Secondary Index Research Articles

Therapeutic effect of acetazolamide, an aquaporin 1 inhibitor, on adjuvant-induced arthritis in rats by inhibiting NF-κB signal pathway

Objectives: Previous studies have shown that aquaporin 1 (AQP1) is up-regulated in synovium and cartilage of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and that AQP1 may be involved in joint swelling and synovial inflammation. This study was aimed to investigate the potential therapeutic effect of acetazolamide (AZ, an AQP1 inhibitor) on rat adjuvant-induced arthritis (AIA) and explore its related mechanisms.Materials and methods: Rat AIA was induced by complete Freund’s adjuvant. The effect of AZ on rat AIA was evaluated by secondary hind paw swelling, arthritis index, TNF-α and IL-1β serum levels and histological examination of ankle joint. Proteoglycans expression and mRNA levels of type-II collagen (COII) and aggrecan in cartilage were measured by alcian blue staining and real-time PCR, respectively. The protein levels of AQP1, IκBα, phospho-IκBα (p-IκBα), NF-κB p65 and phospho-NF-κB p65 (p-NF-κB p65) in synovial tissues were detected by western blot.Results: AZ treatment could inhibit secondary hind paw swelling and arthritis index, reduce serum levels of TNF-α and IL-1β, and ameliorate pathological changes of ankle joint in AIA rats. AZ increased proteoglycans production and mRNA levels of COII and aggrecan in cartilage tissues. Moreover, AZ decreased AQP1 protein level and suppressed the activation of NF-κB pathway in synovium, indicated by inhibiting the degradation and phosphorylation of IκBα and reducing p-NF-κB p65 protein level.Conclusions: AZ as an AQP1 inhibitor has a powerful therapeutic effect on rat AIA via inhibiting NF-κB activation, suggesting AQP1 inhibition might be of potential clinical interest in RA treatment.

Verifying the ground treatment as proposed by the Secondary Permeability Index during dam foundation grouting

The Secondary Permeability Index (SPI) is a permeability-based rock mass classification, which when complemented with the degree of jointing can be employed as an approximation to the ground treatment design. However, when the grout mix and success of the grout operation are known, a back-analysis can be conducted to infer the degree of jointing. The aim of this paper is to back-analyse and verify the ground treatment as proposed by the SPI from water pressure tests conducted in primary production grout boreholes, at the De Hoop Dam in South Africa. The calculated SPI class, together with information obtained from detailed mapping of the foundation rock mass, is compared to the mix, the take, and the success of each of the primary production grout boreholes. Based on the success of the grout, a degree of jointing is assumed, which is evaluated and validated against the RQD values obtained from the exploratory investigation boreholes. Overall, the degree of jointing inferred from the success of the grout mix showed that most of the compared boreholes validated the ground treatment as suggested by the SPI. Successful thin mixes coincide with minor fault zones with or without dolerite intrusions, as well as very closely jointed gabbro bedrock, whilst unsuccessful thin mixes are associated with the contacts of dolerite intrusions, which are generally highly weathered and fractured. This is highlighted by the success of thick mixes when applied to these intrusions. Unsuccessful thick mixes are mostly attributed to major fault zones.

Method of removing secondary compression on clay using preloading

Due to external loads, the soft soil will undergo a large compression of both primary and secondary compression. With soil improvement using prefabricated vertical drain (PVD), the time of primary compression becomes shorter so that secondary compression occurs in short time. There has been little research on how to remove secondary compression. Therefore, further investigation of behaviour and method of removing secondary compression is necessary. This research was conducted based on an experimental study of clay consolidation test with a variation of loading time in the laboratory. The results show that there is an empirical correlation among the secondary compression index (Cα’), the initial void ratio (e0), the void ratio at the end of primary consolidation (ep), and the effective consolidation stress (P’). The correlations obtained from this study are Cα’ = (0.0072e0 - 0.0067)P’ and Cα’ = (0.0077ep - 0.006)P’. The greater the effective consolidation stress is, the greater the secondary compression index will become. Therefore, in soil improvement secondary compression can be removed by giving an extra load (Δq) that causes additional compression to the primary consolidation where the magnitude equals to the expected secondary compression. Then, this Δq could be removed at the end of the primary consolidation.

A Novel Guide Wire Facilitates Percutaneous and Nofluoroscopic Procedure for Atrial Septal Defect Closure

Objective: The purpose of this pilot study was to assess the safety and efficacy of a novel ultrasound guided wire for the treatment of patients with atrial septal defect (ASD) who underwent percutaneous atrial septal defect closure using transthoracic echocardiographic (TTE) guidance only. Materials and methods: From November 2017 to December 2017, 10 patients with congenital ASD were recruited for echo-guiding occlusion with a new designed wire specialized for percutaneous and no-fluoroscopic procedure. The novelty of this wire lies in the elastic spindleshaped tip which helps with precise positioning under ultrasound while reducing difficulty and complications. Operations were performed by 3 doctors who had performed no more than 10 echo-guided cases. Operative successful rate was used as the main evaluation index, Secondary evaluation index included operative time, the number of times guide wire or delivery system dropped into right atrial, frequency of arrhythmia, the number of times guide wire went through tricuspid valve, cardiac perforation, cardiac tamponade and peripheral vascular complications. Result: All 10 patients successfully underwent percutaneous and no-fluoroscopic atrial septal defect closure with the novel wire. The mean operation time was 20.20±8.904 minutes. The followup time was 3 months and no severe complication occurred. Conclusion: This pilot study demonstrated that the new ultrasound guided wire can be precisely positioned under ultrasound and can facilitate percutaneous and no fluoroscopic procedure safely and effectively.

Geotechnical characteristics and consolidation properties of Tianjin marine clay

Tianjin, which is located on the west shore of the Bohai Sea, is part of China\'s Circum-Bohai-Sea Region, where very weak clay is deposited. From the 1970s to the early 21st century, Tianjin marine clay deposits have been the subject of numerous geotechnical investigations. Because of these deposits\' geological complexity, great depositional thickness, high water content, large void ratio, excessive settlement, and low shear strength, the geotechnical properties of Tianjin marine clay need to be summarized and evaluated based on various in situ and laboratory tests so that Tianjin can safely and economically sustain more infrastructure in the coming decades. In this study, the properties of Tianjin marine clay, especially its consolidation properties, are summarized, evaluated and discussed. The focus is on establishing correlations between the geotechnical property indexes and mechanical parameters of Tianjin marine clay. These correlations include the correlations between the water content and the void ratio, the depth and the undrained shear strength, the liquid limit and the compression index, the tip resistance and the constrained modulus, the plasticity index and the ratio of undrained shear strength and the preconsolidation pressure. In addition, the primary consolidation properties of Tianjin marine clay, such as the intrinsic compression line (ICL), sedimentation compression line (SCL), compression index, Cc, coefficient of consolidation, Cv, and hydraulic conductivity change index, Ckv, are evaluated and discussed. A secondary consolidation property, i.e., the secondary compression index, Ca, is also investigated, and the results show that the ratio of Ca/Cc for Tianjin marine clay can be used to calculate Ca in secondary consolidation settlement predictions.

An optimized method of HDFS for massive small files storage

The development of the Internet-of-Things (IoT) and the Cyber-Physical System (CPS) has greatly facilitated many aspects of technological applications and development. This may lead to significant data growth, especially for small files. The analysis and processing of a large number of small files has become a crucial part of the development of IoT and CPS. Hadoop Distributed File Systems have become powerful platforms to store a larger amount of big data. However, this method has a number of issues when dealing with small files, such as substantial memory consumption and poor access. In this paper, a Dynamic Queue of Small Files (DQSF) algorithm is proposed to solve these problems. DQSF differentiates small files into different categories using an analytical hierarchal process that examines the performance of small files with different ranges across four indexes and determines the size of the dynamic queue according to the best system performance. Additionally, period classification is applied to preprocess the small files before storage, and the prefetching mechanism of the secondary index is used to process index tables. Experimental results show that this method could effectively reduce memory use and improve the storage efficiency of massive small files, which optimizes system performance.

表征亚热带常绿林光合作用季节变化特征的多种植被指数

PDF HTML阅读 XML下载 导出引用 引用提醒 表征亚热带常绿林光合作用季节变化特征的多种植被指数 DOI: 10.5846/stxb201707211305 作者: 作者单位: 中国科学院地理科学与资源研究所,中国科学院地理科学与资源研究所,中国科学院地理科学与资源研究所,中国科学院华南植物园,中国科学院地理科学与资源研究所,中国科学院地理科学与资源研究所,中国科学院华南植物园,广东省生态气象中心 作者简介: 通讯作者: 中图分类号: 基金项目: 国家重点研发计划（2017YFC0503803）；中国科学院重点部署项目（KFZD-SW-310-01）；国家自然科学基金（41571192） Study of multiple vegetation indices reveals photosynthetic phenology in a subtropical evergreen forest Author: Affiliation: Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, CAS,Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, CAS,,,,,, Fund Project: National Key R&D Plan，Key Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences，The National Natural Science Foundation of China 摘要 | 图/表 | 访问统计 | 参考文献 | 相似文献 | 引证文献 | 资源附件 | 文章评论 摘要:利用遥感方法可以在区域尺度反演地表植被的光合生理状况和生产力变化，但亚热带常绿林冠层结构季节变化较小，传统的光谱植被指数对植被光合作用难以准确捕捉。利用2014-2015年中国科学院广东省鼎湖山森林生态试验站多角度自动光谱观测系统的光谱反射数据，分别反演传统冠层结构型植被指数（NDVI）、光合生理生化型植被指数（CCI）和叶绿素荧光型植被指数（NDFI685和NDFI760），并利用不同类型植被指数的组合，构建多元线性回归模型。结果表明：亚热带常绿针阔混交林三种类型植被指数均与GPP的动态变化有显著的相关性，其中，NDVI是表征GPP较优的植被指数（R2=0.60，P < 0.01），其次为CCI（R2=0.55，P < 0.01），而NDFI能够作为辅助指数，有效提高NDVI（R2=0.68，P < 0.001）和CCI（R2=0.67，P < 0.001）表征GPP的程度。多个植被指数参与构建的多元回归模型能够有效提高亚热带地区常绿林GPP季节动态变化的拟合精度，提升遥感精确评估亚热带森林生产力的能力。 Abstract:Remote sensing is an effective method to assess terrestrial vegetation photosynthetic physiology and productivity dynamics at a regional scale. The conventional spectral vegetation index such as normalized difference vegetation index does not accurately reveal the photosynthetic phenology of subtropical evergreen forests because canopy structure is relatively stable across seasons. This study calculated the conventional canopy structural vegetation index (normalized difference vegetation index, NDVI), photosynthetic physiological and biochemical vegetation index (chlorophyll/carotenoid index, CCI), and chlorophyll fluorescence vegetation index (normalized difference fluorescence indices, NDFI) respectively, using the spectral reflection data from the automated multi-angular spectro-radiometer at the Dinghu Mountain Forest Ecosystem Research Station in Guangdong, China. We compared and analyzed their differences in tracking gross primary productivity (GPP) as measured by eddy covariance at the canopy level. A multivariate linear regression model was built to improve the fitting accuracy of GPP seasonal dynamics in this subtropical evergreen forest. The results show:for this mixed subtropical evergreen forest, 1) GPP was significantly correlated with all three indices, and the correlation with NDVI was the strongest (R2=0.60, P < 0.01); 2) CCI could not replace NDVI as a better vegetation index to reveal GPP seasonal dynamics (R2=0.55, P < 0.01); 3) NDFI could be used as a secondary index to effectively improve assessment of photosynthetic phenology (R2=0.68,P < 0.001). 参考文献 相似文献 引证文献

Determination of geotechnical properties of marine clay from the Słupsk Bank

For the purpose of this paper, laboratory tests on clay samples, collected at the Słupsk Bank with the use of a vibrocorer, were carried out in the Geotechnical Laboratory of Maritime Institute in Gdańsk. This study aims to determine the geotechnical properties of the above-mentioned soils. Oedometer tests and classification tests were conducted on the selected specimens. Strain properties, secondary compression index and undrained shear strength were determined for the material. The impact of vibrocoring as a sampling technique on the obtained results and recommendations for application of these results were also described.

Acetabular index is the best predictor of late residual acetabular dysplasia after closed reduction in developmental dysplasia of the hip.

Our objective was to find the best predictor of late residual acetabular dysplasia in developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) after closed reduction (CR) and discuss the indications for secondary surgery. We retrospectively reviewed the records of 89 patients with DDH (mean age 16.1 ± 4.6months; 99 hips) who were treated by CR. Hips were divided into three groups according to final outcomes: satisfactory, unsatisfactory and operation. The changes in the acetabular index (AI), centre-edge angle of Wiberg (CEA), Reimer's index (RI) and centre-head distance discrepancy (CHDD) over time among groups were compared. The power of predictors for late residual acetabular dysplasia of AI, CEA, RI and CHDD at different time points was analysed by logistic regression analysis. Receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analysis was used to determine cutoff values and corresponding sensitivity, specificity and diagnostic accuracy for these parameters. Both AI and CEA improved in all groups of patients following CR. In the satisfactory group, AI progressively decreased until seven to eightyears, while CEA increased until nine to tenyears (P < 0.05). In the unsatisfactory group, AI and CEA ceased to improve three and twoyears after CR, respectively (P < 0.05). CEA and RI were significantly better in the satisfactory group compared with the unsatisfactory group at all time points (P < 0.05). Following CR, both RI and CHDD remained stable over time in all groups. Final outcome following CR could be predicted by AI, CEA and RI at all time points (P < 0.01). Cutoff values of AI, CEA and RI were 28.4°, 13.9° and 34.5%, respectively, at oneyear and 25°, 20° and 27%, respectively, at two to fouryears post-CR. A total of 80-88% of hips had an unsatisfactory outcome if AI > 28.4° and >25 at one and two to fouryears following CR, respectively. However, if CEA was less than or RI was larger than the cutoff values at each time point, only 40-60% of hips had an unsatisfactory outcome. Mean sensitivity (0.889), specificity (0.933) and diagnostic accuracy (92.1%) of AI to predict an unsatisfactory outcome were significantly better compared with CEA (0.731; 0.904; 78.2%) and RI (0.8; 0.655; 70.8%) (P < 0.05). Satisfactory and unsatisfactory hips show different patterns of acetabular development after reduction. AI, CEA and RI are all predictors of final radiographic outcomes in DDH treated by CR, although AI showed the best results. AI continues to improve until seven years after CR in hips with satisfactory outcomes, while it ceases to improve three to fouryears after CR in hips with unsatisfactory outcomes. According to our results, surgery is indicated if AI >28° 1year following CR or AI >25° two to fouryears after CR. CEA and RI should be used as a secondary index to aid in the selection of patients requiring surgery.

The effect of association between inefficient arsenic methylation capacity and demographic characteristics on the risk of skin lesions

This study was conducted in rural Pakistan to assess the dose-response relationship between skin lesions and arsenic exposure and their variation by demographic characteristics. The study included 398 participants (66 participants with skin lesions and 332 without) residing in six previously unstudied villages exposed to ground water arsenic in the range of <1 to 3090μgL−1. The skin lesions identification process involved interview and physical examinations of participants followed by confirmation by a physician according to UNICEF criteria. Urinary inorganic arsenic (iAs), total arsenic (tAs), monomethylarsonic acid (MMA), and dimethylarsinic acid (DMA) were analysed to determine methylation capacity, methylation efficiency and the dose-response relationship with skin lesions. Study participants with skin lesions were found to be exposed to arsenic >10μgL−1 with a daily arsenic intake of 3.23±3.75mgday−1 from household ground water sources for an exposure duration of 10–20years. The participants with skin lesions compared to those without skin lesions showed higher levels of urinary iAs (133.40±242.48 vs. 44.24±86.48μgg−1Cr), MMA (106.38±135.04 vs. 35.43±39.97μgg−1Cr), MMA% (15.26±6.31 vs.12.11±4.68) and lower levels of DMA% (66.99±13.59 vs. 73.39±10.44) and secondary methylation index (SMI) (0.81±0.11 vs. 0.86±0.07). Study participants carrying a lower methylation capacity characterized by higher MMA% (OR 5.06, 95% CI: 2.09–12.27), lower DMA% (OR 0.64, 95% CI: 0.33–1.26), primary methylation index (PMI) (OR 0.56, 95% CI: 0.28–1.12) and SMI (OR 0.43, 95% CI: 0.21–0.88) had a significantly higher risk of skin lesions compared to their corresponding references after adjusting for occupation categories. The findings confirmed that inefficient arsenic methylation capacity was significantly associated with increased skin lesion risks and the effect might be modified by labour intensive occupations.

Effect of Atrazine Contamination on Compressibility and Permeability Characteristics of Clay

Abstract Atrazine (ATZ) is one of the most heavily used herbicides in the world, particularly in the United States and Australia. This study evaluated the compressibility and permeability characteristics of two Western Australia natural clays contaminated with varying ATZ contents. A series of one-dimensional consolidation tests using fixed-ring oedometer device were conducted, and the final hydraulic conductivity was calculated at the end of each loading stage. At the first stage, the strain–time graphs at 1,280 kPa effective overburden pressure (σ′n) were evaluated, and the results indicated that the specimens with a greater ATZ content have higher values of final vertical strain (ϵv). Then, the compression index (Cc) values were computed from the void ratio–effective overburden pressure curves (e−σ′n), and the results showed that the compression index (Cc) increased as the ATZ content of the tested clays increased. At the next stage, the coefficient of consolidation (cv) was calculated using the Casagrande method and the Taylor method. The results showed that the computed coefficient of consolidation (cv) using the Taylor method was slightly greater than those calculated using the Casagrande method in both tested clays. Also, the hydraulic conductivity (k) values of the tested clays increased as the contamination content increased (i.e., 3.1 × 10-7 ≤ k ≤ 129 × 10-7 cm/s and 4.49 × 10-9 ≤ k ≤ 95.3 × 10-9 cm/s). This behavior, which was attributed to promotion of the agglomeration and aggregation between clay particles, promoted formation of the tiny voids in the soil. Finally, the secondary compression ratio (Rα) and secondary compression index (Cα) were computed, and the results showed that the specimens containing higher ATZ content had greater values of Rα and Cα.

Lower cardiac index levels relate to lower cerebral blood flow in older adults.

To assess cross-sectionally whether lower cardiac index relates to lower resting cerebral blood flow (CBF) and cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR) among older adults. Vanderbilt Memory & Aging Project participants free of stroke, dementia, and heart failure were studied (n = 314, age 73 ± 7 years, 59% male, 39% with mild cognitive impairment). Cardiac index (liters per minute per meter squared) was quantified from echocardiography. Resting CBF (milliliters per 100 grams per minute) and hypercapnia-induced CVR were quantified from pseudo-continuous arterial spin-labeling MRI. Linear regressions with ordinary least-square estimates related cardiac index to regional CBF, with adjustment for age, education, race/ethnicity, Framingham Stroke Risk Profile score (systolic blood pressure, antihypertensive medication use, diabetes mellitus, current cigarette smoking, left ventricular hypertrophy, prevalent cardiovascular disease [CVD], atrial fibrillation), APOE ε4 status, cognitive diagnosis, and regional tissue volume. Lower cardiac index corresponded to lower resting CBF in the left (β = 2.4, p = 0.001) and right (β = 2.5, p = 0.001) temporal lobes. Results were similar when participants with prevalent CVD and atrial fibrillation were excluded (left temporal lobe β = 2.3, p = 0.003; right temporal lobe β = 2.5, p = 0.003). Cardiac index was unrelated to CBF in other regions assessed (p > 0.25) and CVR in all regions (p > 0.05). In secondary cardiac index × cognitive diagnosis interaction models, cardiac index and CBF associations were present only in cognitively normal participants and affected a majority of regions assessed with effects strongest in the left (p < 0.0001) and right (p < 0.0001) temporal lobes. Among older adults without stroke, dementia, or heart failure, systemic blood flow correlates with cerebral CBF in the temporal lobe, independently of prevalent CVD, but not CVR.

An investigation of the health effects caused by exposure to arsenic from drinking water and coal combustion: arsenic exposure and metabolism.

Few studies have been conducted to compare arsenic exposure, metabolism, and methylation in populations exposed to arsenic in drinking water and from coal combustion. Therefore, arsenic concentrations in the environment and arsenic speciation in the urine of subjects exposed to arsenic as a consequence of coal combustion in a rural area in Shaanxi province (CCA) and in drinking water in a rural area in Inner Mongolia (DWA) were investigated. The mean arsenic concentrations in drinking water, indoor air, and soil in CCA were 4.52μg/L, 0.03mg/m3, and 14.93mg/kg, respectively. The mean arsenic concentrations in drinking water and soil in DWA were 144.71μg/L and 10.19mg/kg, respectively, while the level in indoor air was lower than the limit of detection. The total daily intakes of arsenic in DWA and CCA were 4.47 and 3.13μg/day·kg, respectively. The mean urinary concentrations of inorganic arsenic (iAs), monomethylarsonic acid (MMA), dimethylarsenic acid (DMA), and total arsenic (TAs) for subjects with skin lesions in DWA were 50.41, 47.01, 202.66, and 300.08μg/L. The concentrations for subjects without skin lesions were 49.76, 44.20, 195.60, and 289.56μg/L, respectively. The %iAs, %MMA, and %DMA in the TAs in the urine of subjects from CCA were 12.24, 14.73, and 73.03%, while the corresponding values from DWA were 17.54, 15.57, and 66.89%, respectively. The subjects in DWA typically had a higher %iAs and %MMA, and a lower %DMA, and primary and secondary methylation index (PMI and SMI) than the subjects in CCA. It was concluded that the arsenic methylation efficiency of subjects in DWA and CCA was significantly influenced by chronic exposure to high levels of arsenic in the environment. The lower PMI and SMI values in DWA revealed lower arsenic methylation capacity due to ingestion of arsenic in drinking water. However, it remained unclear if the differences in arsenic metabolism between the two groups were due to differences in exposure levels or in exposure route.

Secondary Compression Index Equation for Soft Clays

The magnitude of secondary compression is expressed by the secondary compression index, Cα = Δe/Δlog t, in which e = void ratio and t = time. Analysis of test data pertaining to soils of widely varying plasticity characteristics and geological origin indicates that there is an excellent correlation between the initial porosity, no and secondary compression index. In this paper, a simple equation has been suggested between Cα/no and Cα to obtain the secondary compression index of a soil, thereby it helps to eliminate the “time consuming laboratory tests” to find the Cα.

Clinical outcomes in patients with diffuse large B cell lymphoma with a partial response to first-line R-CHOP chemotherapy: prognostic value of secondary International Prognostic Index scores and Deauville scores.

After introducing a rituximab-containing chemoimmunotherapy (R-CHOP) for diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL), a partial response (PR) which is regarded as treatment failure is still observed. To investigate the prognostic factors for the DLBCL patients with a PR to R-CHOP, we retrospectively evaluated 758 newly diagnosed DLBCL patients. After R-CHOP, 88 (11.6%) achieved a PR. Three-year progression-free and overall survival rates measured from the date of PR achievement (PFS2 and OS2) were 57.4 and 67.8%, respectively. The secondary International Prognostic Index (IPI2) scores after R-CHOP were low (0-1) in 68.2% and high (2-3) in 31.8% of the patients. The Deauville scores from 18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography after R-CHOP showed low (2-3) in 58.0% and high (4) in 42.0% of the patients. High IPI2 and high Deauville scores were associated with worse PFS2 (P<0.001 and P=0.009) and OS2 (P=0.013 and P=0.067). The high-risk group defined by the IPI2 and Deauville scores, whose scores were both high, showed significantly lower 3-year PFS2 (P<0.001) and OS2 (P=0.006) rates compared with those of the other groups. In multivariate analyses, the IPI score of ≥ 3 at diagnosis and bone marrow involvement at diagnosis were independent prognostic factors. In addition, high IPI2-Deauville score after R-CHOP was significantly associated with poor PFS2 (P=0.009) and demonstrated a trend toward inferior OS2. In conclusion, DLBCL patients who partially responded to R-CHOP are still a heterogeneous group, for which IPI2 and Deauville scores should be evaluated for prediction of prognosis.

The construction of evaluation system for academic medical doctoral dissertation

Objective To explore and establish a kind of dissertation evaluation system which can fully reflects the characteristics of academic medical doctoral training. Methods 41 medical doctoral dis-sertation evaluation systems and related literatures were collected, to get the current situation of this disser-tation evaluation system in our country and find the key points of various evaluation systems. A question-naire survey was conducted among 350 doctoral supervisors coming from 6 universities so as to define the framework and connotation of evaluation indicators. Using the Delphi expert consultation method, the con-notation of evaluation indicators and composition as well as the weight of various indicators was improved. Results The doctoral supervisors who participated in the research considered that building the disserta-tion e-valuation system should follow the principle of science, innovation and fairness, and the evaluation frame-work should have secondary index and evaluation elements. The evaluation contents concluded choosing topic, literature review, basic theory and professional knowledge, paper writing, innovation, re-search ability and academic morals and so on. And on the basis of this, the paper explored and developed a more scientific and comparative dissertation quality evaluation system with medical specialty. Conclusion The cultivation u-nits should take the educational goal of evaluation target and the requirements of awarding degree into consideration, seeking opinions fully to the first-line supervisors and combing quantitative and qualitative evalu-ation effectively with scientific and operable principles when specifying evaluation system. Key words: Academic medical doctor; Dissertation; Evaluation indicator

Recent Trends and Impacts of Fisheries Exploitation on Mediterranean Stocks and Ecosystems

This review focuses on the recent data on Mediterranean fishing fleets and landings, results from stock assessments and ecosystem models to provide an overview of the multiple impacts of fishing exploitation in the different Mediterranean geographical sub-areas (GSAs). A fleet of about 73.000 vessels is widespread along the Mediterranean coasts. Artisanal activities are predominant in South Mediterranean and in the eastern basin, while trawling features GSAs in the western basin and the Adriatic. The overall landings of fish, crustaceans and cephalopods, after peaking during mid ‘90s at about one million tons, declined at about 700.000 in 2013. However, while landings are declining in EU countries since the 90s, in non-EU a decreasing trend was observed only in the last 5-10 years. The current levels of fishing effort determine a general overexploitation status of commercial stocks with more than 90% of the stock assessed out of safe biological limits. Indicators obtained from available ecosystem models included primary production required to sustain fisheries (PPR), mean trophic level of the catch (mTLc), the loss in secondary production index (L index) and the probability of the ecosystem to be sustainably fished (psust). In areas exploited sustainably (e.g. Gulf of Gabes, Eastern Ionian and Aegean Sea) fishing pressure was characterized by either low number of vessels per unit of shelf area or the large prevalence of artisanal/small scale fisheries. Conversely, GSAs in Western and Adriatic showed very low ecosystem sustainability of fisheries that can be easily related with the high fishing pressure and the large proportion of overfished stocks obtained from single species assessments. We showed that the current knowledge on Mediterranean fisheries and ecosystems depict a worrisome picture where the effect of poorly regulated fisheries, in combination with the ongoing climate forcing and the rapid expansion of non-indigenous species, are rapidly changing the structure and functioning of the ecosystem with unpredictable effects on the goods and services provided. Although this would call for urgent conservation actions, the management system implemented in the region appears too slow and probably inadequate to protect biodiversity and secure fisheries resources for the future generations.

A Query-oriented Adaptive Indexing Technique for Smart Grid Big Data Analytics

IoT (Internet of Things) based Smart Grid (SG) is defined as a power grid integrated with a large network of smart objects portrayed by information and communication technology. The data sources of IoT-based SG, as well as their correlations, are usually perplexing, which necessitate indexing techniques for complex queries over the SG dataset to efficiently exploit the rich connotations of data to enable characteristic analytics and fault prediction. As part of popular big data platform, HBase is replacing classic relational data- bases to host huge heterogeneous data records in the form of key-value storage. However, most existing secondary index schemes on HBase are managed and retrieved by corresponding data columns instead of queries to incur inefficiency in answering a complex data query. In this paper, we propose an adaptive indexing technique to speed up a complex data query on HBase for IoT-based SG big data. Our proposed method is based on the observation that most analyses over big power grid data focus on data subsets related to specific power grid events or monitoring data instead of the whole dataset. Theoretical analysis and experimental test show that the proposed query-oriented secondary indexing scheme is feasible in improving the query performance. For a join operation, when compared with a query scheme without secondary indexing, our proposed indexing scheme outperforms from a minimum 6.54 × speedup to a maximum 860 × speedup; when compared with a classic secondary indexing scheme implemented on HBase, our indexing scheme outperforms from a minimum 1.20 × speedup to a maximum 8.68 × speedup. Our indexing technique would be a useful reference for other industrial big data practices.

Characteristics Research on Carbonaceous Component of Particulate Matter Emitted from Iron and Steel Industry

In order to investigate the carbonaceous characteristics of particles emitted from the iron and steel industry, an electrical low-pressure impactor (ELPI) was used to collect three sets of samples from the sintering process and one set of samples from the ironmaking process emissions of particulate matters. Organic carbon (OC) and elemental carbon (EC), which were divided into seven carbonaceous components based on the temperature of the particulate matter, were analyzed using a thermal-light reflection method. Results show that OC in sintering process particles is higher than that in ironmaking particles and accounts for 5.3%±2.3% and 7.1%±3.0% of PM10 and PM2.5, respectively, which reveals that OC tended to be enriched in fine particles. In the ironmaking process particles, OC accounted for 2.5% and 2.0% of PM10 and PM2.5, respectively. The relative proportions of the seven carbonaceous components in the four sets of samples were very similar. OC2 and OC3 accounted for the highest proportion; the EC1, EC2, and EC3 contents decreased in turn; and OC1 may be associated with boiler scale and desulfurization. In addition, the OC and EC of sintering process particles had higher correlation, and the OC/EC value of primary emission particles was 4.7±0.7, which is much higher than the value of the secondary OC estimation index in environment. Analyzing deeply on the carbonaceous characteristics in particles emitted from the iron and steel industry, which will provide essential data for source apportionment of carbonaceous aerosols in environment and will be conducive to the follow supervisory of pollution cleaning in iron and steel industry.

The two definitions of the index difference

Given two metrics of positive scalar curvature on a closed spin manifold, there is a secondary index invariant in real K K -theory. There exist two definitions of this invariant: one of a homotopical flavor, the other one defined by an index problem of Atiyah-Patodi-Singer type. We give a complete and detailed proof of the folklore result that both constructions yield the same answer. Moreover, we generalize this result to the case of two families of positive scalar curvature metrics, parametrized by a finite CW complex. In essence, we prove a generalization of the classical “spectral-flow-index theorem” to the case of families of real operators.