Opposite Pattern Research Articles

Osteoblast-derived exosomal miR-140-3p targets ACER2 and increases the progression of prostate cancer via the AKT/mTOR pathway-mediated inhibition of autophagy.

Advanced prostate cancer (aPCa) often results in bone metastases (BM). However, the mechanism underlying its progression and metastasis to bones remains unclear. Therefore, we examined whether exosomal miR-140-3p affects prostate cancer (PCa) progression. We obtained from cell lines, clinical data analyses, and animal models consistently provide important evidence. Patients with PCa having BM had higher miR-140-3p expression in their serum exosomes than those without BM. Clinical investigations have manifested that the exosomal miR-140-3p overexpression connects with serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels and Gleason grade in patients with PCa. Osteoblast-derived exosomal miR-140-3p targeting ACER2 activates the AKT/mTOR pathway invitro, inhibits autophagy, and promotes PCa cell proliferation, invasion, and migration. miR-140-3p significantly increased tumorigenesis and metastasis of LNCaP invitro. Bone metastatic PCa tissues exhibited elevated levels of miR-140-3p, p-GSK3, p-mTOR, p62, p-AKT (S473), and p-AKT (T308) contrasted with non-BM tissues. Moreover, their expression was intensified in the metastatic bone tissues. However, ACER2 and LC3 II showed opposite expression patterns. Based on our study outcomes, the evidence suggests that osteoblast-derived miR-140-3p inhibition of autophagy through the AKT/mTOR pathway is involved in PCa progression. Osteoblast-secreted exosomal miR-140-3p activates the AKT/mTOR pathway by targeting ACER2, inhibiting autophagy, and promoting the progression of PCa cells invitro. Moreover, miR-140-3p induces the progression and metastasis of PCa invivo.

Reversible Electron-Beam Patterning of Colloidal Nanoparticles at Fluid Interfaces.

The directed self-assembly of colloidal nanoparticles (NPs) using external fields guides the formation of sophisticated hierarchical materials but becomes less effective with decreasing particle size. As an alternative, electron-beam-driven assembly offers a potential avenue for targeted nanoscale manipulation, yet remains poorly controlled due to the variety and complexity of beam interaction mechanisms. Here, we investigate the beam-particle interaction of silica NPs pinned to the fluid-vacuum interface of ionic liquid droplets. In these experiments, scanning electron microscopy of the droplet surface resolves NP trajectories over space and time while simultaneously driving their reorganization. With this platform, we demonstrate the ability to direct particle transport and create transient, reversible colloidal patterns on the droplet surface. By tuning the beam voltage, we achieve precise control over both the strength and sign of the beam-particle interaction, with low voltages repelling particles and high voltages attracting them. This response stems from the formation of well-defined solvent flow fields generated from trace radiolysis of the ionic liquid, as determined through statistical analysis of single-particle trajectories under varying solvent composition. Altogether, electron-beam-guided assembly introduces a versatile strategy for nanoscale colloidal manipulation, offering new possibilities for the design of dynamic, reconfigurable systems with applications in adaptive photonics and catalysis.

Inhibitory effect of Zhujing Pill on myopia progression: Mechanistic insights based on metabonomics and network pharmacology.

This study endeavored to uncover the mechanisms by which Zhujing pill (ZJP) slows myopia progression. We employed biometric analyses to track diopter and axial length changes in guinea pigs with negative lens-induced myopia (LIM). Through integrating metabonomics and network pharmacology, we aimed to predict the anti-myopic targets and active ingredients of ZJP. Subsequent analysis, including real-time fluorescent quantitative PCR (qPCR) and Western blotting (WB), assessed the expression levels of CHRNA7, LPCAT1, and NOS2 in retinal tissues. Our findings demonstrate that ZJP significantly mitigates diopter increase and axial elongation in LIM guinea pigs. Metabonomic analysis revealed significant changes in 13 serum metabolites, with ZJP reversing the expression of 5 key metabolites. By integrating metabonomics with network pharmacology, we identified core targets of ZJP against myopia and constructed a compound-gene-disease-metabolite network. The expressions of LPCAT1 and CHRNA7 were found to decrease in the LIM group but increase with ZJP treatment, whereas NOS2 expression showed the opposite pattern. This investigation provides the first evidence of ZJP's multifaceted effectiveness in managing myopia, highlighting its impact on multiple components, targets, and pathways, including the novel involvement of LPCAT1 and CHRNA7 in myopia pathogenesis.

Is a picture worth the same emotions everywhere? Validation of images from the Nencki affective picture system in Malaysia

Several validated image sets, such as NAPS, IAPS, GAPED, and OASIS, have been developed to elicit affective states. However, these image sets were primarily validated on Western populations within European and American contexts, and none have been fully validated in a Southeast Asian sample, where emotional restraint may also be valued similarly to the East Asian contexts. This study aimed to validate and provide norms for the Nencki Affective Picture System (NAPS; Marchewka et al., 2014) within a Malaysian sample. Subsets from the 1356 NAPS images consisting of five image categories (faces, people, objects, landscapes, animals) were presented sequentially to 409 Malaysian adults aged 18 and above, who rated images for valence, arousal and approach/avoidance on a 9-point Likert scale. Valence, arousal and approach/avoidance norms were compared against the original European sample. Malaysian men and women rated images with lower valence and motivation than Europeans, but Malaysian men showed higher arousal ratings compared to European men, while Malaysian women exhibited the opposite pattern, with lower arousal ratings than European women. A linear regression was found instead of a classic ‘boomerang’ shaped quadratic regression previously observed in Western samples, suggesting that emotional suppression may be at play, in line with social norms. The Malaysian normative ratings will be freely available to all researchers.

Machine Learning for Automated Oil Palm Fruit Grading: The Role of Fuzzy C-Means Segmentation and Textural Features

Oil palm fruit, a high-demand and economically valuable crop, faces grading challenges in Malaysia due to labour-intensive methods, resulting in unharvested ripe fruits and yield losses. Extensive research has been conducted on outdoor palm fruit classifiers, but most high-accuracy research in this field relies heavily on large image datasets. This creates a trade-off between employing more sophisticated deep-learning approaches that require extensive data and utilising traditional techniques that have lower data requirements. Therefore, the aim is to propose an outdoor image-based fresh fruit bunch (FFB) classification system, emphasising pre-processing technique and feature extraction techniques suitable for limited datasets. To achieve this, the FFB was localised within the original images using the YOLOv4-Tiny algorithm. Subsequently, a salient segmentation method utilising superpixel-based Fast Fuzzy C-means (FFCM) clustering is employed to remove the background from the images. Next, colour moment and opposite colour local binary pattern (OCLBP) features are extracted from the segmented images to capture important information for classification. Finally, the extracted features are fed into a Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) classifier, which enables the system to predict five classes: damaged, empty, unripe, ripe, and overripe. The developed system demonstrated a commendable performance in accurately classifying fruit bunches, achieving an accuracy of 93.68%. In conclusion, the proposed system effectively addresses the issue of unripe fruit harvesting and contributes to the advancement of state-of-the-art methods in classifying outdoor FFB images.

The Effort Heuristic in Little-c Evaluations: An Effort-Derogation Effect

Previous studies suggest that the effort invested by the producer can serve as a cue for product quality. People tend to infer better quality from high-effort information. This relationship, termed the effort heuristic, has been repeatedly identified in evaluating Pro-c level accomplishments; however, whether it holds in little-c level evaluations remains unclear. Therefore, this study examined the impact of effort information on evaluating little-c products. Twenty drawings from a previous figural test of little-c were used as assessment materials. Undergraduate participants rated the creative quality of drawings under high- and low-effort conditions across three experiments. The results demonstrated that while participants used effort as a heuristic in identifying creative little-c outputs, a reverse pattern emerged—high-effort information was associated with lower ratings. When evaluating little-c (vs. Pro-c) products, individuals tended to devalue (vs. praise) the creator's effort. We suggest that when judging different levels of creativity, information about the creator's effort may prime different creative beliefs in raters, resulting in divergent attribution tendencies and opposite rating biases. Our findings highlight the necessity of considering the level of creative products and the raters’ creative mindsets when evaluating creativity.

Adhesion behavior and microscopic mechanism of epoxy asphalt-RAP aggregate interface

The utilization of thermosetting epoxy asphalt shows promise in achieving the objective of efficient recycling of reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) and promoting the sustainable development of pavement engineering. However, the adhesion behavior and microscopic mechanism of the multi-phase complex interface of epoxy asphalt-RAP aggregate is not clear, which is not conducive to the application of epoxy asphalt in RAP. In this paper, epoxy asphalt-aged asphalt (EA)-aggregate specimens were prepared to simulate the epoxy asphalt-RAP aggregate interface. The effects of different factors on adhesion performance indicators such as surface performance, shear performance and dynamic mechanical performance of the interface were evaluated. The grey relation analysis was used to clarify the sensitivity of interface adhesion performance indicators to different factors. Finally, the microscopic mechanism of interface adhesion behavior was revealed. The results showed that the increase in the epoxy component content and the degree of blending (DOB) of the EA improved the surface characteristics, shear performance, and dynamic mechanical performance of the interface, contributing to interface tends to adhesion failure, which was contrary to the aging effect of asphalt and water immersion. Noteworthy, adding the epoxy component exacerbated the gradient distribution of the EA with partial blending, and the enhancement effect on the interface deformability was significantly weakened. Especially for the range of shear strain growth rate of the EA-30P-granite interface decreased to 15.21 %∼27.61 %. Besides, the adhesion performance of the interface with different aggregates showed a similar pattern. The surface characteristics and dynamic mechanical performance of the interface were more sensitive to aggregate type and DOB, while the top-ranking influencing factors were epoxy component content and DOB for interface shear performance. Increasing the epoxy component content and DOB contributed to the integrity of the microstructural morphology of the epoxy component, but the aging of asphalt had the opposite pattern.

Anxiety, Obsessive-Compulsive, and Depressive Symptom Presentation and Change Throughout Routine Eating Disorder Treatment.

The present study examined whether patients with binge/purge and restricting anorexia nervosa (AN-BP and AN-R), bulimia nervosa (BN), binge eating disorder (BED), avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), and other specified feeding and eating disorder (OSFED) differ in generalised anxiety disorder (GAD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and depression symptom patterns and overall comorbid symptom severity at admission. We also assessed between-group differences in the patterns of change and overall comorbid symptom severity change from admission to discharge from routine eating disorder (ED) treatment at higher levels of care (HLOC). The initial sample included 3730 adults routinely assessed for GAD, depression, and OCD at admission and discharge from treatment. ED diagnostic groups exhibited somewhat different symptom patterns (e.g., AN-R and ARFID were more prone to GAD and OCD than depression symptoms; BED exhibited the opposite pattern) and overall symptom severity at admission (i.e., AN-BP and OSFED had the highest overall comorbid symptom severity; BED had the lowest). Although the overall symptom improvement was significantly greater in ARFID and BED than in AN-BP, AN-R, and OSFED, ED patients collectively and within each diagnostic group improved significantly in GAD, OCD, and depression symptoms following routine ED treatment at HLOC.

Study on Territorial Spatial Equilibrium Based on Ecosystem Service Value: A Case Study of the Southwest Guangxi Karst‐Beibu Gulf, China

ABSTRACTExploring the regional territorial spatial equilibrium state (TSES) has emerged as a key goal of “Two Mountains” planning and decision‐making, as well as territorial spatial governance. However, there is still a shortage of perspectives that consider the ecosystem service value (ESV) to reveal and predict TSES. To this end, this study develops a framework for analyzing the interaction between ESV and socio‐economic value (SEV), investigates the pattern, process, and mechanism of their interaction employing spatial equilibrium model, and couples the MOP‐PLUS model to predict the interaction between the two under different scenarios, in order to fill in the gaps of the current research. The results show that: (1) From 1980 to 2020, the ESV (decreasing trend) and SEV (increasing trend) in the Southwest Guangxi Karst‐Beibu Gulf (SGK‐BG) show opposite trends and distribution patterns. Under all three simulated projection scenarios, the projected ESV of SGK‐BG in 2030 shows different degrees of decreases, with economic development leading to the greatest fluctuations in the rate of decrease; the implementation of an ecological protection strategy leads to a small decrease in the SEV, and vice versa. (2) The TSE for coordinated equilibrium state (CES) districts and counties are mainly clustered in the GSK region, with the number in 2020 increasing by 30% compared to 1980; the ecological imbalance state (EIS) areas are mainly located in the central part of the study area and some districts along the coast of the Beibu Gulf, and the developmental imbalance state (DIS) areas are located in the northwestern part of the study area. The above three TSES have the highest number of distributions in the business as usual scenario (BAUS), the economic development first scenario (EDFS), and the ecological conservation first scenario (ECFS), respectively. The above differences in different spatial equilibriums reveal a serious developmental imbalance between economic development and ecological conservation. This study emphasizes the pathways evolution of different equilibrium subregions under the realization of ESV, and the evaluation results are not only a useful supplement to the research on the “Two Mountains” theory, but also can help policymakers to provide scientific decisions in promoting the synergistic, equilibrium and orderly development of the region.

Spatiotemporal dynamics and tidal transport of microplastics in the tropical waters of the Gulf of Thailand

Microplastics (MPs) contamination was investigated along a freshwater-seawater continuum from Chumphon River to the Gulf of Thailand. The vertical distribution in the water column and contamination in green mussels were also studied. MPs were detected in all water samples and sediment samples. Furthermore, MPs were detected in 75% of the green mussels. A higher abundance of MPs was observed in the river system than in the coastal region, indicating that river runoff associated with inland human activities is the major sources of MPs in the coastal regions and cultured green mussels. In the water column, a polymer gradient varying with depth existed where low-density particles decreased from surface to subsurface and sediment while high-density particles exhibited the opposite pattern. Polymers in surface and subsurface water were predominantly composed of low-density polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene particles. However, sediment samples were equally dominated by those mentioned low-density polymers and high-density polyethylene terephthalate, polyamide, rayon, and cotton particles. Furthermore, fibers were the most common shape found in water, sediment, and mussel samples representing 95% of all particles in river water samples and were evenly distributed throughout the water column regardless of density. However, only shorter fiber (mostly <1 mm) was detected in green mussel samples similar to their living environment. Blue, black and white particles dominated all samples. During the tidal cycle, half of the MPs entering the Gulf of Thailand returned to the river during high tide. This backflow predominantly comprised small fibers and low-density polymer MPs. The average daily load of MPs from Chumphon River to the Gulf of Thailand was 3.33 × 102 million items/day.

Anxiety symptoms are differentially associated with facial expression processing in boys and girls.

Facial expressions convey important social information and can initiate behavioral change through the processing and understanding of emotions. However, while this ability is known to evolve throughout development, it remains unclear whether this ability differs between girls and boys or how other variables such as level of anxiety can modulate it. Furthermore, understanding the underlying neural mechanisms of facial expression processing and how they are linked by sex and anxiety during development is essential, as alterations in this processing have been associated with psychiatric disorders. Herein, 191 typically-developing youth (6-15 years-old) completed an implicit face processing task involving three facial expressions (angry, happy and neutral) during functional magnetic resonance imaging. We conducted linear models on the fMRI data to investigate the impact sex and anxiety on brain responses to emotional faces, accounting for age. Our findings indicated a significant anxiety-by-sex interaction in a posterior network covering bilateral visual and medial temporal cortices during the happy > neutral contrast. Specifically, girls with higher anxiety showed weaker activation while boys showed the opposite pattern. These findings suggest that the inter-subject variability reported in typically developing individuals in response to facial emotions may be related to many factors, including sex and anxiety level.

Model reconstruction method of irregular columnar jointed rock masses and corresponding elastic parameter analysis

A local Lloyd iteration-based Voronoi tessellation (LLI-VT) algorithm is proposed to reconstruct models of columnar jointed rock masses (CJRMs) according to their geometrical characteristics. Uniaxial compression numerical analysis was performed on specimens to analyze the effects of specimen size, joint density, irregularity, and joint dip angle on the elastic modulus and Poisson’s ratio of the CJRM. The results show that the LLI-VT algorithm generates models with good control over column size and distortion, which align more closely with natural CJRMs. For research on elastic behavior, an RVE size of at least 2 m is sufficient. As the joint density increases, the elastic modulus decreases at a decreasing rate, while Poisson’s ratio shows the opposite linear trend. With increasing irregularity, the elastic modulus increases at a decreasing rate, and Poisson’s ratios exhibit opposite nonlinear patterns. The joint dip angle is the most important factor affecting elastic parameters. The effects of joint density and irregularity on elastic parameters are different for different joint dip angles. Finally, a method for estimating the elastic parameters of CJRMs is discussed and proven effective. This approach is important for accurately simulating and predicting the mechanical behavior of CJRMs in engineering.

Regeneration of an endangered plant species endemic to the remote mountain areas: Anthropogenic disturbance matters

The regeneration of plants endemic to remote mountain areas is thought to be relatively unimpacted by human disturbances but rather dominated by abiotic factors, such as geography, climate, and soil. However, because human disturbances are accelerating the extinction of montane plants and the loss of montane forest, this balance may be shifting. Yet, the relative effects of abiotic factors and human disturbances to montane plant regeneration are still largely unclear. Here, we investigated the geographic pattern of regeneration (ratio of seedling and ratio of sprout) and assessed the impacts of abiotic and anthropogenic factors for an endangered montane tree species (Davidia involucrata) across its distribution range in China. We found that the ratio of seedling increased from south to north, whereas the ratio of sprout exhibited an opposite pattern, indicating that under climate warming this species may adopt sprout regeneration as a potential strategy to buffer population contraction at the southern edge. Moreover, while climatic factors were the main drivers of regeneration, anthropogenic factors were also important. Of note, the proportion of pasture land area had a significant positive effect on sprouting, with more sprout regeneration at grazed sites and a higher ratio of sprout at sites with a greater intensity of human disturbance. Our findings suggested that, in addition to climate change, human disturbance is also an important driving factor of the regeneration of plants native to remote mountain areas, and we emphasized that researchers and policymakers should take it into account when protecting endangered plants and managing forest biodiversity.

Educational Responses to Local and Migration Destination Shocks: Evidence from China

Abstract Over the last 20 years, China has experienced substantial positive shocks to export-oriented industries—especially following its accession to the World Trade Organization—and these shocks have had major implications for human capital investment. One primary channel through which export expansion can shape choices about human capital accumulation is positive labor-demand shocks, and these shocks can be observed both at potential within-country migration destinations and in the locality of birth. Exploiting cross-county variation in the reduction in export tariff uncertainty post-WTO, both locally and at plausible migration destinations, this analysis finds that youth in China reaching matriculation age post-accession in counties experiencing a larger export shock (either locally or at those destinations) show a lower probability of enrolling in high school. This pattern is observed in a sample including both youth who ultimately migrate and youth who do not migrate. For urban youth, the effects of local shocks are larger than the effects of destination shocks, but the opposite pattern is observed for rural youth.

Interaction of Sensitivity, Emotions, and Motivations During Visual Perception.

When an organism is exposed to environmental stimuli of varying intensity, the adaptive changes in the CNS can be explained by several conceptual provisions: the law of motivation-activation by Yerkes and Dodson, the laws of force and pessimal protective inhibition, and the theory of emotion activation. Later, reinforcement sensitivity theory was developed in the fields of psychology and psychophysics. At the same time, cortical prepulse inhibition (PPI), the prepulse inhibition of perceived stimulus intensity (PPIPSI), and the augmentation/reduction phenomenon were proposed in sensory neurophysiology, which expanded our understanding of consciousness. The aim of this study was to identify markers of levels of activity of cognitive processes under normal and in psychopathological conditions while amplifying the information stimulus. For this purpose, we changed the contrast level of reversible checkerboard patterns and mapped the visual evoked potentials (VEPs) in 19 monopolar channels among 52 healthy subjects and 39 patients with a mental illness without an active productive pathology. Their cognitive functions were assessed by presenting visual tests to assess invariant pattern recognition, short-term visual memory, and Gestalt perception. The personalities of the healthy subjects were assessed according to Cattell's 16-factor questionnaire, linking the data from neurophysiological and cognitive studies to factors Q4 (relaxation/tension) and C (emotional stability). According to the N70 and N150 VEP waves, the healthy subjects and the patients were divided into two groups. In some, there was a direct relationship between VEP amplitude and contrast intensity (21 patients and 29 healthy persons), while in the others, there was an inverse relationship, with a reduction in VEP amplitude (18 patients and 23 healthy persons). The relationship and mechanisms of subjects' cognitive abilities and personality traits are discussed based on the data acquired from the responses to information stimuli of varied intensity.

Social isolation, loneliness, and functional disability in Chinese older women and men: a longitudinal cross-lag analysis

BackgroundIn this study, we explored the relationship between social isolation, loneliness, and functional impairment in 50-year-old participants, by sex.MethodsUsing longitudinal data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (2018 and 2020), 6,524 participants meeting the inclusion criteria were analyzed. A cross-lag model was established to explore the associations between social isolation, loneliness, activities of daily living (ADL), and instrumental ADL (IADL) disability over time, with results stratified by sex.ResultsSocial isolation was not significantly associated with ADL and IADL disability, but loneliness was. Autoregressive associations indicated that social isolation, loneliness, and functional disability in 2018 predicted their exacerbations in 2020 (p < 0.001). Cross-lag analysis showed that the time-lagged effect of loneliness on ADL disability was greater in women (β = 0.27) than in men (β = 0.06); the time-lagged effect of ADL disability on loneliness was greater in men (β = 0.16) than in women (β = 0.05). The bidirectional time-lagged effects of loneliness and IADL disability showed opposite patterns between the sexes.ConclusionFunctional disability in China was significantly associated with loneliness but not with social isolation. Sex differences were observed in the time-lagged effect of loneliness on functional disability. These findings extend our understanding of the association between social relationships and functional disability in non-Western populations.

A methodological proposal to estimate the total abundance of immature mosquitoes in discarded tyres: Aedes aegypti and Culex pipiens as study cases

Estimating the abundance of immature mosquitoes in discarded water-filled tyres is a laborious task due to their shape and size. Our objective was to develop a procedure that allows, by counting individuals in a water sample, to estimate their total abundance. Polynomial functions linking water column height and water volume were fitted for five tyre categories (from cars to tractors) and horizontal/vertical storage positions. A total of 358 discarded water-filled tyres were then surveyed using this method in 16 piles of tyres in temperate Argentina. Tyre capacity was greater in vertical than horizontal position, reaching a maximum of 95.6 L in tractor tyres. In contrast, the volume of water retained under field conditions showed the opposite pattern, being greater in horizontal tyres. Water volume increased significantly across tyre categories in both horizontal (J-T = 7306, p < 0.001) and vertical (J-T = 10,792, p < 0.001) positions. Most infested tyres (n = 150) showed low abundances and a few extremely high values, both for all mosquito species grouped and for Culex pipiens and Aedes aegypti separately. The median abundance of mosquitoes per infested tyre was 35, decreasing to 30 for Cx. pipiens and 17 for Ae. aegypti. These values ​​increased significantly across tyre categories for mosquitoes (J-T = 5525, p < 0.001) and Cx. pipiens (J-T = 2275, p < 0.05), but not for Ae. aegypti (J-T = 1526, p = 0.472). The comparison between vertical and horizontal positions was not significant for both vector species. Our methodological approach could be particularly useful in research addressing the assessment of disease risk associated with mosquito productivity.

Investing in relative market positions in interconnected financial markets: A strategy for international portfolio diversification

International investors face challenges in properly diversifying their portfolios risk due to the increasingly interconnected nature of financial markets. Using the Tail-Event Driven Network (TENET) model, this study proposes two new indices, relative dominance and relative importance, to measure the relative market position of a stock market in the global stock market network. This study further proposes a dominance-importance-oriented (DIO) strategy to diversify portfolio risk in interconnected stock markets using data from the stock markets of 35 economies. The empirical findings show that stock markets in developed countries generally have higher relative dominance and lower relative importance, whereas those in developing and emerging countries have the opposite pattern. Moreover, financial liberalization is an important determinant of stock markets' relative positions in the global market network, although its impact varies with the economic development of their domicile countries. Furthermore, the DIO strategy offers a feasible and effective method for international portfolio diversification by jointly considering relative dominance and importance, verifying that portfolio diversification in terms of relative market position is beneficial.

Distinct impacts of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation and Indian Ocean Dipole on China's gross primary production

Abstract. Gross primary production (GPP), a crucial component in the terrestrial carbon cycle, is strongly influenced by large-scale circulation patterns. This study explores the influence of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) on China's GPP, utilizing long-term GPP data generated by the Boreal Ecosystem Productivity Simulator (BEPS). Partial correlation coefficients between GPP and ENSO reveal substantial negative associations in most parts of western and northern China during the September–October–November (SON) period of ENSO development. These correlations shift to strongly positive over southern China in December–January–February (DJF) and then weaken in March–April–May (MAM) in the following year, eventually turning generally negative over southwestern and northeastern China in June–July–August (JJA). In contrast, the relationship between GPP and IOD basically exhibits opposite seasonal patterns. Composite analysis further confirms these seasonal GPP anomalous patterns. Mechanistically, these variations are predominantly controlled by soil moisture during ENSO events (except MAM) and by temperature during IOD events (except SON). Quantitatively, China's annual GPP demonstrates modest positive anomalies in La Niña and negative IOD years, in contrast to minor negative anomalies in El Niño and positive IOD years. This outcome is due to counterbalancing effects, with significantly larger GPP anomalies occurring in DJF and JJA. Additionally, the relative changes in total GPP anomalies at the provincial scale display an east–west pattern in annual variation, while the influence of IOD events on GPP presents an opposing north–south pattern. We believe that this study can significantly enhance our understanding of specific processes by which large-scale circulation influences climate conditions and, in turn, affects China's GPP.

Direct and indirect effects of fluid intelligence on the retrieval practice effect.

In this study, participants (N = 144) first studied 40 word pairs, then restudied half of the word pairs and practiced retrieval with feedback on the other half. In separate sessions, they then completed cued-recall and fluid intelligence (gF) tests. Three main objectives were addressed. First, we sought to generalize two findings reported by M. Minear et al. (2018): During the final-test phase, the high gF group exhibited a greater retrieval practice effect for difficult items compared to easy items, while the opposite pattern was observed for the low gF group; and, during the practice phase, the advantage of the high gF group over the low gF group increased across cycles for difficult items but not for easy items. Overall, we successfully extended their results. Second, we investigated whether gF is related to the amount of new items recalled during the practice phase. Consistent positive relationships were found in Cycles 1-3 (rs between .30 and .43). Third, we tested and found an indirect effect of gF on the retrieval practice effect mediated by performance during the practice phase. One possibility is that learners with higher gF may be particularly skilled at generating effective mediators and at monitoring and replacing less effective ones after retrieval failures. We recommend the following research agenda: measure the production, shift, and retrieval of mediators; manipulate the number of retrieval practice opportunities; probe the retrieval practice effect with free-recall tests; and adopt procedures based on learning to a criterion. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).