Quantitative Analysis of Natural and Human Factors of Oasis Change in the Tail of Shiyang River over the Past 60 Years

The human and natural factors complicit in the driving forces of oasis change have always received considerable interest from the international research community. In this study, we used principal component analysis of natural and socio-economic statistical factors to quantitatively analyze the causal relationships and their contributions to the observed periodic expansion or shrinkage of the Minqin Oasis over almost 60 years. Our results show that human factors were the dominant factors governing expansion or shrinkage, with average contributions of 69.38% and 76.16%, respectively. Moreover, policy decisions have been the pivotal human factors. Under the influence of various policies, we have found that water resource utilization, land reclamation, population explosion, ecological protection and economic development have each played leading roles in different periods. This study provides a scientific basis for modelling the dynamics of an oasis for sustainable management.

ON THE RELATION BETWEEN THE EVOLUTION OF NATURAL ENVIRONMENT AND HUMAN FACTORS AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF URBAN SETTLEMENT——Take the Lanzhou Valley Basin as An Examples

Lanzhou Valley Basin is composed of two smaller diamond-shaped basins striking from NW to SE and including 6 river terraces. The lower terraces remaining even and smooth are main sites for city buildings. The main function of Lanzhou urban settlement is a ferry and transport centre. Lanzhou used to be an im-portant crossing site and post on the 'silk road',and then became a transport and trade centre in Northwest China. In the middle part of the 17th century, Lanzhou became the capital of Gansu,a new province. The development process of Lanzhou urban settlement indicates that urban settlement is a system consisting of natural environment and human society based on the former.

Disinfection Byproducts and Their Precursors in Drinking Water Sources:Origins,Influencing Factors,and Environmental Insights

Tracing the contamination origins in water sources and identifying the impacts of natural and human processes are essential for ecological safety and public health.However,current analysis approaches are not ideal,as they tend to be laborious,time-consuming,or technically difficult.Disinfection byproducts(DBPs)are a family of well-known secondary pollutants formed by the reactions of chemical disinfectants with DBP precursors during water disinfection treatment.Since DBP precursors have various origins(e.g.,natural,domestic,industrial,and agricultural sources),and since the formation of DBPs from different precursors in the presence of specific disinfectants is distinctive,we argue that DBPs and DBP precursors can serve as alternative indicators to assess the contamination in water sources and identify pollution origins.After providing a retrospective of the origins of DBPs and DBP precursors,as well as the specific formation patterns of DBPs from different precursors,this article presents an overview of the impacts of various natural and anthropogenic factors on DBPs and DBP precursors in drinking water sources.In practice,the DBPs(i.e.,their concentration and speciation)originally present in source water and the DBP precursors determined using DBP formation potential tests—in which water samples are dosed with a stoichiometric excess of specific disinfectants in order to maximize DBP formation under certain reaction conditions—can be considered as alternative metrics.When jointly used with other water quality parameters(e.g.,dissolved organic carbon,dissolved organic nitrogen,fluorescence,and molecular weight distribution)and specific contaminants of emerging concern(e.g.,certain pharmaceuticals and personal care products),DBPs and DBP precursors in drinking water sources can provide a more comprehensive picture of water pollution for better managing water resources and ensuring human health.

Assessing the impacts of human activities and climate variations on grassland productivity by partial least squares structural equation modeling(PLS-SEM)

The cause-effect associations between geographical phenomena are an important focus in ecological research. Recent studies in structural equation modeling（SEM） demonstrated the potential for analyzing such associations. We applied the variance-based partial least squares SEM（PLS-SEM） and geographically-weighted regression（GWR） modeling to assess the human-climate impact on grassland productivity represented by above-ground biomass（AGB）. The human and climate factors and their interaction were taken to explain the AGB variance by a PLS-SEM developed for the grassland ecosystem in Inner Mongolia, China. Results indicated that 65.5% of the AGB variance could be explained by the human and climate factors and their interaction. The case study showed that the human and climate factors imposed a significant and negative impact on the AGB and that their interaction alleviated to some extent the threat from the intensified human-climate pressure. The alleviation may be attributable to vegetation adaptation to high human-climate stresses, to human adaptation to climate conditions or/and to recent vegetation restoration programs in the highly degraded areas. Furthermore, the AGB response to the human and climate factors modeled by GWR exhibited significant spatial variations. This study demonstrated that the combination of PLS-SEM and GWR model is feasible to investigate the cause-effect relation in socio-ecological systems.

Interpreting and Extracting Open Knowledge for Human-Robot Interaction

A more natural way for non-expert users to express their tasks in an open-ended set is to use natural language. In this case,a human-centered intelligent agent/robot is required to be able to understand and generate plans for these naturally expressed tasks. For this purpose, it is a good way to enhance intelligent robot's abilities by utilizing open knowledge extracted from the web, instead of hand-coded knowledge. A key challenge of utilizing open knowledge lies in the semantic interpretation of the open knowledge organized in multiple modes, which can be unstructured or semi-structured, before one can use it.Previous approaches used a limited lexicon to employ combinatory categorial grammar(CCG) as the underlying formalism for semantic parsing over sentences. Here, we propose a more effective learning method to interpret semi-structured user instructions. Moreover, we present a new heuristic method to recover missing semantic information from the context of an instruction. Experiments showed that the proposed approach renders significant performance improvement compared to the baseline methods and the recovering method is promising.

Global Bioethical Prevention of the Collision of Biological and Cultural Evolution on Miserable Human Survival

With the cultural myth that science can only determine the way the world ＂is＂ （facts）, while humanities, social sciences, lawyers, philosophers, and theologians must determine the way the world ＂ought to be＂ （values）, those in position of global-, national-, and local-political power make major decisions of the use （or non-use） of scientific knowledge and technology. As a result, the human being has created a non-scientifically based cultural environment that is affecting his ability to survive. In effect, cultural evolution is occurring more rapidly than biological evolution that can adapt to the changes brought about in the physical and psycho-social environments. In a pluralistic cultural world, where each society has generated a different view of human nature and different ethical values, the use, misuse, or non-use of scientific and technological advances are derived from these unscientific views of human nature. Since all life depends on limiting interacting environmental and ecological factors, it is imperative that scientific information be used to govern how to minimize irreversible effects on life-sustaining ecological factors, but also scientific information bearing on understanding human nature ought to be integrated into a ＂global bioethics＂. While ethical values cannot be directly derived from scientific factors, it is also true that human values or our ＂ought＂ cannot be maintained in ignorance or defiance of the facts or the ＂is＂.

Application of Question and Answering on Virtual Human Dialogue:a Review and Prediction

Nowadays,virtual human(VH) is becoming a hot research topic in virtualization.VH dialogue can be categorized as an application of natural language processing(NLP) technology,since it is relational to question and answering(QA) technologies.In order to integrate these technologies,this paper reviews some important work on VH dialogue,and predicts some research points on the view of QA technologies.

High-throughput RNA interference screens integrative analysis: Towards a comprehensive understanding of the virus-host interplay

Viruses are extremely heterogeneous entities; the size and the nature of their genetic information, as well as the strategies employed to amplify and propagate their genomes, are highly variable. However, as obligatory intracellular parasites, replication of all viruses relies on the host cell. Having co-evolved with their host for several million years, viruses have developed very sophisticated strategies to hijack cellular factors that promote virus uptake, replication, and spread. Identification of host cell factors(HCFs) required for these processes is a major challenge for researchers, but it enables the identification of new, highly selective targets for anti viral therapeutics. To this end, the establishment of platforms enabling genome-wide high-throughput RNA interference(HT-RNAi) screens has led to the identification of several key factors involved in the viral lifecycle. A number of genome-wide HT-RNAi screens have been performed for major human pathogens. These studies enable first inter-viral comparisons related to HCF requirements. Although several cellular functions appear to be uniformly required for the life cycle of most viruses tested(such as the proteasome and the Golgi-mediated secretory pathways), some factors, like the lipid kinase Phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase Ⅲα in the case of hepatitis C virus, are selectively required for individual viruses. However, despite the amount of data available, we are still far away from a comprehensive understanding of the interplay between viruses and host factors. Major limitations towards this goal are the low sensitivity and specificity of such screens, resulting in limited overlap between different screens performed with the same virus. This review focuses on how statistical and bioinformatic analysis methods applied to HTRNAi screens can help overcoming these issues thus increasing the reliability and impact of such studies.

Assessing the vulnerability of changing coasts,Hainan Island,China

Knowledge of coastline changes and vulnerability is of great importance to local government departments that are responsible for the management and development of coastal zones.To study the nature of change and vulnerability along the coasts of the Hainan Island,we collected a large number of sediment samples through the last few years,and reconstructed the changes of the coastline by combining the data of sediment grain-size analysis and the nautical charts/TM RS imaginary.Contrary to being almost free from erosion（as expected from the findings that the coastlines are in a relatively stable state）,four major cities in Hainan（i.e.,Haikou,Wenchang,Sanya and Changjiang） turned out to be suffered from a moderate coastal vulnerability primarily because of the large populations that impose considerable pressure on the coastlines.Thus,the assessment methodology utilized in this study,including both anthropogenic and natural factors,serves as a useful tool to obtain a comprehensive understanding of coastline vulnerability for local government,in terms of coastal management and adaptation.

Evaluation of Selected Control Programming Languages for Process Engineers by Means of Cognitive Effectiveness and Dimensions

Different programming languages can be used for discrete, abstract and process-oriented programming. Depending on the application, there exist additional requirements, which are not fulfilled by every programming language. Flexible programming and maintainability are especially important requirements for process engineers. In this paper, the programming languages Activity Diagram, State Chart Diagram and Sequential Function Chart are compared and evaluated with regard to these requirements. This evaluation is based on the principles of cognitive effectiveness and cognitive dimensions. The aim of this paper is to identify the programming language suited best for controlling sequential processes, e.g. thermomechanical or batch processes.

Regulatory functions and mechanisms of human microbiota in infectious diseases

The human microbiota,a diverse community of microorganisms living on or within their hosts,play an irreplaceable role in maintaining human health.Dysbiosis of the microbiota is associated with the pathogenesis of diverse human dis-eases.In recent years,growing evidence has been presented to support the substantial effect of human microbiota on the progression of infectious diseases.In this review,we describe the functional role of human microbiota in infec-tious diseases by highlighting their Janus-faced effects in the regulation of acute and chronic infections as well as their related co-morbidities.Thereafter,we review the latest advances elucidating the mechanisms underlying tri-directional interactions between the microbiota,hosts,and invading pathogens,with a further discussion on external environ-mental factors that shape this interconnected regulatory network.A better understanding of the regulatory functions and mechanisms of human microbiota in infectious diseases will facilitate the development of new diagnostic,preven-tive,and therapeutic approaches for infectious diseases.

Inhibitors of HIV-1 Integrase-Human LEDGF/p75 Interaction Identified from Natural Products via Virtual Screening

HIV-1 integrase （IN）-mediated integration of viral DNA into the host chromosome is an essential step in the virus life cycle. Human lens epithelium-derived growth factor （LEDGF/p75） has been found to function as a cellu- lar cofactor in this process. The LEDGF/p75-1N interaction hence represents an attractive target for anti-HIV ther- apy. In this study, natural products were virtually screened against the LEDGF/p75 binding pocket of HIV-1 IN. 24 compounds were selected and obtained from the National Compound Resource Center of China. AlphaScreen as- says characterized 8 of these 24 natural products as potent LEDGF/p75-IN interaction inhibitors. The active com- pounds whose ICs0 values ranged from 0.56 to 14.55 ~mol/L could be used as lead compounds for further investi- gation. This work confirmed that natural products are valuable resources for antiviral drug discovery.

Awareness Concerning Volunteerism,Philanthropy,and Environment-A Comparative Study Between Mati and Skyros

On a global level,there is a tendency to conduct bibliographic studies about the creation of resilient communities in disaster areas.Community resilience has a significant role when residents are called upon to recover from a natural disaster(Molavi,2018;Moreno,2018).Based on previous research in the existing literature and after the catastrophe in Mati,and even more specifically in continuation to the research of Vallianou et al.’s,2020,the present study goes a step further comparing for two populations the dimensions of volunteerism,philanthropy tendencies,and environmental awareness.A quantitative research was conducted through questionnaires via phone interviews and in person,one year after the wildfire,in Mati,Greece.The sample consisted of participants from Mati and Skyros Island.The findings of the study revealed that natural disasters are interconnected to volunteerism,philanthropy,and environmental awareness.In our research residents of Mati seem to score higher in environmental awareness in comparison to Skyros’residents who seem to have a stronger tendency on philanthropy.To conclude,the age groups which seem to be more environmentally aware are the one of 46-55 and the one of 65 and above.

Carboxylesterases mediated herb-drug interactions:a systematic review

Esterases participate in the metabolism of^10%of the clinical drugs that contain ester or amide bonds,but the esterases mediated drug/herb-drug interactions(DDIs or HDIs)have not been reviewed in depth.Carboxylesterases(CEs),the most abundant esterases expressed in the metabolic organ of mammals,play a pivotal role in hydrolysis of a variety of endogenous and xenobiotic esters.In the human body,two predominant carboxylesterases including hCE1 and hCE2 have been identified and extensively studied over the past decade.These two enzymes have been found with hydrolytic activity towards a variety of endogenous esters and ester-containing drugs.Recent studies have demonstrated that strong inhibition on hCEs may slow down the hydrolysis of CEs substrates,which may affect their pharmacokinetic properties and thus trigger potential DDIs or HDIs.Over the past decade,many herbal extracts and herbal constitutes have been found with strong inhibitory effects against CEs,and their potential risks on herb-drug interactions(HDIs)have also attracted much attention.This review focused on recent progress in hCEs mediated herb-drug interactions.The roles of hCEs in drug metabolism,the inhibitory capacities and inhibition mechanism of a variety of herbal extract and herbal constitutes against hCEs have been well summarized.Furthermore,the challenges and future perspectives in this field are highlighted by the authors.All information and knowledge presented in this review will be very helpful for the pharmacologists to deeper understand the metabolic interactions between herbal constituents and hCEs,as well as for clinical clinicians to reasonable use herbal medicines for alleviating hCEs-associated drug toxicity or avoiding the occurrence of clinically relevant hCEs-mediated HDIs.

中国式现代化的形态建构、动力要素与实践进路——以人与自然和谐共生为分析视角

中国式现代化是中国共产党立足人类文明和现代化发展规律,坚持把马克思主义基本原理同中国具体实际相结合、同中华优秀传统文化相结合的重大成果,超越了西方现代化道路与模式。文本以人与自然和谐共生为视角展开对中国式现代化的形态建构,从政治领导力量、文化因素、经济因素、制度因素和技术因素等方面探讨实现中国式现代化的动力要素;指出中国式现代化的推进始终坚持中国共产党领导,坚持中国特色社会主义,坚持以人民为中心的发展思想,坚持人与自然和谐共生,走生态文明发展的现代化新道路,追求“五个文明”相协调和全体人民共同富裕的价值目标,既为后发国家独立自主实现现代化提供了全新选择,又创造出人类文明新形态。

AI人机交互用户个性化推荐中隐私信息披露影响因素研究

[目的/意义]以ChatGPT为代表的生成式人工智能的发展为人机交互带来颠覆性影响,也为数据安全与个人信息保护带来更大的冲击与挑战。对AI人机交互用户个性化推荐中隐私信息披露及个人信息保护问题的研究将具有重要的实践价值与意义。[方法/过程]文章通过对15名AI人机交互平台用户进行深度访谈,运用扎根理论研究方法进行编码分析,识别AI人机交互用户个性化推荐中隐私信息披露所涉及的个人信息类型和敏感信息类型,并对用户的隐私意识和影响用户隐私信息披露意愿的客观因素进行分析,进而提出加强隐私信息披露风险规制及个人信息安全保障的对策建议。[结果/结论]基于编码结果,将AI人机交互用户个性化推荐中隐私信息披露的影响因素归纳为用户因素、平台因素、社会环境因素、隐私权衡因素4个维度,以此建构理论分析模型,并作为强化AI人机交互用户个性化推荐中隐私信息披露风险规制及个人信息保护的重要指引。

载人航天人机交互界面色彩设计方法研究

目的对载人航天人机交互界面的色彩设计方法流程进行了梳理和分析。方法遵循“以人为中心”的设计原则,从色彩空间与模型、色彩设计与人因、航天色彩设计范围、载人航天器色彩设计模型,以及载人航天器色彩设计与人因评价体系等方面,对载人航天器人机交互界面色彩设计方法流程体系进行了探讨。结果构建了载人航天色彩设计模型,阐述了完整的载人航天色彩设计方法流程体系。结论针对载人航天人机交互色彩设计方法的研究为航天员在轨环境中的生活品质及工作效能等相关领域的提高提供了有力支持,进一步增强了航天领域色彩设计与人因工程的重要性。

自然人机交互技术在雷达显控终端中的应用

针对当前雷达显控终端承担的操控任务多、操作步骤复杂等问题,提出了利用自然人机交互技术提升人机交互效率的方法。采用触控显示器、触控一体机、视频处理模块、语音处理模块、指纹识别模块、虚拟现实(VR)交互设备等,通过增加触控、语音、图像处理、VR、生物特征鉴权等多种自然人机交互技术拓展了人机交互的方式;根据雷达显控终端的交互情景,采用选择型多模态融合交互方式,大幅提高了雷达显控终端的人机交互效率,使得人机交互更为自然和舒适。VR交互设备在多维信息展示、场景仿真与推演、模拟训练等场合发挥了明显的优势,自然化和人机融合的智能交互方式将是未来的发展趋势。

一种可重构雷达智能终端设计

针对雷达系统对于显控终端的功能重构需求,提出了基于SNMP协议的交换机在线配置方法、数据源在线选择方法,实现了显控终端的功能自动重构,显著降低了显控终端功能调整的复杂度,提高了系统的使用灵活性和可靠性。通过增加自然人机交互手段、采用智能化工具、基于人因工程的造型和布局设计等实现显控终端的智能人机交互,大幅提高显控终端的人机交互效率。以大数据为驱动,通过辅助决策系统进行智能判别、信息推送,降低了操作员决策的难度,提高了精准度。