When building geotechnical constructions like retaining walls and dams is of interest,one of the most important factors to consider is the soil’s shear strength parameters.This study makes an effort to propose a nove...When building geotechnical constructions like retaining walls and dams is of interest,one of the most important factors to consider is the soil’s shear strength parameters.This study makes an effort to propose a novel predictive model of shear strength.The study implements an extreme gradient boosting(XGBoost)technique coupled with a powerful optimization algorithm,the salp swarm algorithm(SSA),to predict the shear strength of various soils.To do this,a database consisting of 152 sets of data is prepared where the shear strength(τ)of the soil is considered as the model output and some soil index tests(e.g.,dry unit weight,water content,and plasticity index)are set as model inputs.Themodel is designed and tuned using both effective parameters of XGBoost and SSA,and themost accuratemodel is introduced in this study.Thepredictionperformanceof theSSA-XGBoostmodel is assessedbased on the coefficient of determination(R2)and variance account for(VAF).Overall,the obtained values of R^(2) and VAF(0.977 and 0.849)and(97.714%and 84.936%)for training and testing sets,respectively,confirm the workability of the developed model in forecasting the soil shear strength.To investigate the model generalization,the prediction performance of the model is tested for another 30 sets of data(validation data).The validation results(e.g.,R^(2) of 0.805)suggest the workability of the proposed model.Overall,findings suggest that when the shear strength of the soil cannot be determined directly,the proposed hybrid XGBoost-SSA model can be utilized to assess this parameter.展开更多
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a form of Gender Base Violence (GBV) where an intimate partner perpetrates violence. In the HIV care continua which has the aim of achieving epidemic control based on the goals defin...Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a form of Gender Base Violence (GBV) where an intimate partner perpetrates violence. In the HIV care continua which has the aim of achieving epidemic control based on the goals defined by UNAIDS, 95% of people living with HIV (PLHIV) have to know their HIV status, 95% initiated ARV treatment and 95% are virally suppressed in order to achieve epidemic control. One of the evidence-based strategies used for achieving an optimal number of PLHIV who know their HIV status is the Index Case Testing Strategy (ICT). While the ICT strategy helps the achievement of epidemic control, its implementation increases the incidence of IPV among either serodiscordant or concordant couples. Tackling information about IPV is very sensitive. A review of the literature on the management of HIV patient information has shown that shifting from paper-based management of HIV patient information to computerized Electronic Medical Records (EMR) systems, using software such as OPEN MRS has significantly improved the management of HIV patient information with high-level confidentiality of patient information. The reviews showed that the EMR systems put in place to manage HIV patient information need to integrate the stages used for the management of IPV among PLHIV.展开更多
The mesoscale forecasting model WRF is used to simulate two strong convective weather processes accompanied by lightning in Qinghai Province,and the simulated lightning potential index (LPI) and the observed lightning...The mesoscale forecasting model WRF is used to simulate two strong convective weather processes accompanied by lightning in Qinghai Province,and the simulated lightning potential index (LPI) and the observed lightning are compared.Finally,the application of LPI in another lightening case is examined.The results show that the simulated LPI corresponds well to the observed lightning in time.In terms of spatial distribution,the simulated LPI tends to be consistent with the observed lightning density,but there are some minor differences in the locations.Therefore,the LPI can be used to forecast lightning density.展开更多
After the anti-collision facility construction of Wanzhou Yangtze River Highway Bridge, the conditions of navigation in bridge area are complex. In order to study the navigation conditions of the reach and layout opti...After the anti-collision facility construction of Wanzhou Yangtze River Highway Bridge, the conditions of navigation in bridge area are complex. In order to study the navigation conditions of the reach and layout optimization measures, ensuring the safety of the ship navigation test has been carried out on the ship model navigation in the bridge area. According to the requirements of the maximum safety limit of the ship model test, the paper puts forward the best route, the control method and the difficulty of navigation through the analysis of the test results, and finally gives the recommendations and suggestions.展开更多
M/C test is always an essential means of testing for language teachers.However,we have every reason to doubt whether a randomly designed M/C test could effectively reflect the testees' language standard.In most la...M/C test is always an essential means of testing for language teachers.However,we have every reason to doubt whether a randomly designed M/C test could effectively reflect the testees' language standard.In most language testing,before the actual writing of a test paper,we should first analyze the items to see whether they're good or qualified enough to be put into the test paper or to be included in the item bank for further use because it is only through item analysis that we can make the test paper more scientific.Based on this theory,there 're some principles we should follow when writing or assessing M/C tests.展开更多
In this paper the authors study empirically the power of the test based on the index of dissimilarity to compare two samples drawn from two populations differing only in the location parameter. We call such a test as ...In this paper the authors study empirically the power of the test based on the index of dissimilarity to compare two samples drawn from two populations differing only in the location parameter. We call such a test as test of homogeneity. In practice the power of such a bidirectional test will be studied referring to the absolute value of the shiftδand to the same probability models considered by Fried and Dehling.展开更多
The method,in which a few carats of diamond grits are placed inside a capsule together with a steel ball,shaken for a number of times,and the unbroken ratio of the grits is then used to evaluate the quality of the dia...The method,in which a few carats of diamond grits are placed inside a capsule together with a steel ball,shaken for a number of times,and the unbroken ratio of the grits is then used to evaluate the quality of the diamond,has been well established for many years.However,the unbroken percentage,in an equivalent view,represents the impact toughness of the grits and cannot reflect the value of the crushing energy.Most of the previous empirical formulas obtained from experiments by scholars cannot be applied to practical tests.In this paper,a dimensional analysis was applied to investigate the impact toughness experiment,and the dimensionless relationship has been built among those variables such as the toughness index,the impact time,the impact frequency and the crushing energy per unit area.According to the results of a large number of experiments with synthetic diamond grits of mesh size 45/50,the percentage of the broken grits H is proportional to the impact time T^（1.14） when the impact frequency is 2400 r/min,and the impact frequency f^（2.576） when the number of impacts is 2000.展开更多
Encroachment, disposal of untreated domestic and industrial wastewater and dumping of solid wastes have degraded the overall quality of the river Turag, which is located in Dhaka—the Capital City of Bangladesh. The p...Encroachment, disposal of untreated domestic and industrial wastewater and dumping of solid wastes have degraded the overall quality of the river Turag, which is located in Dhaka—the Capital City of Bangladesh. The present study investigated the extent of pollution of sediments of this river and analyzed the regional variability for the concentrations of Cr, Pb, Zn, Cu and Cd—all of concern because of their potential toxicity, using atomic absorption spectrophotometer. As per US EPA sediment quality guideline, metal concentrations ranged between Cd: 0.00 - 0.80, Cr: 32.00 - 75.50, Cu: 46.30 - 60.00, Pb: 28.30 - 36.40, and Zn: 94.60 - 190.10 mg/kg in the Turag river sediments. Cr, Cu, Zn belongs to moderately to highly polluted, Pb and Cd belongs to not polluted for Turag river. The heavy metals contamination in the sediments were also evaluated by applying Index of geo-accumulation (Igeo), contamination factor (Cf), pollution load index (PLI) etc. Toxicity characteristics leaching procedure (TCLP) test (US EPA 1311) for sediment samples have been performed also for metals (Pb, Cd, Cr, Cu and Zn) to determine the readily toxicity level of heavy metals. Sieve analysis of sediment performed in this study to determine the physical characteristic of sediment samples. The metal concentrations are well below the regulated level as per US EPA. This index can be complemented with the contamination index, which allows more site-specific and accurate information on contaminant levels. If the aim of work on contamination evaluation is to assess the overall contamination of a study area, the indices are highly appropriate.展开更多
The use of econometric methods to analyze the relationship between our country steel price index and the international iron ore freight rate,time series stationarity test,cointegration test,Granger test of causality a...The use of econometric methods to analyze the relationship between our country steel price index and the international iron ore freight rate,time series stationarity test,cointegration test,Granger test of causality and model parameter estimation tools use,find that there is Granger causality between our country steel price index and the international iron ore freight rate,China' s steel price fluctuations to some extent affect the international iron ore freight.展开更多
This paper derives the variance of the information content and develops its statistical inference method. We describe the relations between information content and sensitivity, specificity, efficiency, prevalence rate...This paper derives the variance of the information content and develops its statistical inference method. We describe the relations between information content and sensitivity, specificity, efficiency, prevalence rate. If sensitivity, specificity and efficiency are fixed, the closer to 0. 5 the prevalence rate is, the more the information content. If prevalence rate and efficiency are fixed, the closer to each other the sensitivity and specificity are, the more the information content. We compare the power of information content method, efficiecy test, Youden's index test and kappa coefficient method. The information content method has higher power than the other methods in most conditions. It is especially sensitive to the difference between two sensitivities. It comes to conclusion that the information content method has more virtues than the other methods mentioned in this paper.展开更多
Lifestyle factors, such as weight and nutritional status may affect male fertility, including sperm fertilization ability. The objective of this retrospective study was to evaluate the association between body mass in...Lifestyle factors, such as weight and nutritional status may affect male fertility, including sperm fertilization ability. The objective of this retrospective study was to evaluate the association between body mass index （BMI） and sperm-zona pellucida binding ability assessed according to the zona binding （ZB） test, which has been described to be a relevant diagnostic tool for the prediction of in vitro fertilization （IVF） ability. Three hundred and six male patients from couples diagnosed with primary idiopathic or mild male factor infertility were included. Correlations between BMI and semen parameters according to ZB test indices were assessed, together with frequencies of positive and negative tests across the BMI categories. In this selected population, BMI was not related to conventional semen parameters or sperm quality assessed according to the ability of spermatozoa to bind to the zona pellucida. The previously described poor outcomes of IVF procedures in cases of male obesity could be due to other sperm defects, such as alterations of sperm capacitation or acrosome reaction. The link between male BMI and biological outcomes during IVF procedures, such as fertilization rates, should be further evaluated.展开更多
In order to explore the effects of moisture content and plasticity index on Duncan-Chang model parameters?K,n,?C?and?Rf,?we selected 8 groups of soft soil with water content of 69.1%?-?94.3% and plasticity index of 32...In order to explore the effects of moisture content and plasticity index on Duncan-Chang model parameters?K,n,?C?and?Rf,?we selected 8 groups of soft soil with water content of 69.1%?-?94.3% and plasticity index of 32.2?-?54.1 for triaxial unconsolidated undrained shear test. The results show that?Cuu,?K?and?n?values all showed a downward trend, and?Rf?variation was not obvious with the increase of moisture content. The variation rule of each parameter is not obvious with the increase of plasticity index. When moisture content is constant,?Cuu?and?n?values do not change much,?K?increases with the increase of plasticity index within the range of 70%?-?80% moisture content, and does not change much with the increase of plasticity index when moisture content is greater than 80%,?Rf?has no obvious rule.?When the plasticity index is constant,?Cuu,?Kand?n?decrease with the increase of moisture content,?Rf?has no obvious rule. The maximum value of?Cuu?is 20.18?kPa, the minimum is 3.72?kPa, and the maximum to minimum ratio is 5.42. The maximum value of?K?is 0.517, the minimum is 0.022, and the maximum to minimum ratio is 23.5. The maximum value of?n?is 1.198, the minimum is 0.150, and the maximum to minimum ratio is 7.99. The maximum value of?Rf?is 0.872, the minimum is 0.679, and the maximum to minimum ratio is 1.28.展开更多
Many studies have demonstrated that leukoaraiosis is associated with impaired cerebrovascular reserve function. However, the definitive hemodynamic changes that occur in leukoaraiosis are not clear, and there are many...Many studies have demonstrated that leukoaraiosis is associated with impaired cerebrovascular reserve function. However, the definitive hemodynamic changes that occur in leukoaraiosis are not clear, and there are many controversies. This study aimed to investigate hemodynamic changes in symptomatic leukoaraiosis using transcranial Doppler ultrasonography and the breath-holding test in a Chinese Han population, from northern China. A total of 203 patients who were diagnosed with ischemic stroke or clinical chronic progressive ischemic symptoms were enrolled in this study, including 97 males and 106 females, with an age range of 43-93 years. The severity of leukoaraiosis was evaluated according to the Fazekas grading scale, and patients were divided into four groups accordingly. Grade 0 was no leukoaraiosis, and grades I, II, and III were mild, moderate, and severe leukoaraiosis, respectively, with 44, 79, 44, and 36 cases in each group. Transcranial Doppler ultrasonography and the breath-holding test were performed. The mean blood flow velocity of the bilateral middle cerebral artery was measured and the breath-holding index was calculated. The breath holding index was correlated with leukoaraiosis severity and cognitive impairment. Patients with a low breath holding index presented poor performance in the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and executive function tests. That is, the lower the breath holding index, the lower the scores for the MoCA and the higher for the trail-making test Parts A and B. These results indicate that the breath-holding index is a useful parameter for the evaluation of cerebrovascular reserve impairment in patients with leukoaraiosis. In addition, the breath-holding index can reflect cognitive dysfunction, providing a new insight into the pathophysiology of leukoaraiosis. This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Fifth Peoples Hospital of Shenyang, China (approval No. 20160301) and registered in the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (registration number: ChiCTR1800014421).展开更多
文摘When building geotechnical constructions like retaining walls and dams is of interest,one of the most important factors to consider is the soil’s shear strength parameters.This study makes an effort to propose a novel predictive model of shear strength.The study implements an extreme gradient boosting(XGBoost)technique coupled with a powerful optimization algorithm,the salp swarm algorithm(SSA),to predict the shear strength of various soils.To do this,a database consisting of 152 sets of data is prepared where the shear strength(τ)of the soil is considered as the model output and some soil index tests(e.g.,dry unit weight,water content,and plasticity index)are set as model inputs.Themodel is designed and tuned using both effective parameters of XGBoost and SSA,and themost accuratemodel is introduced in this study.Thepredictionperformanceof theSSA-XGBoostmodel is assessedbased on the coefficient of determination(R2)and variance account for(VAF).Overall,the obtained values of R^(2) and VAF(0.977 and 0.849)and(97.714%and 84.936%)for training and testing sets,respectively,confirm the workability of the developed model in forecasting the soil shear strength.To investigate the model generalization,the prediction performance of the model is tested for another 30 sets of data(validation data).The validation results(e.g.,R^(2) of 0.805)suggest the workability of the proposed model.Overall,findings suggest that when the shear strength of the soil cannot be determined directly,the proposed hybrid XGBoost-SSA model can be utilized to assess this parameter.
文摘Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a form of Gender Base Violence (GBV) where an intimate partner perpetrates violence. In the HIV care continua which has the aim of achieving epidemic control based on the goals defined by UNAIDS, 95% of people living with HIV (PLHIV) have to know their HIV status, 95% initiated ARV treatment and 95% are virally suppressed in order to achieve epidemic control. One of the evidence-based strategies used for achieving an optimal number of PLHIV who know their HIV status is the Index Case Testing Strategy (ICT). While the ICT strategy helps the achievement of epidemic control, its implementation increases the incidence of IPV among either serodiscordant or concordant couples. Tackling information about IPV is very sensitive. A review of the literature on the management of HIV patient information has shown that shifting from paper-based management of HIV patient information to computerized Electronic Medical Records (EMR) systems, using software such as OPEN MRS has significantly improved the management of HIV patient information with high-level confidentiality of patient information. The reviews showed that the EMR systems put in place to manage HIV patient information need to integrate the stages used for the management of IPV among PLHIV.
基金Supported by the Scientific Research of Qinghai Meteorological Bureau(2017 No.[28])
文摘The mesoscale forecasting model WRF is used to simulate two strong convective weather processes accompanied by lightning in Qinghai Province,and the simulated lightning potential index (LPI) and the observed lightning are compared.Finally,the application of LPI in another lightening case is examined.The results show that the simulated LPI corresponds well to the observed lightning in time.In terms of spatial distribution,the simulated LPI tends to be consistent with the observed lightning density,but there are some minor differences in the locations.Therefore,the LPI can be used to forecast lightning density.
文摘After the anti-collision facility construction of Wanzhou Yangtze River Highway Bridge, the conditions of navigation in bridge area are complex. In order to study the navigation conditions of the reach and layout optimization measures, ensuring the safety of the ship navigation test has been carried out on the ship model navigation in the bridge area. According to the requirements of the maximum safety limit of the ship model test, the paper puts forward the best route, the control method and the difficulty of navigation through the analysis of the test results, and finally gives the recommendations and suggestions.
文摘M/C test is always an essential means of testing for language teachers.However,we have every reason to doubt whether a randomly designed M/C test could effectively reflect the testees' language standard.In most language testing,before the actual writing of a test paper,we should first analyze the items to see whether they're good or qualified enough to be put into the test paper or to be included in the item bank for further use because it is only through item analysis that we can make the test paper more scientific.Based on this theory,there 're some principles we should follow when writing or assessing M/C tests.
文摘In this paper the authors study empirically the power of the test based on the index of dissimilarity to compare two samples drawn from two populations differing only in the location parameter. We call such a test as test of homogeneity. In practice the power of such a bidirectional test will be studied referring to the absolute value of the shiftδand to the same probability models considered by Fried and Dehling.
基金Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(11572047)
文摘The method,in which a few carats of diamond grits are placed inside a capsule together with a steel ball,shaken for a number of times,and the unbroken ratio of the grits is then used to evaluate the quality of the diamond,has been well established for many years.However,the unbroken percentage,in an equivalent view,represents the impact toughness of the grits and cannot reflect the value of the crushing energy.Most of the previous empirical formulas obtained from experiments by scholars cannot be applied to practical tests.In this paper,a dimensional analysis was applied to investigate the impact toughness experiment,and the dimensionless relationship has been built among those variables such as the toughness index,the impact time,the impact frequency and the crushing energy per unit area.According to the results of a large number of experiments with synthetic diamond grits of mesh size 45/50,the percentage of the broken grits H is proportional to the impact time T^（1.14） when the impact frequency is 2400 r/min,and the impact frequency f^（2.576） when the number of impacts is 2000.
文摘Encroachment, disposal of untreated domestic and industrial wastewater and dumping of solid wastes have degraded the overall quality of the river Turag, which is located in Dhaka—the Capital City of Bangladesh. The present study investigated the extent of pollution of sediments of this river and analyzed the regional variability for the concentrations of Cr, Pb, Zn, Cu and Cd—all of concern because of their potential toxicity, using atomic absorption spectrophotometer. As per US EPA sediment quality guideline, metal concentrations ranged between Cd: 0.00 - 0.80, Cr: 32.00 - 75.50, Cu: 46.30 - 60.00, Pb: 28.30 - 36.40, and Zn: 94.60 - 190.10 mg/kg in the Turag river sediments. Cr, Cu, Zn belongs to moderately to highly polluted, Pb and Cd belongs to not polluted for Turag river. The heavy metals contamination in the sediments were also evaluated by applying Index of geo-accumulation (Igeo), contamination factor (Cf), pollution load index (PLI) etc. Toxicity characteristics leaching procedure (TCLP) test (US EPA 1311) for sediment samples have been performed also for metals (Pb, Cd, Cr, Cu and Zn) to determine the readily toxicity level of heavy metals. Sieve analysis of sediment performed in this study to determine the physical characteristic of sediment samples. The metal concentrations are well below the regulated level as per US EPA. This index can be complemented with the contamination index, which allows more site-specific and accurate information on contaminant levels. If the aim of work on contamination evaluation is to assess the overall contamination of a study area, the indices are highly appropriate.
文摘The use of econometric methods to analyze the relationship between our country steel price index and the international iron ore freight rate,time series stationarity test,cointegration test,Granger test of causality and model parameter estimation tools use,find that there is Granger causality between our country steel price index and the international iron ore freight rate,China' s steel price fluctuations to some extent affect the international iron ore freight.
文摘This paper derives the variance of the information content and develops its statistical inference method. We describe the relations between information content and sensitivity, specificity, efficiency, prevalence rate. If sensitivity, specificity and efficiency are fixed, the closer to 0. 5 the prevalence rate is, the more the information content. If prevalence rate and efficiency are fixed, the closer to each other the sensitivity and specificity are, the more the information content. We compare the power of information content method, efficiecy test, Youden's index test and kappa coefficient method. The information content method has higher power than the other methods in most conditions. It is especially sensitive to the difference between two sensitivities. It comes to conclusion that the information content method has more virtues than the other methods mentioned in this paper.
文摘Lifestyle factors, such as weight and nutritional status may affect male fertility, including sperm fertilization ability. The objective of this retrospective study was to evaluate the association between body mass index （BMI） and sperm-zona pellucida binding ability assessed according to the zona binding （ZB） test, which has been described to be a relevant diagnostic tool for the prediction of in vitro fertilization （IVF） ability. Three hundred and six male patients from couples diagnosed with primary idiopathic or mild male factor infertility were included. Correlations between BMI and semen parameters according to ZB test indices were assessed, together with frequencies of positive and negative tests across the BMI categories. In this selected population, BMI was not related to conventional semen parameters or sperm quality assessed according to the ability of spermatozoa to bind to the zona pellucida. The previously described poor outcomes of IVF procedures in cases of male obesity could be due to other sperm defects, such as alterations of sperm capacitation or acrosome reaction. The link between male BMI and biological outcomes during IVF procedures, such as fertilization rates, should be further evaluated.
文摘In order to explore the effects of moisture content and plasticity index on Duncan-Chang model parameters?K,n,?C?and?Rf,?we selected 8 groups of soft soil with water content of 69.1%?-?94.3% and plasticity index of 32.2?-?54.1 for triaxial unconsolidated undrained shear test. The results show that?Cuu,?K?and?n?values all showed a downward trend, and?Rf?variation was not obvious with the increase of moisture content. The variation rule of each parameter is not obvious with the increase of plasticity index. When moisture content is constant,?Cuu?and?n?values do not change much,?K?increases with the increase of plasticity index within the range of 70%?-?80% moisture content, and does not change much with the increase of plasticity index when moisture content is greater than 80%,?Rf?has no obvious rule.?When the plasticity index is constant,?Cuu,?Kand?n?decrease with the increase of moisture content,?Rf?has no obvious rule. The maximum value of?Cuu?is 20.18?kPa, the minimum is 3.72?kPa, and the maximum to minimum ratio is 5.42. The maximum value of?K?is 0.517, the minimum is 0.022, and the maximum to minimum ratio is 23.5. The maximum value of?n?is 1.198, the minimum is 0.150, and the maximum to minimum ratio is 7.99. The maximum value of?Rf?is 0.872, the minimum is 0.679, and the maximum to minimum ratio is 1.28.
文摘Many studies have demonstrated that leukoaraiosis is associated with impaired cerebrovascular reserve function. However, the definitive hemodynamic changes that occur in leukoaraiosis are not clear, and there are many controversies. This study aimed to investigate hemodynamic changes in symptomatic leukoaraiosis using transcranial Doppler ultrasonography and the breath-holding test in a Chinese Han population, from northern China. A total of 203 patients who were diagnosed with ischemic stroke or clinical chronic progressive ischemic symptoms were enrolled in this study, including 97 males and 106 females, with an age range of 43-93 years. The severity of leukoaraiosis was evaluated according to the Fazekas grading scale, and patients were divided into four groups accordingly. Grade 0 was no leukoaraiosis, and grades I, II, and III were mild, moderate, and severe leukoaraiosis, respectively, with 44, 79, 44, and 36 cases in each group. Transcranial Doppler ultrasonography and the breath-holding test were performed. The mean blood flow velocity of the bilateral middle cerebral artery was measured and the breath-holding index was calculated. The breath holding index was correlated with leukoaraiosis severity and cognitive impairment. Patients with a low breath holding index presented poor performance in the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and executive function tests. That is, the lower the breath holding index, the lower the scores for the MoCA and the higher for the trail-making test Parts A and B. These results indicate that the breath-holding index is a useful parameter for the evaluation of cerebrovascular reserve impairment in patients with leukoaraiosis. In addition, the breath-holding index can reflect cognitive dysfunction, providing a new insight into the pathophysiology of leukoaraiosis. This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Fifth Peoples Hospital of Shenyang, China (approval No. 20160301) and registered in the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (registration number: ChiCTR1800014421).
