfunctional and this plays a pivotal role in the process of cell death.The challenge over the last few decades has been to develop effective interventions that improve neuronal homeostasis under pathological conditions.Such interventions,often referred to as disease-modifying or neuroprotective,have,however,proved frustratingly elusive,at both preclinical and,in particular,clinical levels.In this perspective,we highlight two factors that we feel are key to the development of effective neuroprotective treatments.These are:firstly,the choice of dose of intervention and method of application,and secondly,the selection of subjects,whether they be patients or the animal model.

Enhancing Identity Protection in Metaverse-Based Psychological Counseling System

Non-face-to-face psychological counseling systems rely on network technologies to anonymize information regard-ing client identity.However,these systems often face challenges concerning voice data leaks and the suboptimal communication of the client’s non-verbal expressions,such as facial cues,to the counselor.This study proposes a metaverse-based psychological counseling system designed to enhance client identity protection while ensuring efficient information delivery to counselors during non-face-to-face counseling.The proposed systemincorporates a voicemodulation function that instantlymodifies/masks the client’s voice to safeguard their identity.Additionally,it employs real-time client facial expression recognition using an ensemble of decision trees to mirror the client’s non-verbal expressions through their avatar in the metaverse environment.The system is adaptable for use on personal computers and smartphones,offering users the flexibility to access metaverse-based psychological counseling across diverse environments.The performance evaluation of the proposed system confirmed that the voice modulation and real-time facial expression replication consistently achieve an average speed of 48.32 frames per second or higher,even when tested on the least powerful smartphone configurations.Moreover,a total of 550 actual psychological counseling sessions were conducted,and the average satisfaction rating reached 4.46 on a 5-point scale.This indicates that clients experienced improved identity protection compared to conventional non-face-to-face metaverse counseling approaches.Additionally,the counselor successfully addressed the challenge of conveying non-verbal cues from clients who typically struggled with non-face-to-face psychological counseling.The proposed systemholds significant potential for applications in interactive discussions and educational activities in the metaverse.

Enhancing Security and Privacy in Distributed Face Recognition Systems through Blockchain and GAN Technologies

The use of privacy-enhanced facial recognition has increased in response to growing concerns about data securityand privacy in the digital age. This trend is spurred by rising demand for face recognition technology in a varietyof industries, including access control, law enforcement, surveillance, and internet communication. However,the growing usage of face recognition technology has created serious concerns about data monitoring and userprivacy preferences, especially in context-aware systems. In response to these problems, this study provides a novelframework that integrates sophisticated approaches such as Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs), Blockchain,and distributed computing to solve privacy concerns while maintaining exact face recognition. The framework’spainstaking design and execution strive to strike a compromise between precise face recognition and protectingpersonal data integrity in an increasingly interconnected environment. Using cutting-edge tools like Dlib for faceanalysis,Ray Cluster for distributed computing, and Blockchain for decentralized identity verification, the proposedsystem provides scalable and secure facial analysis while protecting user privacy. The study’s contributions includethe creation of a sustainable and scalable solution for privacy-aware face recognition, the implementation of flexibleprivacy computing approaches based on Blockchain networks, and the demonstration of higher performanceover previous methods. Specifically, the proposed StyleGAN model has an outstanding accuracy rate of 93.84%while processing high-resolution images from the CelebA-HQ dataset, beating other evaluated models such asProgressive GAN 90.27%, CycleGAN 89.80%, and MGAN 80.80%. With improvements in accuracy, speed, andprivacy protection, the framework has great promise for practical use in a variety of fields that need face recognitiontechnology. This study paves the way for future research in privacy-enhanced face recognition systems, emphasizingthe significance of using cutting-edge technology to meet rising privacy issues in digital identity.

Redundant Data Detection and Deletion to Meet Privacy Protection Requirements in Blockchain-Based Edge Computing Environment

With the rapid development of information technology,IoT devices play a huge role in physiological health data detection.The exponential growth of medical data requires us to reasonably allocate storage space for cloud servers and edge nodes.The storage capacity of edge nodes close to users is limited.We should store hotspot data in edge nodes as much as possible,so as to ensure response timeliness and access hit rate;However,the current scheme cannot guarantee that every sub-message in a complete data stored by the edge node meets the requirements of hot data;How to complete the detection and deletion of redundant data in edge nodes under the premise of protecting user privacy and data dynamic integrity has become a challenging problem.Our paper proposes a redundant data detection method that meets the privacy protection requirements.By scanning the cipher text,it is determined whether each sub-message of the data in the edge node meets the requirements of the hot data.It has the same effect as zero-knowledge proof,and it will not reveal the privacy of users.In addition,for redundant sub-data that does not meet the requirements of hot data,our paper proposes a redundant data deletion scheme that meets the dynamic integrity of the data.We use Content Extraction Signature(CES)to generate the remaining hot data signature after the redundant data is deleted.The feasibility of the scheme is proved through safety analysis and efficiency analysis.

Recent Advances in Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia Protection and Therapy

For preterm infants, bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is usually caused by abnormal lung development due to various factors during prenatal and postnatal process. One of the reasons for death and bad prognosis of preterm infants is to have BPD. Up to now, there are no unified strategies or drugs to treat BPD. In clinical, many intervention treatments have been applied to achieve BPD therapy, mainly including preterm protection, protective ventilation strategies, and delivery of corticosteroids, pulmonary vasodilators, and antioxidants. This review summarizes the current advances in BPD protection and treatment, and notes that gut microbiota and mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) can be the promising strategy for protecting and treating BPD in the future.

Paired Assistance:Policy Rationale and Economic Performance as Illustrated by Xizang and Xinjiang

This study highlights the changing priorities of China’s paired assistance throughout the past decades,as well as its theoretical implications and economic growth effects for recipient regions.Using panel data from 32 prefecture-level cities from 1990 to 2020,this study uses the multiperiod difference-in-differences approach to examine how paired assistance has contributed to economic growth in Xizang Autonomous Region and Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.The findings indicate that,first,the implementation of the paired assistance policy has boosted economic growth in Xizang and Xinjiang.Second,paired assistance has stimulated economic growth in recipient communities by improving infrastructure.Third,paired assistance has contributed to economic growth in recipient communities by providing improved public services such as education and healthcare.Improvements to public services have a relatively smaller indirect effect in short term than infrastructure development on economic growth.Yet both education and healthcare are crucial to people’s quality of life in recipient communities.This paper has refined and broadened research on the effects of paired assistance,providing preference for future policymaking.

Achieving dynamic privacy measurement and protection based on reinforcement learning for mobile edge crowdsensing of IoT

With the maturity and development of 5G field,Mobile Edge CrowdSensing(MECS),as an intelligent data collection paradigm,provides a broad prospect for various applications in IoT.However,sensing users as data uploaders lack a balance between data benefits and privacy threats,leading to conservative data uploads and low revenue or excessive uploads and privacy breaches.To solve this problem,a Dynamic Privacy Measurement and Protection(DPMP)framework is proposed based on differential privacy and reinforcement learning.Firstly,a DPM model is designed to quantify the amount of data privacy,and a calculation method for personalized privacy threshold of different users is also designed.Furthermore,a Dynamic Private sensing data Selection(DPS)algorithm is proposed to help sensing users maximize data benefits within their privacy thresholds.Finally,theoretical analysis and ample experiment results show that DPMP framework is effective and efficient to achieve a balance between data benefits and sensing user privacy protection,in particular,the proposed DPMP framework has 63%and 23%higher training efficiency and data benefits,respectively,compared to the Monte Carlo algorithm.

Multi-Scale Design and Optimization of Composite Material Structure for Heavy-Duty Truck Protection Device

In this paper,to present a lightweight-developed front underrun protection device(FUPD)for heavy-duty trucks,plain weave carbon fiber reinforced plastic(CFRP)is used instead of the original high-strength steel.First,the mechanical and structural properties of plain carbon fiber composite anti-collision beams are comparatively analyzed from a multi-scale perspective.For studying the design capability of carbon fiber composite materials,we investigate the effects of TC-33 carbon fiber diameter(D),fiber yarn width(W)and height(H),and fiber yarn density(N)on the front underrun protective beam of carbon fiber compositematerials.Based on the investigation,a material-structure matching strategy suitable for the front underrun protective beam of heavy-duty trucks is proposed.Next,the composite material structure is optimized by applying size optimization and stack sequence optimization methods to obtain the higher performance carbon fiber composite front underrun protection beam of commercial vehicles.The results show that the fiber yarn height(H)has the greatest influence on the protective beam,and theH1matching scheme for the front underrun protective beamwith a carbon fiber composite structure exhibits superior performance.The proposed method achieves a weight reduction of 55.21% while still meeting regulatory requirements,which demonstrates its remarkable weight reduction effect.

Research on the longitudinal protection of a through-type cophase traction direct power supply system based on the empirical wavelet transform

This paper proposes a longitudinal protection scheme utilizing empirical wavelet transform(EWT)for a through-type cophase traction direct power supply system,where both sides of a traction network line exhibit a distinctive boundary structure.This approach capitalizes on the boundary’s capacity to attenuate the high-frequency component of fault signals,resulting in a variation in the high-frequency transient energy ratio when faults occur inside or outside the line.During internal line faults,the high-frequency transient energy at the checkpoints located at both ends surpasses that of its neighboring lines.Conversely,for faults external to the line,the energy is lower compared to adjacent lines.EWT is employed to decompose the collected fault current signals,allowing access to the high-frequency transient energy.The longitudinal protection for the traction network line is established based on disparities between both ends of the traction network line and the high-frequency transient energy on either side of the boundary.Moreover,simulation verification through experimental results demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed protection scheme across various initial fault angles,distances to faults,and fault transition resistances.

Evaluating Methods of Visual Assistance for Workers to Improve Quality and Usability in Individualized Kitchen Cabinet Assembly

In times of digitalisation, visual assistance systems in assembly are increasingly important. The design of these assembly systems needs to be highly complex to meet the requirements. Due to the increasing number of variants in production processes, as well as shorter innovation and product life cycles, assistance systems should improve quality and reduce complexity of assembly processes. However, many large kitchen manufacturers still assemble kitchen cabinets manually, due to the high variety of components, such as rails and fittings. This paper focuses on the analysis and evaluation of virtual assistance systems to improve quality and usability in individualised kitchen cabinet assembly processes at a large German manufacturer. A solution is identified and detailed.

Strategy for Protection of Cultural Heritage Exposed to the Natural and Man-Made Activity Disasters in Serbia

Natural disasters and the adverse human activities are the key events in the history of mankind that form our history and shape our collective memory to this day.People on the planet Earth are not obsessed only with natural hazards,caused by earthquakes,floods and volcanic eruptions,and troubles unlikely come solely from the action of nature.Disasters threatening the human race can be caused also by people themselves.Both types of disasters cause vast human suffering,at the same time destroying cultural heritage as well,that has the function of determining the identity of social communities.These sufferings should be added to those that can be determined only by in-depth analyses which are derived from the synergy of natural forces and mistaken choices made by the humans,when it comes to their habitat.The proposed strategic plan for protection of built heritage in emergency situations may become the powerful catalyst for the process of revitalization by which the social tissue of community is maintained and restored,creating the symbol of resistance by which it endures each and every natural element and evil men behaviour.

Impact mechanism of perception on the protection intention of tourist heritage sites:Taking the Hangzhou section of the Grand Canal as an example

Heritage tourism is a hot research topic in the academic field,and most scholars focus on the development model of heritage tourism and heritage conservation theory and methods,but less on the heritage tourists themselves.Based on the theory of planned behavior,the study introduces the variable of“perception”,and takes the Hangzhou section of the Grand Canal as a case study,and investigates tourists through literature,fieldwork and questionnaires.The study constructs a“perception-subjective norm-willingness to protect”model to explore the influence of tourists’“perception”and“subjective norm”on“willingness to protect”.The study found that:first,heritage tourists’perceptions significantly affect attitudes,subjective norms,perceptual behavior control and willingness to conserve.Second,tourists’attitudes,subjective norms and perceptual behavior control significantly affect their willingness to conserve.Third,heritage tourists’economic perceptions,social perceptions and emotional perceptions can affect willingness to conserve.The study provides references for relevant governments and tourism enterprises to conserve and develop the Grand Canal section.

Effects of Inoculation with Phosphate Solubilizing Bacteria on the Physiology,Biochemistry,and Expression of Genes Related to the Protective Enzyme System of Fritillaria taipaiensis P.Y.Li

Fritillaria taipaiensis P.Y.Li is a widely used medicinal herb in treating pulmonary diseases.In recent years,its wild resources have become scarce,and the demand for efficient artificial cultivation has significantly increased.This article is the first to apply phosphate solubilizing bacteria isolated from the rhizosphere soil of F.taipaiensis P.Y.Li to the cultivation process of F.taipaiensis P.Y.Li.The aim is to identify suitable reference strains for the artificial cultivation and industrial development of F.taipaiensis P.Y.Li by examining the effects of various phosphate solubilizing bacteria and their combinations on photosynthesis,physiological and biochemical properties,and gene expression related to the protective enzyme system in F.taipaiensis P.Y.Li.The experiment,conducted in pots at room temperature,included a control group(CK)and groups inoculated with inorganic phosphorussolubilizing bacteria:W1(Bacillus cereus),W2(Serratia plymuthica),W12(Bacillus cereus and Serratia plymuthica),and groups inoculated with organophosphorus-solubilizing bacteria:Y1(Bacillus cereus),Y2(Bacillus cereus),Y12(Bacillus cereus and Bacillus cereus),totaling seven groups.Compared to CK,most growth indices in the bacterial addition groups showed significant differences,with W12 achieving the highest values in all indices except the leaf area index.The content of photosynthetic pigments,photosynthetic parameters,and osmoregulatory substances increased variably in each bacterial treatment group.W12 exhibited the highest content of chlorophyll a and soluble protein,while W1 had the highest free proline content.The activities of peroxidase(POD),superoxide dismutase(SOD),and catalase(CAT)in all inoculated groups were higher than in CK,with significant changes in SOD and CAT activities.The malondialdehyde(MDA)content in all inoculated groups was lower than in CK,with Y12 being the lowest,at approximately 30%of CK.Gene expression corresponding to these three enzymes also increased variably,with POD expression in Y2 being the highest at 2.73 times that of CK.SOD and CAT expression in Y12 were the highest,at 1.84 and 4.39 times that of CK,respectively.These results indicate that inoculating phosphate solubilizing bacteria can enhance the growth of F.taipaiensis P.Y.Li,with the mixed inoculation groups W12 and Y12 demonstrating superior effects.This lays a theoretical foundation for selecting bacterial fertilizers in the cultivation process of F.taipaiensis P.Y.Li.

DNA Barcoding of Insects and Its Direct Application for Plant Protection

The introduction of invasive insect pests across national borders has become a major concern in crop production. Accordingly, national plant protection organizations are challenge to reinforce their monitoring strategies, which are hampered by the weight and size of inspection equipment, as well as the taxonomic extensiveness of interrupted species. Moreover, some insect pests that impede farmer productivity and profitability are difficult for researchers to address on time due to a lack of appropriate plant protection measures. Farmers’ reliance on synthetic pesticides and biocontrol agents has resulted in major economic and environmental ramifications. DNA barcoding is a novel technology that has the potential to improve Integrated Pest Management decision-making, which is dependent on the ability to correctly identify pest and beneficial organisms. This is due to some natural traits such as phenology or pesticide susceptibility browbeaten by IPM strategies to avert pest establishment. Specifically, Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) sequence information was applied effectively for the identification of some micro-organisms. This technology, DNA barcoding, allows for the identification of insect species by using short, standardized gene sequences. DNA barcoding is basically based on repeatable and accessible technique that allows for the mechanisation or automation of species discrimination. This technique bridges the taxonomic bio-security gap and meets the International Plant Protection Convention diagnostic standards for insect identification. This review therefore discusses DNA barcoding as a technique for insect pests’ identification and its potential application for crop protection.

Changes of coastline and tidal flat and its implication for ecological protection under human activities: Take China’s Bohai Bay as an example

The change processes and trends of shoreline and tidal flat forced by human activities are essential issues for the sustainability of coastal area,which is also of great significance for understanding coastal ecological environment changes and even global changes.Based on field measurements,combined with Linear Regression(LR)model and Inverse Distance Weighing(IDW)method,this paper presents detailed analysis on the change history and trend of the shoreline and tidal flat in Bohai Bay.The shoreline faces a high erosion chance under the action of natural factors,while the tidal flat faces a different erosion and deposition patterns in Bohai Bay due to the impact of human activities.The implication of change rule for ecological protection and recovery is also discussed.Measures should be taken to protect the coastal ecological environment.The models used in this paper show a high correlation coefficient between observed and modeling data,which means that this method can be used to predict the changing trend of shoreline and tidal flat.The research results of present study can provide scientific supports for future coastal protection and management.

Conservation and Renewal Strategies of Industrial Heritage Residential Areas from the Perspective of Heritage Protection : A Case Study of Residential Area of Wuchang Vehicle Factory

The residential area of Wuchang Vehicle Factory is taken as a case to explore the protection and renewal strategies of industrial heritage residential areas.By analyzing the current situation of the residential area,issues such as functional decline,memory loss,and weakened community vitality are revealed.Three design concepts are proposed:building renovation,historical space renovation,and the introduction of cultural and creative industries,aiming to improve the living environment,showcase historical value,cultivate cultural and creative industries,promote economic transformation,and community vitality.This paper could provide reference for the protection and renewal of similar industrial heritage residential areas,and new ideas for the research and utilization of industrial heritage.By comprehensively considering heritage protection,cultural inheritance,and community development,systematic suggestions are proposed.