Northeast Asian cut-off lows are crucial cyclonic systems that can bring temperature and precipitation extremes over large areas.Skillful subseasonal forecasting of Northeast Asian cut-off lows is of great importance....Northeast Asian cut-off lows are crucial cyclonic systems that can bring temperature and precipitation extremes over large areas.Skillful subseasonal forecasting of Northeast Asian cut-off lows is of great importance.Using two dynamical forecasting systems,one from the Beijing Climate Center(BCC-CSM2-HR)and the other from the Met Office(GloSea5),this study assesses simulation ability and subseasonal prediction skill for early-summer Northeast Asian cut-off lows.Both models are shown to have good ability in representing the spatial structure of cut-off lows,but they underestimate the intensity.The skillful prediction time scales for cut-off low intensity are about 10.2 days for BCC-CSM2-HR and 11.4 days for GloSea5 in advance.Further examination shows that both models can essentially capture the initial Rossby wave train,rapid growth and decay processes responsible for the evolution of cut-off lows,but the models show weaker amplitudes for the three-stage processes.The underestimated simulated strength of both the Eurasian midlatitude and East Asian subtropical jets may lead to the weaker local eddy-mean flow interaction responsible for the cut-off low evolution.展开更多
The silicon on glasses process is a common preparation method of micro-electro-mechanical system inertial devices,which can realize the processing of thick silicon structures.This paper proposes that indium tin oxides...The silicon on glasses process is a common preparation method of micro-electro-mechanical system inertial devices,which can realize the processing of thick silicon structures.This paper proposes that indium tin oxides(ITO)film can serve as a deep silicon etching cut-off layer because ITO is less damaged under the attack of fluoride ions.ITO has good electrical conductivity and can absorb fluoride ions for silicon etching and reduce the reflection of fluoride ions,thus reducing the foot effect.The removal and release of ITO use an acidic solution,which does not damage the silicon structure.Therefore,the selection of the sacrificial layer has an excellent effect in maintaining the shape of the MEMS structure.This method is used in the preparation of MEMS accelerometers with a structure thickness of 100μm and a feature size of 4μm.The over-etching of the bottom of the silicon structure caused by the foot effect is negligible.The difference between the simulated value and the designed value of the device characteristic frequency is less than 5%.This indicates that ITO is an excellent deep silicon etch stopper material.展开更多
The transverse relaxation time (T_(2)) cut-off value plays a crucial role in nuclear magnetic resonance for identifying movable and immovable boundaries, evaluating permeability, and determining fluid saturation in pe...The transverse relaxation time (T_(2)) cut-off value plays a crucial role in nuclear magnetic resonance for identifying movable and immovable boundaries, evaluating permeability, and determining fluid saturation in petrophysical characterization of petroleum reservoirs. This study focuses on the systematic analysis of T_(2) spectra and T_(2) cut-off values in low-permeability reservoir rocks. Analysis of 36 low-permeability cores revealed a wide distribution of T_(2) cut-off values, ranging from 7 to 50 ms. Additionally, the T_(2) spectra exhibited multimodal characteristics, predominantly displaying unimodal and bimodal morphologies, with a few trimodal morphologies, which are inherently influenced by different pore types. Fractal characteristics of pore structure in fully water-saturated cores were captured through the T_(2) spectra, which were calculated using generalized fractal and multifractal theories. To augment the limited dataset of 36 cores, the synthetic minority oversampling technique was employed. Models for evaluating the T_(2) cut-off value were separately developed based on the classified T_(2) spectra, considering the number of peaks, and utilizing generalized fractal dimensions at the weight <0 and the singular intensity range. The underlying mechanism is that the singular intensity and generalized fractal dimensions at the weight <0 can detect the T_(2) spectral shift. However, the T_(2) spectral shift has negligible effects on multifractal spectrum function difference and generalized fractal dimensions at the weight >0. The primary objective of this work is to gain insights into the relationship between the kurtosis of the T_(2) spectrum and pore types, as well as to predict the T_(2) cut-off value of low-permeability rocks using machine learning and data augmentation techniques.展开更多
Patients living with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are at high risk of cardiovascular events. Our aim in this study was to assess the cut-off value for lipoprotein (a) (Lp(a)) in CKD patients with a history of cardiova...Patients living with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are at high risk of cardiovascular events. Our aim in this study was to assess the cut-off value for lipoprotein (a) (Lp(a)) in CKD patients with a history of cardiovascular disease (CVD). This was a cross-sectional study. Variables including age, sex, history of CVD, body mass index and CKD stage, were collected during CKD patient’s first admission in the nephrology dialysis department. Blood samples were collected for quantitative determination of Lp(a) by immunoturbidimetric method. They were divided into two groups: CKD patients without history of CVD and CKD patients with history of CVD. Fisher’s exact test was used to assess associations with a significance level of 0.05%. Area under the curve (AUC) and new cut-off value for Lp(a) were identified by drawing Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve. A total of seventy CKD patients with median age of 43 years [minimum-maximum = 15 - 78 years] were included. Patients with history of CVD were 65.71% (46/70). New Lp(a) cut-off point in CKD patients with history of CVD was 66.50 nmol/L [sensitivity, 87.00%;specificity, 58.30%;AUC = 0.727;p = 0.000]. ROC curve demonstrated good performance of Lp(a) to screen CKD patients with history of CVD. Further research is needed to determine an LPA gene polymorphism’s contribution to increasing risk for CVD at each kidney disease stage.展开更多
An average of eight snowfall events occur each year in the eastern Lesotho Highlands.These snowfall events are typically associated with cut-off low(CoLs)systems and mid-latitude cyclones.However,the moisture sources ...An average of eight snowfall events occur each year in the eastern Lesotho Highlands.These snowfall events are typically associated with cut-off low(CoLs)systems and mid-latitude cyclones.However,the moisture sources of the snowfall are unclassified and unclear.The Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory(HYSPLIT)model,an air mass back trajectory model,has been used to evaluate moisture source waters locally in southern Africa and internationally in China and Europe.This study uses HYSPLIT to determine the source moisture of snow in Lesotho.A list of all 82 snowfall events in Lesotho spanning 2017 to 2022 was compiled using the Snow Report SA Instagram page,including the date and location of snowfall.A 72-hour back trajectory for each snowfall event was initiated for both Afriski and the whole of Lesotho.This amounts to models of moisture source trajectories for 28 and 82 snowfall days,respectively.These air mass pathways are classified according to their frequency per snowfall event,per month in the snow season,per year and for the full period.From this,associated moisture source regions and dominant air mass trajectories were identified.This study reports that the air mass trajectories associated with Afriski and Lesotho as a whole are very similar.The most common pathway of air mass trajectories transporting snow-bearing moisture to Lesotho was an inland trajectory from the northern regions of southern Africa.This pathway makes up 16.6%of all trajectories reported and is associated with the Angola Low,the Congo Air Boundary and the St.Helena High Pressure.展开更多
Obesity is an independent risk factor for chronic diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and certain cancers. Early detection of abdominal obesity followed by appropriate interventions will prevent associa...Obesity is an independent risk factor for chronic diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and certain cancers. Early detection of abdominal obesity followed by appropriate interventions will prevent associated diseases. The objective was to determine optimal waist circumference (WC) cut-off points predictive of at least one other component of metabolic syndrome in Benin adults. This longitudinal and observational study included at the baseline 541 apparently healthy subjects aged 25 - 60 years randomly selected in the largest city of Cotonou (n = 200), the smaller-size city of Ouidah (n = 171) and rural surroundings of Ouidah (n = 170) in Benin. Components of the metabolic syndrome considered along with abdominal obesity were high blood pressure, high fasting glycaemia, low HDL-cholesterol and high triglycerides as defined by the Joint Interim Statement. After the baseline survey, the subjects were followed-up for four years. Complete data at baseline and four years later were available in 416 subjects. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve for waist circumference to predict at least one other component of the metabolic syndrome was plotted and the Youden index was used to define the optimal cut-offs of WC. At the baseline of the study, the optimal WC cut-off point to predict the presence of at least one other component of the metabolic syndrome was 80 cm for men (sensitivity = 0.62, specificity = 0.65);the area under the ROC curve was 0.67 (IC 95%: 0.61-0.74). In women, the optimal WC cut-off point was 90 cm (sensitivity = 0.54, specificity = 0.80), and the area under the ROC curve was 0.68 (IC 95%: 0.62-0.75). These optimal cut-offs were similar four years later. Optimum WC cut-off points for both men and women in Benin differ from those currently recommended for sub-Saharan Africans. Therefore, waist circumference cut-off points for abdominal obesity need to be reconsidered for these populations.展开更多
The cut-off wall in a clay-core rockfill dam built on a thick overburden layer is subjected to a large compressive pressure under the action of the loads such as the dead weight of both the dam and the overburden laye...The cut-off wall in a clay-core rockfill dam built on a thick overburden layer is subjected to a large compressive pressure under the action of the loads such as the dead weight of both the dam and the overburden layer, the frictional force induced by the differential settlement between the cut-off wall and surrounding soils, and the water pressure. Thus, reduction of the stress of the cut-off wall has become one of the main problems for consideration in engineering design. In this paper, numerical analysis of a core rockfill dam built on a thick overburden layer was conducted and some factors influencing the stress-strain behaviors of the cut-off wall were investigated. The factors include the improvement of the overburden layer, the modeling approach for interfacial contact between the cut-off wall and surrounding soils, the modulus of the cut-off wall concrete, and the connected pattern between the cut-off wall and the clay core. The result shows that improving the overburden layer,selecting plastic concrete with a low modulus and high strength, and optimizing the connection between the cut-off wall and the clay core of the dam are effective measures of reducing the deformations and compressive stresses of the cut-off wall. In addition, both the Goodman element and the mud-layer element are suitable for simulating the interfacial contact between the cut-off wall and surrounding soils.展开更多
This study examines a Kuroshio main path(KMP) cut-off event east of Taiwan Island occurred in fall-winter2013–2014 and its impacts on the South China Sea(SCS) by analyzing satellite altimetry and mooring observations...This study examines a Kuroshio main path(KMP) cut-off event east of Taiwan Island occurred in fall-winter2013–2014 and its impacts on the South China Sea(SCS) by analyzing satellite altimetry and mooring observations. Satellite altimeter sea level anomaly(SLA) images reveal a complete process that a huge cyclonic eddy(CE) from the Pacific collided with the Kuroshio and the western boundary from 15 October 2013 to 15 January 2014. Mooring observations evidenced that the Kuroshio upper ocean volume transport was cut off more than 82% from 17×106 m^3/s in September to 3×106 m^3/s in November 2013. The KMP cut-off event caused the Kuroshio branching and intruding into the SCS and strengthened the eddy kinetic energy in the northern SCS west of the Luzon Strait. Using the total momentum as a dynamic criterion to determine the role of eddy collision with the Kuroshio reasonably explains the KMP cut-off event.展开更多
The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of low-dose tibolone therapy on ovarian area, uterine volume and endometrial thickness, and define the cut-off value of endometrial thickness for curettage during uter...The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of low-dose tibolone therapy on ovarian area, uterine volume and endometrial thickness, and define the cut-off value of endometrial thickness for curettage during uterine bleeding. We followed 619 postmenopausal women, aged 40-60 years, for two years. There were 301 subjects in the low-dose tibolone treatment group and 318 subjects in the control group. The ovarian area, uterine volume and endometrial thickness in all participants were measured by transvaginal ultrasound prior to, one and two years post enrollment, respectively. Endometrial specimens were collected from all subjects with abnormal uterine bleeding during the follow-up period. We found that the uterine volume in the treatment group was greater than that in the control group, and the difference was significant (P〈0.05), but there were no significant differences in ovarian area and endometrial thickness between the two groups (P〉0.05). When the cut-off value for endometrial thickness was 7.35 ram, the sensitivity and specificity were 100% and 79.07%, respectively, and 85.71% and 93.02% when 7.55 mm was set as the cut-offduring tibolone therapy. The results indicate that low-dose tibolone therapy may postpone uterine atrophy and the cut-off value of endometrial thickness may be appropriately adjusted for curettage.展开更多
In situ measurements of the vertical structure of ozone were made in Changchun (43.53°N, 125.13°E), China, by the Institute of Atmosphere Physics, in the summers of 2010-13. Analysis of the 89 validated oz...In situ measurements of the vertical structure of ozone were made in Changchun (43.53°N, 125.13°E), China, by the Institute of Atmosphere Physics, in the summers of 2010-13. Analysis of the 89 validated ozone profiles shows the vari- ation of ozone concentration in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS) caused by cut-off lows (COLs) over Changchun. During the COL events, an increase of the ozone concentration and a lower height of the tropopause are observed. Backward simulations with a trajectory model show that the ozone-rich airmass brought by the COL is from Siberia. A case study proves that stratosphere-troposphere exchange (STE) occurs in the COL. The ozone-rich air mass transported from the stratosphere to the troposphere first becomes unstable, then loses its high ozone concentration. This process usually happens during the decay stage of COLs. In order to understand the influence of COLs on the ozone in the UTLS, statistical analysis of the ozone profiles within COLs, and other profiles, are employed. The results indicate that the ozone concentrations of the in-COL profiles are significantly higher than those of the other profiles between ±4 km around the tropopause. The COLs induce an increase in UTLS column ozone by 32% on average. Meanwhile, the COLs depress the lapse-rate tropopause (LRT)/dynamical tropopause height by 1.4/1.7 km and cause the atmosphere above the tropopause to be less stable. The influence of COLs is durable because the increased ozone concentration lasts at least one day after the COL has passed over Changchun. Furthermore, the relative coefficient between LRT height and lower stratosphere (LS) column ozone is -0.62, which implies a positive correlation between COL strength and LS ozone concentration.展开更多
As is well known, there exists a tradeoff between the breakdown voltage BVcEO and the cut-off frequency fT for a standard heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT). In this paper, this tradeoff is alleviated by collec...As is well known, there exists a tradeoff between the breakdown voltage BVcEO and the cut-off frequency fT for a standard heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT). In this paper, this tradeoff is alleviated by collector doping engineering in the SiGe HBT by utilizing a novel composite of P+ and N- doping layers inside the collector-base (CB) space-charge region (SCR). Compared with the single N-type collector, the introduction of the thin P+ layers provides a reverse electric field weakening the electric field near the CB metallurgical junction without changing the field direction, and the thin N layer further effectively lowers the electric field near the CB metallurgical junction. As a result, the electron temperature near the CB metallurgical junction is lowered, consequently suppressing the impact ionization, thus BVcEO is improved with a slight degradation in fT. The results show that the product of fTXBVcEo is improved from 309.51 GHz.V to 326.35 GHz.V.展开更多
The photoassociation dynamics of ultracold lithium atoms controlled by a cut-off pulse has been investigated theoretically by solving numerically the time-dependent Schr6dinger equation using the mapped Fourier grid m...The photoassociation dynamics of ultracold lithium atoms controlled by a cut-off pulse has been investigated theoretically by solving numerically the time-dependent Schr6dinger equation using the mapped Fourier grid method. The frequency components of the laser pulse close to the atomic resonance are partly cut off. Compared with the typical Gauss-type pulses, the cut-off pulse is helpful to suppress efficiently the weakly bound states and prepare the associated molecules in the lower vibrational states. Especially, the dependence of photoassociation probability on the cut-off position of the laser pulse is explored.展开更多
Iron deficiency anemia is one of the most prevalent nutritional deficiency worldwide. The commonly used cut-off values for identifying iron deficiency are extrapolated from older children and may not be suitable for i...Iron deficiency anemia is one of the most prevalent nutritional deficiency worldwide. The commonly used cut-off values for identifying iron deficiency are extrapolated from older children and may not be suitable for infants. Therefore, our study aimed to establish appropriate cut-off values for the evaluation of iron status in Chinese infants. Pregnant women who delivered at 〉37 gestational weeks with normal iron status were recruited. Later, infants with normal birth weight and who were breastfed in the first 4 months were selected. Blood samples were collected to assess hemoglobin, serum ferritin, soluble transferrin receptor, mean corpuscular volume and free erythrocyte protoporphyrin. Cut-offs of all iron indices were determined as the limit of 95% confidence interval.展开更多
In SPECT, noise is one of the major limitations that degrade image quality. To suppress the noisy signals in an image, digital filters are most commonly applied. However, in SPECT image reconstruction, selection of an...In SPECT, noise is one of the major limitations that degrade image quality. To suppress the noisy signals in an image, digital filters are most commonly applied. However, in SPECT image reconstruction, selection of an appropriate filter and its functions has always remained a difficult task. In this work an attempt was made to investigate the effects of varying cut-off frequencies and in keeping the order of Butterworth filter constant on detectability and contrast of hot and cold re-gions images. A new insert simulating hot and cold regions which provides similar views in a reconstructed image was placed in the phantom’s cylindrical source tank and imaged. Tc-99m radionuclide was distributed uniformly in the phantom. SPECT data were collected in a 20% energy window centered at 140 keV by a Philips ADAC Forte dual head gamma camera mounted with a LEHR collimator. Images were generated by using the filtered backprojection technique. A Butterworth filter of order 5 with cut-off frequencies 0.35 and 0.45 cycles·cm<sup>-1</sup> was applied. Images were examined in terms of hot and cold regions, detectability and contrast. Results show that the hot and cold regions’ detectability and contrast vary with the change of cut-off frequency. With a 0.45 cycles·cm<sup>-1</sup> cut-off frequency, a significant enhancement in contrast of cold regions was achieved as compared to a 0.35 cycles·cm<sup>-1</sup> cut-off frequency. Furthermore, the detectability of hot and cold regions improved with the use of a 0.45 cycles·cm<sup>-1</sup> cut-off frequency. In conclusion, image quality of hot and cold regions affected in a different way with a change of cut-off frequency. Thus, care should be taken in selecting the filter cut-off frequency prior to reconstruction of images;particularly, when both types of regions are expected in the reconstructed image.展开更多
The extraordinary mode(X-mode)lower cut-off frequency is proposed for use in the reflectometry diagnostic on ITER for the electron density profile measurement,which is a trade-off between extreme plasma parameters and...The extraordinary mode(X-mode)lower cut-off frequency is proposed for use in the reflectometry diagnostic on ITER for the electron density profile measurement,which is a trade-off between extreme plasma parameters and the accessible probing frequency.In contemporary experiments,the lower cutoff frequency can be identified at the probing frequency below the electron cyclotron frequency(f_(ce)) under certain plasma conditions.We provide here,for the first time,the experimental validation of the use of the lower cut-off frequency for the density profiles via the reflectometry measurement on EAST.The corresponding group delay of the lower cut-off frequency evolves continuously with the upper one,revealing a reasonable radial coverage extension of reflectometry measurement toward the plasma core.It is concluded that the lower cut-off frequency can be used as a supplement to the upper one in the density profile inversion process,which is of particular interest in the high magnetic field and/or density discharge to extend the radial coverage of reflectometry measurement.展开更多
This paper diseusses the general principle of finding the cut-off frequencies in two-dielectric lay-ered waveguides by using the boundary element method,based on the fundamental solution of a twodimensional Helmholtz ...This paper diseusses the general principle of finding the cut-off frequencies in two-dielectric lay-ered waveguides by using the boundary element method,based on the fundamental solution of a twodimensional Helmholtz equation.In terms of the formulae given in the paper,some numerical resultsare obtained for two commonly used configurations.The fimal results show that the method is of an appre-ciable precision.展开更多
The aim of the present study was to investigate minimum inhibitory concentration(MIC)distributions by broth microdilution(BMD)method and to determine the preliminary epidemiological cut-off value(ECV)of colistin by ep...The aim of the present study was to investigate minimum inhibitory concentration(MIC)distributions by broth microdilution(BMD)method and to determine the preliminary epidemiological cut-off value(ECV)of colistin by epidemiological cut-off(ECOFF)finder against E.coli from chickens in China.Anal swabs were collected from chicken farms in China.BMD method was used to measure MIC50 and MIC90 of colistin which were 2 and 4μg•mL^(-1),respectively.MIC frequency distributions for colistin were used to estimate preliminary ECV(8μg•mL^(-1)).High percentages of resistance to ampicillin(94.12%),nalidixic acid(94.12%),enrofloxacin(94.12%),tetracycline(94.12%),ciprofloxacin(88.24%),florfenicol(88.24%),neomycin(64.71%),gentamicin(58.82%),levofloxacin(58.82%),doxycycline(88.24%)and cefalexin(76.47%)were found.In addition,low percentages of resistance to amikacin(5.88%),spectinomycin(17.65%)and fosfomycin(41.18%)were noted.Notably,amoxicillin,sulfisoxazole and trimethoprim resulted in a 100%resistance generation efficacy rate.Prevalence of mcr-1 in E.coli(9/17)in chromosomal DNA was higher than mcr-4(2/17)gene,and mcr-1(5/17)was higher than mcr-4(3/17)in plasmid.展开更多
基金supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China(2021YFA0718000)NSF of China under Grant No.42175075the UK-China Research&Innovation Partnership Fund through the Met Office Climate Science for Service Partnership(CSSP)China as part of the Newton Fund.
文摘Northeast Asian cut-off lows are crucial cyclonic systems that can bring temperature and precipitation extremes over large areas.Skillful subseasonal forecasting of Northeast Asian cut-off lows is of great importance.Using two dynamical forecasting systems,one from the Beijing Climate Center(BCC-CSM2-HR)and the other from the Met Office(GloSea5),this study assesses simulation ability and subseasonal prediction skill for early-summer Northeast Asian cut-off lows.Both models are shown to have good ability in representing the spatial structure of cut-off lows,but they underestimate the intensity.The skillful prediction time scales for cut-off low intensity are about 10.2 days for BCC-CSM2-HR and 11.4 days for GloSea5 in advance.Further examination shows that both models can essentially capture the initial Rossby wave train,rapid growth and decay processes responsible for the evolution of cut-off lows,but the models show weaker amplitudes for the three-stage processes.The underestimated simulated strength of both the Eurasian midlatitude and East Asian subtropical jets may lead to the weaker local eddy-mean flow interaction responsible for the cut-off low evolution.
基金the Laboratory Open Fund of Beijing Smart-chip Microelectronics Technology Co.,Ltd and Chinese National Science Foundation(Contract No.52075519 and 61974136).
文摘The silicon on glasses process is a common preparation method of micro-electro-mechanical system inertial devices,which can realize the processing of thick silicon structures.This paper proposes that indium tin oxides(ITO)film can serve as a deep silicon etching cut-off layer because ITO is less damaged under the attack of fluoride ions.ITO has good electrical conductivity and can absorb fluoride ions for silicon etching and reduce the reflection of fluoride ions,thus reducing the foot effect.The removal and release of ITO use an acidic solution,which does not damage the silicon structure.Therefore,the selection of the sacrificial layer has an excellent effect in maintaining the shape of the MEMS structure.This method is used in the preparation of MEMS accelerometers with a structure thickness of 100μm and a feature size of 4μm.The over-etching of the bottom of the silicon structure caused by the foot effect is negligible.The difference between the simulated value and the designed value of the device characteristic frequency is less than 5%.This indicates that ITO is an excellent deep silicon etch stopper material.
基金supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.42002171,42172159)China Postdoctoral Science Foundation(Nos.2020TQ0299,2020M682520)Postdoctoral Innovation Science Foundation of Hubei Province of China.
文摘The transverse relaxation time (T_(2)) cut-off value plays a crucial role in nuclear magnetic resonance for identifying movable and immovable boundaries, evaluating permeability, and determining fluid saturation in petrophysical characterization of petroleum reservoirs. This study focuses on the systematic analysis of T_(2) spectra and T_(2) cut-off values in low-permeability reservoir rocks. Analysis of 36 low-permeability cores revealed a wide distribution of T_(2) cut-off values, ranging from 7 to 50 ms. Additionally, the T_(2) spectra exhibited multimodal characteristics, predominantly displaying unimodal and bimodal morphologies, with a few trimodal morphologies, which are inherently influenced by different pore types. Fractal characteristics of pore structure in fully water-saturated cores were captured through the T_(2) spectra, which were calculated using generalized fractal and multifractal theories. To augment the limited dataset of 36 cores, the synthetic minority oversampling technique was employed. Models for evaluating the T_(2) cut-off value were separately developed based on the classified T_(2) spectra, considering the number of peaks, and utilizing generalized fractal dimensions at the weight <0 and the singular intensity range. The underlying mechanism is that the singular intensity and generalized fractal dimensions at the weight <0 can detect the T_(2) spectral shift. However, the T_(2) spectral shift has negligible effects on multifractal spectrum function difference and generalized fractal dimensions at the weight >0. The primary objective of this work is to gain insights into the relationship between the kurtosis of the T_(2) spectrum and pore types, as well as to predict the T_(2) cut-off value of low-permeability rocks using machine learning and data augmentation techniques.
文摘Patients living with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are at high risk of cardiovascular events. Our aim in this study was to assess the cut-off value for lipoprotein (a) (Lp(a)) in CKD patients with a history of cardiovascular disease (CVD). This was a cross-sectional study. Variables including age, sex, history of CVD, body mass index and CKD stage, were collected during CKD patient’s first admission in the nephrology dialysis department. Blood samples were collected for quantitative determination of Lp(a) by immunoturbidimetric method. They were divided into two groups: CKD patients without history of CVD and CKD patients with history of CVD. Fisher’s exact test was used to assess associations with a significance level of 0.05%. Area under the curve (AUC) and new cut-off value for Lp(a) were identified by drawing Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve. A total of seventy CKD patients with median age of 43 years [minimum-maximum = 15 - 78 years] were included. Patients with history of CVD were 65.71% (46/70). New Lp(a) cut-off point in CKD patients with history of CVD was 66.50 nmol/L [sensitivity, 87.00%;specificity, 58.30%;AUC = 0.727;p = 0.000]. ROC curve demonstrated good performance of Lp(a) to screen CKD patients with history of CVD. Further research is needed to determine an LPA gene polymorphism’s contribution to increasing risk for CVD at each kidney disease stage.
基金the University of the Witwatersrand Friedel Sellschop Grantthe WitsUCL strategic partnership grant
文摘An average of eight snowfall events occur each year in the eastern Lesotho Highlands.These snowfall events are typically associated with cut-off low(CoLs)systems and mid-latitude cyclones.However,the moisture sources of the snowfall are unclassified and unclear.The Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory(HYSPLIT)model,an air mass back trajectory model,has been used to evaluate moisture source waters locally in southern Africa and internationally in China and Europe.This study uses HYSPLIT to determine the source moisture of snow in Lesotho.A list of all 82 snowfall events in Lesotho spanning 2017 to 2022 was compiled using the Snow Report SA Instagram page,including the date and location of snowfall.A 72-hour back trajectory for each snowfall event was initiated for both Afriski and the whole of Lesotho.This amounts to models of moisture source trajectories for 28 and 82 snowfall days,respectively.These air mass pathways are classified according to their frequency per snowfall event,per month in the snow season,per year and for the full period.From this,associated moisture source regions and dominant air mass trajectories were identified.This study reports that the air mass trajectories associated with Afriski and Lesotho as a whole are very similar.The most common pathway of air mass trajectories transporting snow-bearing moisture to Lesotho was an inland trajectory from the northern regions of southern Africa.This pathway makes up 16.6%of all trajectories reported and is associated with the Angola Low,the Congo Air Boundary and the St.Helena High Pressure.
文摘Obesity is an independent risk factor for chronic diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and certain cancers. Early detection of abdominal obesity followed by appropriate interventions will prevent associated diseases. The objective was to determine optimal waist circumference (WC) cut-off points predictive of at least one other component of metabolic syndrome in Benin adults. This longitudinal and observational study included at the baseline 541 apparently healthy subjects aged 25 - 60 years randomly selected in the largest city of Cotonou (n = 200), the smaller-size city of Ouidah (n = 171) and rural surroundings of Ouidah (n = 170) in Benin. Components of the metabolic syndrome considered along with abdominal obesity were high blood pressure, high fasting glycaemia, low HDL-cholesterol and high triglycerides as defined by the Joint Interim Statement. After the baseline survey, the subjects were followed-up for four years. Complete data at baseline and four years later were available in 416 subjects. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve for waist circumference to predict at least one other component of the metabolic syndrome was plotted and the Youden index was used to define the optimal cut-offs of WC. At the baseline of the study, the optimal WC cut-off point to predict the presence of at least one other component of the metabolic syndrome was 80 cm for men (sensitivity = 0.62, specificity = 0.65);the area under the ROC curve was 0.67 (IC 95%: 0.61-0.74). In women, the optimal WC cut-off point was 90 cm (sensitivity = 0.54, specificity = 0.80), and the area under the ROC curve was 0.68 (IC 95%: 0.62-0.75). These optimal cut-offs were similar four years later. Optimum WC cut-off points for both men and women in Benin differ from those currently recommended for sub-Saharan Africans. Therefore, waist circumference cut-off points for abdominal obesity need to be reconsidered for these populations.
基金the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.51379066)the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (Grant No.2016B03514)+1 种基金the National Key Technology Support Program (Grant No.2015BAB07B05)the Key Laboratory of Earth-Rock Dam Failure Mechanism and Safety Control Techniques (Grant No.YK913007).
文摘The cut-off wall in a clay-core rockfill dam built on a thick overburden layer is subjected to a large compressive pressure under the action of the loads such as the dead weight of both the dam and the overburden layer, the frictional force induced by the differential settlement between the cut-off wall and surrounding soils, and the water pressure. Thus, reduction of the stress of the cut-off wall has become one of the main problems for consideration in engineering design. In this paper, numerical analysis of a core rockfill dam built on a thick overburden layer was conducted and some factors influencing the stress-strain behaviors of the cut-off wall were investigated. The factors include the improvement of the overburden layer, the modeling approach for interfacial contact between the cut-off wall and surrounding soils, the modulus of the cut-off wall concrete, and the connected pattern between the cut-off wall and the clay core. The result shows that improving the overburden layer,selecting plastic concrete with a low modulus and high strength, and optimizing the connection between the cut-off wall and the clay core of the dam are effective measures of reducing the deformations and compressive stresses of the cut-off wall. In addition, both the Goodman element and the mud-layer element are suitable for simulating the interfacial contact between the cut-off wall and surrounding soils.
基金The National Natural Science Foundation of China under contract No.41776034the Ministry of Science and Technology of Taiwan under contract Nos MOST 105-2611-M-019-001 and MOST 106-2611-M-019-015+1 种基金the GASI Project under contract Nos GASI-IPOVAI-01-02 and GASI-02-SCS-YGST2-02the Foundation of Guangdong Province for Outstanding Young Teachers in University under contract No.YQ201588
文摘This study examines a Kuroshio main path(KMP) cut-off event east of Taiwan Island occurred in fall-winter2013–2014 and its impacts on the South China Sea(SCS) by analyzing satellite altimetry and mooring observations. Satellite altimeter sea level anomaly(SLA) images reveal a complete process that a huge cyclonic eddy(CE) from the Pacific collided with the Kuroshio and the western boundary from 15 October 2013 to 15 January 2014. Mooring observations evidenced that the Kuroshio upper ocean volume transport was cut off more than 82% from 17×106 m^3/s in September to 3×106 m^3/s in November 2013. The KMP cut-off event caused the Kuroshio branching and intruding into the SCS and strengthened the eddy kinetic energy in the northern SCS west of the Luzon Strait. Using the total momentum as a dynamic criterion to determine the role of eddy collision with the Kuroshio reasonably explains the KMP cut-off event.
基金supported by the Sci-tech Research Development Program of Shaanxi Province (No.2015SF015)
文摘The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of low-dose tibolone therapy on ovarian area, uterine volume and endometrial thickness, and define the cut-off value of endometrial thickness for curettage during uterine bleeding. We followed 619 postmenopausal women, aged 40-60 years, for two years. There were 301 subjects in the low-dose tibolone treatment group and 318 subjects in the control group. The ovarian area, uterine volume and endometrial thickness in all participants were measured by transvaginal ultrasound prior to, one and two years post enrollment, respectively. Endometrial specimens were collected from all subjects with abnormal uterine bleeding during the follow-up period. We found that the uterine volume in the treatment group was greater than that in the control group, and the difference was significant (P〈0.05), but there were no significant differences in ovarian area and endometrial thickness between the two groups (P〉0.05). When the cut-off value for endometrial thickness was 7.35 ram, the sensitivity and specificity were 100% and 79.07%, respectively, and 85.71% and 93.02% when 7.55 mm was set as the cut-offduring tibolone therapy. The results indicate that low-dose tibolone therapy may postpone uterine atrophy and the cut-off value of endometrial thickness may be appropriately adjusted for curettage.
基金jointly supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (Grant No.2010CB428602)the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos.41275046 and 41025017)
文摘In situ measurements of the vertical structure of ozone were made in Changchun (43.53°N, 125.13°E), China, by the Institute of Atmosphere Physics, in the summers of 2010-13. Analysis of the 89 validated ozone profiles shows the vari- ation of ozone concentration in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS) caused by cut-off lows (COLs) over Changchun. During the COL events, an increase of the ozone concentration and a lower height of the tropopause are observed. Backward simulations with a trajectory model show that the ozone-rich airmass brought by the COL is from Siberia. A case study proves that stratosphere-troposphere exchange (STE) occurs in the COL. The ozone-rich air mass transported from the stratosphere to the troposphere first becomes unstable, then loses its high ozone concentration. This process usually happens during the decay stage of COLs. In order to understand the influence of COLs on the ozone in the UTLS, statistical analysis of the ozone profiles within COLs, and other profiles, are employed. The results indicate that the ozone concentrations of the in-COL profiles are significantly higher than those of the other profiles between ±4 km around the tropopause. The COLs induce an increase in UTLS column ozone by 32% on average. Meanwhile, the COLs depress the lapse-rate tropopause (LRT)/dynamical tropopause height by 1.4/1.7 km and cause the atmosphere above the tropopause to be less stable. The influence of COLs is durable because the increased ozone concentration lasts at least one day after the COL has passed over Changchun. Furthermore, the relative coefficient between LRT height and lower stratosphere (LS) column ozone is -0.62, which implies a positive correlation between COL strength and LS ozone concentration.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.60776051,61006059,and 61006044)the Beijing Municipal Natural Science Foundation,China(Grant Nos.4142007,4143059,4082007,and 4122014)the Beijing Municipal Education Committee,China(Grant Nos.KM200710005015 and KM200910005001)
文摘As is well known, there exists a tradeoff between the breakdown voltage BVcEO and the cut-off frequency fT for a standard heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT). In this paper, this tradeoff is alleviated by collector doping engineering in the SiGe HBT by utilizing a novel composite of P+ and N- doping layers inside the collector-base (CB) space-charge region (SCR). Compared with the single N-type collector, the introduction of the thin P+ layers provides a reverse electric field weakening the electric field near the CB metallurgical junction without changing the field direction, and the thin N layer further effectively lowers the electric field near the CB metallurgical junction. As a result, the electron temperature near the CB metallurgical junction is lowered, consequently suppressing the impact ionization, thus BVcEO is improved with a slight degradation in fT. The results show that the product of fTXBVcEo is improved from 309.51 GHz.V to 326.35 GHz.V.
基金Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 10974024)the SRFDP, China (Grant No. 20090041110025)
文摘The photoassociation dynamics of ultracold lithium atoms controlled by a cut-off pulse has been investigated theoretically by solving numerically the time-dependent Schr6dinger equation using the mapped Fourier grid method. The frequency components of the laser pulse close to the atomic resonance are partly cut off. Compared with the typical Gauss-type pulses, the cut-off pulse is helpful to suppress efficiently the weakly bound states and prepare the associated molecules in the lower vibrational states. Especially, the dependence of photoassociation probability on the cut-off position of the laser pulse is explored.
基金supported by Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.30972483)The Chinese clinical trial registry number is ChiCTR-TRC-12002838
文摘Iron deficiency anemia is one of the most prevalent nutritional deficiency worldwide. The commonly used cut-off values for identifying iron deficiency are extrapolated from older children and may not be suitable for infants. Therefore, our study aimed to establish appropriate cut-off values for the evaluation of iron status in Chinese infants. Pregnant women who delivered at 〉37 gestational weeks with normal iron status were recruited. Later, infants with normal birth weight and who were breastfed in the first 4 months were selected. Blood samples were collected to assess hemoglobin, serum ferritin, soluble transferrin receptor, mean corpuscular volume and free erythrocyte protoporphyrin. Cut-offs of all iron indices were determined as the limit of 95% confidence interval.
文摘In SPECT, noise is one of the major limitations that degrade image quality. To suppress the noisy signals in an image, digital filters are most commonly applied. However, in SPECT image reconstruction, selection of an appropriate filter and its functions has always remained a difficult task. In this work an attempt was made to investigate the effects of varying cut-off frequencies and in keeping the order of Butterworth filter constant on detectability and contrast of hot and cold re-gions images. A new insert simulating hot and cold regions which provides similar views in a reconstructed image was placed in the phantom’s cylindrical source tank and imaged. Tc-99m radionuclide was distributed uniformly in the phantom. SPECT data were collected in a 20% energy window centered at 140 keV by a Philips ADAC Forte dual head gamma camera mounted with a LEHR collimator. Images were generated by using the filtered backprojection technique. A Butterworth filter of order 5 with cut-off frequencies 0.35 and 0.45 cycles·cm<sup>-1</sup> was applied. Images were examined in terms of hot and cold regions, detectability and contrast. Results show that the hot and cold regions’ detectability and contrast vary with the change of cut-off frequency. With a 0.45 cycles·cm<sup>-1</sup> cut-off frequency, a significant enhancement in contrast of cold regions was achieved as compared to a 0.35 cycles·cm<sup>-1</sup> cut-off frequency. Furthermore, the detectability of hot and cold regions improved with the use of a 0.45 cycles·cm<sup>-1</sup> cut-off frequency. In conclusion, image quality of hot and cold regions affected in a different way with a change of cut-off frequency. Thus, care should be taken in selecting the filter cut-off frequency prior to reconstruction of images;particularly, when both types of regions are expected in the reconstructed image.
基金supported by the National Key R&D Program of China(Nos.2017YFE0301205 and 2019YFE03040002)National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.11875289,11975271,11805136,12075284,and 12175277)China Postdoctoral Science Foundation(No.2021M703256)。
文摘The extraordinary mode(X-mode)lower cut-off frequency is proposed for use in the reflectometry diagnostic on ITER for the electron density profile measurement,which is a trade-off between extreme plasma parameters and the accessible probing frequency.In contemporary experiments,the lower cutoff frequency can be identified at the probing frequency below the electron cyclotron frequency(f_(ce)) under certain plasma conditions.We provide here,for the first time,the experimental validation of the use of the lower cut-off frequency for the density profiles via the reflectometry measurement on EAST.The corresponding group delay of the lower cut-off frequency evolves continuously with the upper one,revealing a reasonable radial coverage extension of reflectometry measurement toward the plasma core.It is concluded that the lower cut-off frequency can be used as a supplement to the upper one in the density profile inversion process,which is of particular interest in the high magnetic field and/or density discharge to extend the radial coverage of reflectometry measurement.
文摘This paper diseusses the general principle of finding the cut-off frequencies in two-dielectric lay-ered waveguides by using the boundary element method,based on the fundamental solution of a twodimensional Helmholtz equation.In terms of the formulae given in the paper,some numerical resultsare obtained for two commonly used configurations.The fimal results show that the method is of an appre-ciable precision.
基金Supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China(2016YFD0501302)the National Natural Science Foundation of China(31772801)。
文摘The aim of the present study was to investigate minimum inhibitory concentration(MIC)distributions by broth microdilution(BMD)method and to determine the preliminary epidemiological cut-off value(ECV)of colistin by epidemiological cut-off(ECOFF)finder against E.coli from chickens in China.Anal swabs were collected from chicken farms in China.BMD method was used to measure MIC50 and MIC90 of colistin which were 2 and 4μg•mL^(-1),respectively.MIC frequency distributions for colistin were used to estimate preliminary ECV(8μg•mL^(-1)).High percentages of resistance to ampicillin(94.12%),nalidixic acid(94.12%),enrofloxacin(94.12%),tetracycline(94.12%),ciprofloxacin(88.24%),florfenicol(88.24%),neomycin(64.71%),gentamicin(58.82%),levofloxacin(58.82%),doxycycline(88.24%)and cefalexin(76.47%)were found.In addition,low percentages of resistance to amikacin(5.88%),spectinomycin(17.65%)and fosfomycin(41.18%)were noted.Notably,amoxicillin,sulfisoxazole and trimethoprim resulted in a 100%resistance generation efficacy rate.Prevalence of mcr-1 in E.coli(9/17)in chromosomal DNA was higher than mcr-4(2/17)gene,and mcr-1(5/17)was higher than mcr-4(3/17)in plasmid.