Effect of external and internal cues on core muscle activation during the Sahrmann five-level core stability test

BACKGROUND Pain in the back or pelvis or fear of back pain may affect the timing or cocontraction of the core muscles.In both static and dynamic movements,the Sahrmann core stability test provides an assessment of core muscle activation and a person's ability to stabilize the lumbopelvic complex.Preparatory cues and images can be used to increase the activation of these muscles.To attain optimal movement patterns,it will be necessary to determine what cueing will give the most effective results for core stability.AIM To investigate the effects of external and internal cues on core muscle activation during the Sahrmann five-level core stability test.METHODS Total 68 participants(21.83±3.47 years)were randomly allocated to an external(n=35)or internal cue group(n=33).Participants performed the Sahrmann fivelevel core stability test without a cue as baseline and the five-level stability exercises with an internal or external cue.External cue group received a pressure biofeedback unit(PBU),and the internal cue group received an audio cue.A Delsys Trigno^(TM)surface electromyography unit was used for muscle activation from the rectus abdominis,external oblique,and transverse abdominis/internal oblique muscles.RESULTS Linear mixed effects model analysis showed that cueing had a significant effect on core muscle activation(P=0.001);however,there was no significant difference between cue types(internal or external)(P=0.130).CONCLUSION Both external and internal cueing have significant effects on core muscle activation during the Sahrmann five-level core stability test and the PBU does not create higher muscle activation than internal cueing.

Upper bound stability analysis of tiered geosynthetic-reinforced soil wall

The tiered geosynthetic-reinforced soil (GRS) walls have been increasingly applied in the high and steep retaining soil structures. However, very little is known about the design method for the tiered GRS wall in practice. This study is aimed at proposing an upper-bound stability analysis method of a tiered GRS wall. The proposed method was firstly validated by the existing results from the centrifuge test and the numerical method, and then a parametric study was performed to investigate the effects of the cohesionless backfill friction angle φ1 and the wall geometric parameters including the offset distance, the total wall height, the batter angle δ, the number of tiers n, and wall height ratio of adjacent tiers on the dimensionless equivalent earth pressure coefficient KT. The analysis results demonstrated that as the φ1 increases, the shear strength of backfill is enhanced and thus the KT or the total reinforcement tensile force decreases, and the KT decreases with the increase of the offset distance at the initial stage and then becomes stable when it reaches a certain critical value. For a fixed offset distance, the KT or the total reinforcement tensile force decreases with the increase of the δ. For the two-tiered GRS walls having the offset distance less than the critical value, the wall with the smaller wall height ratio has a larger KT. Further, the variation of the location of the critical failure surfaces of tiered GRS walls was presented in this study with the variation of the φ1 and the wall geometry.

STABILITY OF TRANSONIC SHOCKS TO THE EULER-POISSON SYSTEM WITH VARYING BACKGROUND CHARGES

This paper is devoted to studying the stability of transonic shock solutions to the Euler-Poisson system in a one-dimensional nozzle of finite length.The background charge in the Poisson equation is a piecewise constant function.The structural stability of the steady transonic shock solution is obtained by the monotonicity argument.Furthermore,this transonic shock is proved to be dynamically and exponentially stable with respect to small perturbations of the initial data.One of the crucial ingredients of the analysis is to establish the global well-posedness of a free boundary problem for a quasilinear second order equation with nonlinear boundary conditions.

STABILITY OF THE RAREFACTION WAVE IN THE SINGULAR LIMIT OF A SHARP INTERFACE PROBLEM FOR THE COMPRESSIBLE NAVIER-STOKES/ALLEN-CAHN SYSTEM

This paper is concerned with the global well-posedness of the solution to the compressible Navier-Stokes/Allen-Cahn system and its sharp interface limit in one-dimensional space.For the perturbations with small energy but possibly large oscillations of rarefaction wave solutions near phase separation,and where the strength of the initial phase field could be arbitrarily large,we prove that the solution of the Cauchy problem exists for all time,and converges to the centered rarefaction wave solution of the corresponding standard two-phase Euler equation as the viscosity and the thickness of the interface tend to zero.The proof is mainly based on a scaling argument and a basic energy method.

The Static Stability Region of an Integrated Electricity-Gas System Considering Voltage and Gas Pressure

In an integrated electricity-gas system(IEGS),load fluctuations affect not only the voltage in the power system but also the gas pressure in the natural gas system.The static voltage stability region(SVSR)method is a tool for analyzing the overall static voltage stability in a power system.However,in an IEGS,the SVSR boundary may be overly optimistic because the gas pressure may collapse before the voltage collapses.Thus,the SVSR method cannot be directly applied to an IEGS.In this paper,the concept of the SVSR is extended to the IEGS-static stability region(SSR)while considering voltage and gas pressure.First,criteria for static gas pressure stability in a natural gas system are proposed,based on the static voltage stability criteria in a power system.Then,the IEGS-SSR is defined as a set of active power injections that satisfies multi-energy flow(MEF)equations and static voltage and gas pressure stability constraints in the active power injection space of natural gas-fired generator units(NGUs).To determine the IEGSSSR,a continuation MEF(CMEF)method is employed to trace the boundary point in one specific NGU scheduling direction.A multidimensional hyperplane sampling method is also proposed to sample the NGU scheduling directions evenly.The obtained boundary points are further used to form the IEGSSSR in three-dimensional(3D)space via a Delaunay triangulation hypersurface fitting method.Finally,the numerical results of typical case studies are presented to demonstrate that the proposed method can effectively form the IEGS-SSR,providing a tool for IEGS online monitoring and dispatching.

Grassland-type ecosystem stability in China differs under the influence of drought and wet events

Ecological stability is a core issue in ecological research and holds significant implications forhumanity. The increased frequency and intensity of drought and wet climate events resulting from climatechange pose a major threat to global ecological stability. Variations in stability among different ecosystemshave been confirmed, but it remains unclear whether there are differences in stability within the sameterrestrial vegetation ecosystem under the influence of climate events in different directions and intensities.China's grassland ecosystem includes most grassland types and is a good choice for studying this issue.This study used the Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index-12 (SPEI-12) to identify thedirections and intensities of different types of climate events, and based on Normalized DifferenceVegetation Index (NDVI), calculated the resistance and resilience of different grassland types for 30consecutive years from 1990 to 2019 (resistance and resilience are important indicators to measurestability). Based on a traditional regression model, standardized methods were integrated to analyze theimpacts of the intensity and duration of drought and wet events on vegetation stability. The resultsshowed that meadow steppe exhibited the highest stability, while alpine steppe and desert steppe had thelowest overall stability. The stability of typical steppe, alpine meadow, temperate meadow was at anintermediate level. Regarding the impact of the duration and intensity of climate events on vegetationecosystem stability for the same grassland type, the resilience of desert steppe during drought was mainlyaffected by the duration. In contrast, the impact of intensity was not significant. However, alpine steppewas mainly affected by intensity in wet environments, and duration had no significant impact. Ourconclusions can provide decision support for the future grassland ecosystem governance.

Can laser irradiation improve the strength of weak rock mass?

Controllable rock cracking technology is crucial for the exploration and exploitation of deep underground resources.Many existing studies have been dedicated to the laser-assisted rock-weakening technology.It has been proved that laser irradiation can improve drilling and blasting efficiency when combined with mechanical rock fracturing methods,which are irrelevant for borehole stabilization.To improve the latter,this study used laser ablation for borehole reinforcement.The high-power laser was applied to typical rock samples(sandstone,mudstone and coal)in both dry and saturated conditions.Multi-technique observations and measurements were used to fully understand the peculiar modifications of the specimens under laser treatment,i.e.mechanical loading,acoustic emission(AE)monitoring,digital image correlation(DIC)strain field evaluation,infrared thermography(IRT)monitoring and X-ray computed tomography(CT)scanning.The results showed that,in addition to the effects already demonstrated,laser irradiation can improve the strength of the soft rock,especially in the saturated state.The process involved a complicated phase change including melting and evaporation of the matrix under high-temperature and high-pressure to form a glassy high strength silicate material.This process is similar to the reaction between molten lava and water,or the impact of an asteroid on the earth.Inspired by the results,a conceptual path for a new borehole stabilization technology using laser ablation was outlined.

Global Dynamics of a Kawasaki Disease Vascular Endothelial Cell Injury Model with Backward Bifurcation and Hopf Bifurcation

Kawasaki disease(KD)is an acute,febrile,systemic vasculitis that mainly affects children under five years of age.In this paper,we propose and study a class of 5-dimensional ordinary differential equation model describing the vascular endothelial cell injury in the lesion area of KD.This model exhibits forward/backward bifurcation.It is shown that the vascular injury-free equilibrium is locally asymptotically stable if the basic reproduction number R_(0)<1.Further,we obtain two types of sufficient conditions for the global asymptotic stability of the vascular injury-free equilibrium,which can be applied to both the forward and backward bifurcation cases.In addition,the local and global asymptotic stability of the vascular injury equilibria and the presence of Hopf bifurcation are studied.It is also shown that the model is permanent if the basic reproduction number R_(0)>1,and some explicit analytic expressions of ultimate lower bounds of the solutions of the model are given.Our results suggest that the control of vascular injury in the lesion area of KD is not only correlated with the basic reproduction number Ro,but also with the growth rate of normal vascular endothelial cells promoted by the vascular endothelial growth factor.

A Review of the Applications of Nanofluids and Related Hybrid Variants in Flat Tube Car Radiators

The present review explores the promising role of nanofluids and related hybrid variants in enhancing the efficiencyof flat tube car radiators.As vehicles become more advanced and demand better thermal performance,traditional coolants are starting to fall short.Nanofluids,which involve tiny nanoparticles dispersed into standardcooling liquids,offer a new solution by significantly improving heat transfer capabilities.The article categorizesthe different types of nanofluids(ranging from those based on metals and metal oxides to carbon materials andhybrid combinations)and examines their effects on the improvement of radiator performance.General consensusexists in the literature that nanofluids can support better heat dissipation and enable accordingly the developmentof smaller and lighter radiators,which require less coolant and allow more compact vehicle designs.However,thisreview demonstrates that the use of nanofluids does not come without challenges.These include the long-termstability of these fluids and material compatibility issues.A critical discussion is therefore elaborated about thegaps to be filled and the steps to be undertaken to promote and standardize the use of these fluids in the industry.

Ecological security pattern construction using landscape ecological quality:A case study of Yanchi County,northern China

Ecological security patterns are paramount to the advancement of an ecological civilization in China,aiming to enhance the stability and service functions of ecosystems to achieve sustainable regional development.However,current regional ecological protection efforts have not been effectively integrated into the regional development planning of ecological security pattern.This study systematically assessed the effectiveness of ecological protection projects in Yanchi County,Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region,China,through the evaluation of landscape ecological quality.Based on the evaluation results of landscape ecological quality,this study used morphological pattern analysis(MSPA),minimum cumulative resistance(MCR)model,and gravity model together to construct the ecological security pattern of Yanchi County.The findings revealed that from 1990 to 2020,with the implementation of ecological protection projects started from 2000,the landscape stability of Yanchi County first decreased and then increased,and the intensity of landscape disturbance first intensified but then decreased,indicating an improvement in the landscape ecological quality and a significant enhancement of the ecological environment in Yanchi County.The ecological security pattern of Yanchi County consisted of 10 ecological sources,10 ecological source points,23 ecological corridors,and 27 ecological nodes.The ecological security pattern of Yanchi County exhibited distinct spatial variations,with stronger ecological security observed in the southern part than in northern part of the county.The ecological sources were denser in the southern part than in the northern part of the county,and accordingly,the length of ecological corridors was shorter and denser in the southern than that in the northern part of the county.Based on the spatial distribution of landscape ecological quality and the characteristics of ecological security pattern of Yanchi County in 2020,we suggested Yanchi County to build four zones to optimize the ecological security pattern construction:the Haba Lake ecological conservation zone,the urban ecological planning zone,the ecological environment restoration zone,and the ecological security improvement zone.This study can provide essential guidance for the construction of ecological security pattern in farming-pastoral areas both in China and worldwide.

Solution of a Time-Space Tempered Fractional Diffusion-Wave Equation and its Theoretical Aspects

This article proves the existence and uniqueness conditions of the solution of two-dimensional time-space tempered fractional di usion-wave equation.We nd analytical solution of the equation via the two-step Adomian decomposition method(TSADM).The existence result is obtained with the help of some xed point theorems,while the uniqueness of the solution is a consequence of the Banach contraction principle.Additionally,we study the stability via the Ulam-Hyers stability for the considered problem.The existing techniques use numerical algorithms for solving the two-dimensional time-space tempered fractional di usion-wave equation,and thus,the results obtained from them are the approximate solution of the problem with high computational and time complexity.In comparison,our proposed method eliminates all the diffculties arising from numerical methods and gives an analytical solution with a straightforward process in just one iteration.

A Facile Li_(2)TiO_(3) Surface Modification to Improve the Structure Stability and Electrochemical Performance of Full Concentration Gradient Li-Rich Oxides

Full concentration gradient lithium-rich layered oxides are catching lots of interest as the next generation cathode for lithium-ion batteries due to their high discharge voltage,reduced voltage decay and enhanced rate performance,whereas the high lithium residues on its surface impairs the structure stability and long-term cycle performance.Herein,a facile multifunctional surface modification method is implemented to eliminate surface lithium residues of full concentration gradient lithium-rich layered oxides by a wet chemistry reaction with tetrabutyl titanate and the post-annealing process.It realizes not only a stable Li_(2)TiO_(3)coating layer with 3D diffusion channels for fast Li^(+)ions transfer,but also dopes partial Ti^(4+)ions into the sub-surface region of full concentration gradient lithium-rich layered oxides to further strengthen its crystal structure.Consequently,the modified full concentration gradient lithium-rich layered oxides exhibit improved structure stability,elevated thermal stability with decomposition temperature from 289.57℃to 321.72℃,and enhanced cycle performance(205.1 mAh g^(-1)after 150 cycles)with slowed voltage drop(1.67 mV per cycle).This work proposes a facile and integrated modification method to enhance the comprehensive performance of full concentration gradient lithium-rich layered oxides,which can facilitate its practical application for developing higher energy density lithium-ion batteries.

A New Approach for the Calculation of Slope Failure Probability with Fuzzy Limit-State Functions

This study presents an innovative approach to calculating the failure probability of slopes by incorporating fuzzylimit-state functions,a method that significantly enhances the accuracy and efficiency of slope stability analysis.Unlike traditional probabilistic techniques,this approach utilizes a least squares support vector machine(LSSVM)optimized with a grey wolf optimizer(GWO)and K-fold cross-validation(CV)to approximate the limit-statefunction,thus reducing computational complexity.The novelty of this work lies in its application to one-dimensional(1D),two-dimensional(2D),and three-dimensional(3D)slope models,demonstrating its versatility andhigh precision.The proposed method consistently achieves error margins within 3%of Monte Carlo simulation(MCS)results,while substantially reducing computation time,particularly for 2D and 3D models.This makes theapproach highly practical for real-world engineering applications.Furthermore,by applying fuzzy mathematics tohandle uncertainties in geotechnical properties,the method offers a more realistic and comprehensive understandingof slope stability.As water is the main factor influencing the stability of slopes,this aspect is investigatedby calculating the phreatic line after the change in water level.Relevant examples are used to show that the failureprobability of a slope under water wading condition can increase by more than 20%(increase rates in 1D,2D and3D conditions being 25%,27%and 31%,respectively)compared with the natural condition.The influence ofdiverse fuzzy membership functions—linear,normal,and Cauchy—on failure probability is also considered.Thisresearch not only provides a strategy for better calculation of the slope failure probability but also pioneers theintegration of computational intelligence,fuzzy logic and fluid-dynamics in geotechnical engineering,presentingan innovative and efficient tool for slope stability analysis.

Stability of the Stratification of Water Bodies in the North Passage of the Yangtze River Estuary Based on the EFDC Model

To study the stratified stability of a water column in the North Passage of the Yangtze River Estuary,a numerical model of the hydrodynamics of this estuary is established using the EFDC model.On the basis of EFDC results,this paper derives and pro-vides the discriminative index of water body stability caused by salinity and analyzes the along-range variation in water body strati-fication stability in the North Passage of the Yangtze River Estuary and the periodic variation at a key location(bend area)based on the simulation results of the numerical model.This work shows that the water body in the bend area varies between mixed and strati-fied types,and the vertical average flow velocity has a good negative correlation with the differential velocity between the surface and bottom layers of the water body.The model simulation results validate the formulae for the stratified stability discriminant during spring tides.

Influence of variable viscosity and double diffusion on the convective stability of a nanofluid flow in an inclined porous channel

The influence of variable viscosity and double diffusion on the convective stability of a nanofluid flow in an inclined porous channel is investigated.The DarcyBrinkman model is used to characterize the fluid flow dynamics in porous materials.The analytical solutions are obtained for the unidirectional and completely developed flow.Based on a normal mode analysis,the generalized eigenvalue problem under a perturbed state is solved.The eigenvalue problem is then solved by the spectral method.Finally,the critical Rayleigh number with the corresponding wavenumber is evaluated at the assigned values of the other flow-governing parameters.The results show that increasing the Darcy number,the Lewis number,the Dufour parameter,or the Soret parameter increases the stability of the system,whereas increasing the inclination angle of the channel destabilizes the flow.Besides,the flow is the most unstable when the channel is vertically oriented.

Effect and mechanism of reductive polyaniline on the stability of nitrocellulose

The search for new green and efficient stabilizers is of great importance for the stabilization of nitrocellulose(NC). This is due to the shortcomings of traditional stabilizers, such as high toxicity. In this study, reduced polyaniline(r-PANI), which has a similar functional structure to diphenylamine(DPA) but is non-toxic, was prepared from PANI based on the action with N_(2)H_(4) and NH_(3)-H_(2)O, and used for the first time as a potential stabilizer for NC. XPS, FTIR, Raman, and SEM were used to characterize the reduced chemical structure and surface morphology of r-PANI. In addition, the effect of r-PANI on the stabilization of NC was characterized using DSC, VST, isothermal TG, and MMC. Thermal weight loss was reduced by 83% and 68% and gas pressure release by 75% and 49% compared to pure NC and NC&3%DPA, respectively.FTIR and XPS were used to characterize the structural changes of r-PANI before and after reaction with NO_(2). The 1535 cm^(-1) and 1341 cm^(-1) of the FTIR and the 404.98 eV and 406.05 eV of the XPS showed that the -NO_(2) was generated by the absorption of NO_(2). Furthermore, the quantum chemical calculation showed that NO_(2) was directly immobilized on r-PANI by forming -NO_(2) in the neighboring position of the benzene ring.

Origin of the Disparity between the Stability of Transmutated Mix-Cation and Mix-Anion Compounds

Transmutation is an efficient approach for material design. For example, ternary compound CuGaSe_(2) in chalcopyrite structure is a promising material for novel optoelectronic and thermoelectric device applications. It can be considered as formed from the binary host compound ZnSe in zinc-blende structure by cation transmutation(i.e., replacing two Zn atoms by one Cu and one Ga). While cation-transmutated materials are common, aniontransmutated ternary materials are rare, for example, Zn_(2)As Br(i.e., replacing two Se atoms by one As and one Br)is not reported. The physical origin for this puzzling disparity is unclear. In this work, we employ first-principles calculations to address this issue, and find that the distinct differences in stability between cation-transmutated(mix-cation) and anion-transmutated(mix-anion) compounds originate from their different trends of ionic radii as functions of their ionic state, i.e., for cations, the radius decreases with the increasing ionic state, whereas for anions, the radius increases with the increasing absolute ionic state. Therefore, for mix-cation compounds,the strain energy and Coulomb energy can be simultaneously optimized to make these materials stable. In contrast, for mix-anion systems, minimization of Coulomb energy will increase the strain energy, thus the system becomes unstable or less stable. Thus, the trend of decreasing strain energy and Coulomb energy is consistent in mix-cation compounds, while it is opposite in mix-anion compounds. Furthermore, the study suggests that the stability strategy for mix-anion compounds can be controlled by the ratio of ionic radii r3/r1, with a smaller ratio indicating greater stability. Our work, thus, elucidates the intrinsic stability trend of transmutated materials and provides guidelines for the design of novel ternary materials for various device applications.

A NOTE ON THE GENERAL STABILIZATION OF DISCRETE FEEDBACK CONTROL FOR NON-AUTONOMOUS HYBRID NEUTRAL STOCHASTIC SYSTEMS WITH A DELAY

Discrete feedback control was designed to stabilize an unstable hybrid neutral stochastic differential delay system(HNSDDS) under a highly nonlinear constraint in the H_∞ and exponential forms.Nevertheless,the existing work just adapted to autonomous cases,and the obtained results were mainly on exponential stabilization.In comparison with autonomous cases,non-autonomous systems are of great interest and represent an important challenge.Accordingly,discrete feedback control has here been adjusted with a time factor to stabilize an unstable non-autonomous HNSDDS,in which new Lyapunov-Krasovskii functionals and some novel technologies are adopted.It should be noted,in particular,that the stabilization can be achieved not only in the routine H_∞ and exponential forms,but also the polynomial form and even a general form.

Functional nanolayers favor the stability of solid-electrolyteinterphase in rechargeable batteries

Rechargeable batteries have brought us lots of convenience and changed the way we live.However,the demand for higher energy density,longer cycle life,and more fast charging ability urges researchers to develop advanced battery material and chemistry[1,2].

Preparation and Thermal Stability of AlMoON Based Solar Selective Absorption Coating

AlMoON based solar selective absorption coatings were deposited on stainless steel substrate by magnetron sputtering.The coatings included infrared reflection layer Mo,absorption layer AlMoN,absorption layer AlMoON and antireflection layer AlMoO from bottom to top.The surface of the deposited coatings is flat without obvious defects.The absorptivity and emissivity are 0.896 and 0.09,respectively,and the quality factor is 9.96.After heat treatment at 500℃-36 h,the surface roughness of the coating increases,a small number of cracks and other defects appear,and the broken part is still attached to the coating surface.A certain degree of element diffusion occurs in the coatings,resulting in the decline of the optical properties of the coatings.The absorptivity and emissivity are 0.883 and 0.131,respectively,the quality factor is 7.06,and the PC value is 0.0335.The coatings do not fail under this condition and have certain thermal stability.