aking the motion reconstruction of the Cretaceous hell ants as an example, this study shows how to achieve motion reconstruction in fossil invertebrates and discusses potential challenges and opportunities.

We provide a roadmap for carbon nanotube integrated circuit technology from various perspectives, especially including the performance potential, main technique challenges along with possible solutions, and application fields.

Abstract Surface electrons in axion insulators are endowed with a topological layer degree of freedom followed by exotic transport phenomena, e.g., the layer Hall effect [Gao et al., Nature 595, 521 (2021)]. Here, we propose that such a layer degree of freedom can be manipulated in a dissipationless way based on the antiferromagnetic MnBi2Te4 with tailored domain structure. This makes MnBi2Te4 a versatile platform to exploit the “layertronics” to encode, process, and store information. Importantly, the layer filter, layer valve, and layer reverser devices can be achieved using the layer-locked chiral domain wall modes. The dissipationless nature of the domain wall modes makes the performance of the layertronic-devices superior to those in spintronics and valleytronics. Specifically, the layer reverser, a layer version of Datta-Das transistor, also fills up the blank in designing the valley reverser in valleytronics. Our work sheds light on constructing new generation electronic devices with high performance and low energy consumption in the framework of layertronics.

Abstract Clean air actions (CAAs) in China have been linked to considerable benefits in public health. However, whether the beneficial effects of CAAs are equally distributed geographically is unknown. Using high-resolution maps of the distributions of major air pollutants (fine particulate matter [PM2.5] and ozone [O3]) and population, we aimed to track spatiotemporal changes in health impacts from, and geographic inequality embedded in the reduced exposures to PM2.5 and O3, from 2013 to 2020. We used a method established by the Global of Burden Diseases Study. By analyzing the changes in loss of life expectancy (LLE) attributable to PM2.5 and O3, we calculated the gain of life expectancy (GLE) to quantify the health benefits of the air-quality improvement. Finally, we assessed the geographic inequality embedded in the GLE using the Gini Index (GI). Based on risk assessments of PM2.5 and O3, during the first stage of CAAs (2013 to 2017), the mean GLE was 1.87 months. Half of the sum of the GLE was disproportionally distributed in about one quarter of the population exposed (GI 0.44). During the second stage of CAAs (2017 to 2020), the mean GLE increased to 3.94 months and geographic inequality decreased (GI 0.18). According to our assessments, CAAs were enhanced, from the first to second stages, in terms of not only preventing premature mortality but also ameliorating health inequalities. The enhancements were related to increased sensitivity to the health effects of air pollution and synergic control of PM2.5 and O3 levels. Our findings will contribute to optimize future CAAs.

Abstract Our understanding of pre-Cretaceous dinosaur reproduction is hindered by a scarcity of evidence within the fossil record. Here we report three adult skeletons and five clutches of embryo-containing eggs of a new sauropodomorph from the Lower Jurassic of southwestern China, displaying several significant reproductive features that are either unknown or unlike other early-diverging sauropodomorphs, such as relatively large eggs with a relatively thick calcareous shell formed by prominent mammillary cones, synchronous hatching, and a transitional prehatching posture between the crocodilians and living birds. Most significantly, these Early Jurassic fossils provide strong evidence for the earliest known leathery eggs. Our comprehensive quantitative analyses demonstrate that the first dinosaur eggs were probably leathery, elliptical and relatively small, but with relatively long eggshell units, and that along the line to living birds, the most significant change in reptilian egg morphology occurred early in theropod evolution rather than near the origin of Aves.

Abstract Oculomotor behavior has been shown to be correlated with mental disorders in clinics, making it promising for disease diagnosis. Here we developed a thorough oculomotor test toolkit, involving saccade, smooth pursuit, and fixation, allowing to examine multiple oculomotor parameters in monkey models induced by psychoactive drugs. Eye movements were recorded after daily injections of phencyclidine (PCP) (3.0 mg/kg), ketamine (0.8 mg/kg) or controlled saline in two macaque monkeys. Both drugs led to robust reduction in accuracy and increment in reaction time during high cognitive-demanding tasks. Saccades, smooth pursuit, and fixation stability were also significantly impaired. The involuntary microsaccades during fixation exhibited increased amplitudes and were biased toward lower visual field. Pupillary response was reduced during cognitive tasks. Both drugs also increased sensitivity to auditory cues as reflected in auditory evoked potentials (AEP). Thus, our animal model induced by psychoactive drugs produced largely similar abnormalities to that in patients with schizophrenia. Importantly, a classifier based on dimension reduction and machine learning could reliably identify altered states induced by different drugs (PCP, ketamine and saline, accuracy = 93%). The high performance of the classifier was reserved even when data from one monkey were used for training and testing the other subject (averaged classification accuracy = 90%). Thus, despite heterogeneity in baseline oculormotor behavior between the two monkeys, our model allows data transferability across individuals, which could be beneficial for future evaluation of pharmaceutical or physical therapy validity.

Abstract A biological potassium channel is over 1000 times more permeable to K+ than to Na+, and exhibits a giant permeation rate up to 108 ions/s. It is a great challenge to construct artificial potassium channels with such high selectivity and ion conduction rate. Herein, we unveil a long-overlooked structural feature that underpins the ultra-high K+/Na+ selectivity. By carrying out massive molecular dynamics simulation for ion transport through carbonyl-oxygen-modified bi-layer graphene nanopores, we find that the twisted carbonyl rings enable strict potassium selectivity with the dynamic K+/Na+ selectivity ratio up to 1295 and the K+ conduction rate of 3.5 × 107 ions/s, approaching those of the biological counterparts. Intriguingly, atomic trajectories of K+ permeation events suggest a dual-ion transport mode, i.e. two like-charged potassium ions are successively captured by the nanopores in graphene bi-layer, and are interconnected by sharing one or two interlayer water molecules. The dual-ion behavior allows for rapid release of the exiting potassium ion via a soft knock-on mechanism, which is previously found only in biological ion channels. As a proof-of-concept utilization of this discovery, we propose a novel way for ionic power generation by mixing KCl and NaCl solutions through the bi-layer graphene nanopores, termed potassium-permselectivity enabled osmotic power generation (PoPee-OPG). Theoretically, the biomimetic device achieves a very high power density of over 1000 W/m2 with graphene sheets of less than 1% porosity. This study provides a blueprint for artificial potassium channels, and thus paves a way toward the-next-generation electric-eel-mimetic ionic power generation.