Unit Block Research Articles

Liked and Disliked Streetscape Imagery: Relation to Emotional Motivation and Block Distribution From Tourist Bus Visitors

Streetscape is an important factor that forms the image of a city. The visual value and preference in streetscape images need to be measured by examining the interaction between places and visitors in the real environment. The study applied a method to recognize and evaluate urban streetscape from the perspective of tour bus passengers, and proved its effectiveness in streetscape visual attraction research. In this study, a visitor-employed photography (VEP) survey was conducted along 32 blocks on the No. 1 urban tour bus (with an average speed of 28 km/h) in Suzhou, China; the visual attributes and significance of urban streetscapes were recognized through empirical research on tour bus visitors’ on-site experience. The researcher cultivated the emotional motivations and block distribution captured by 30 respondents through analyzing the types of photos the respondents liked and disliked. The results of this study show that, in general, positive streetscape types tend to be of regional landscape, with cultural and readable emotional motivations. Negative streetscape types tend to be of modern architecture and construction sites, with unreadable and unattractive emotional motivations. The block cluster analysis, based on the average frequency/km of positive and negative streetscape photos, shows that the four block unit clusters were perceived by visitors with deviation between the land use image and the planned land use. The bus VEP method revealed that the visual attractiveness and preferences of streetscape were highly context-specific, rather than for performance.

Behavior of new entries and developed tomato hybrids carrying Ty-2 genes

Tomato yellow leaf curl disease (TYLCD) is a serious problem hampering tomato production worldwide. In the Mediterranean Basin, disease incidence and severity are higher in the dry season increasing whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) populations. Effectiveness of resistance to Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) depends on both tomato host resistance and TYLCV complex species. So far, six different Ty tomato resistance genes have been identified. Two main TYLCV complex species, Tomato yellow leaf curl virus-Israel (TYLCV-Is) and Tomato yellow leaf curl Sardinia virus (TYLCSV), have been identified in Tunisia. The present work aimed to evaluate entries heterozygous for Ty-2 gene to help predict hybrid performance. Two tomato entries homozygous for the Ty-2 TYLCV resistance gene, one tomato hybrid homozygous for Ty-2 and two heterozygous hybrids were included, besides two susceptible tomato entries. Resistance response to TYLCD was recorded based on disease incidence and severity levels. Data analysis was performed according to presence/absence of Ty-2 gene and taking into account homozygosity and heterozygosity of Ty-2. Generalized linear model analysis was applied to check significance of individual factors' effects (i.e. effect of tomato entries or tomato groups of entries based on presence or absence of homozygous/heterozygous Ty-2 gene, block unit within the field trial and the year of the trial) on the dependent variables (disease incidence and severity). Further multicomparison tests gave evidence on significant effect of Ty-2 homozygous gene tomato entries on TYLCD incidence and severity levels. The results were discussed with special focus on the relevance use of heterozygous hybrid tomato varieties.

P‐127: Student Poster: Highly Efficient Green Hyper‐fluorescent Organic Light‐Emitting Diodes using tetradentate Pt(II) Complex as Phosphorescent Sensitizer

We developed green hyper‐fluorescent organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs) using tetradentate Pt(II) complex phosphorescent sensitizer to improve external quantum efficiency (EQE) and reduce efficiency roll‐off through suppressed Deter energy transfer to green fluorescent emitter of N9,N9,N10,N10‐tetrakis(4‐(2‐phenylpropan‐2‐yl)phenyl)anthracene‐9,10‐diamine (PhtBuPAD). The tetradentate Pt(II) complex including bulky blocking unit prevented Dexter energy transferred into green fluorescent emitter. In the device evaluation, the hyper‐fluorescent OLED is maintained the high EQE of 21.1% in spite of a high doping concentration of green fluorescent emitter of 3 wt%. As a result, the maximum EQE at optimized doping concentration 2 wt% shows 23.4% and 22.2% at 3000 cd/m2. It induced only 5.0% efficiency roll‐off, which is 6.4‐fold improvement compared to our previous work.

Structurally modified [1,2,4]triazolo[1,5‑a]pyridine derivatives as promising materials for highly efficient blue fluorescent organic light-emitting diodes

Here, we designed and synthesized three donor–acceptor (D-A) emitters, 1-phenyl-2-(4-(2-phenyl-[1,2,4]triazolo[1,5-a]pyridin-6-yl)phenyl)-1H-phenanthro[9,10-d]imidazole (m-PPI-TP), 1-phenyl-2-(4-(2-phenyl-[1,2,4]triazolo[1,5-a]pyridin-7-yl)phenyl)-1H-phenanthro[9,10-d]imidazole (p-PPI-TP) and 1-phenyl-2-(4-(2-phenyl-[1,2,4]triazolo[1,5-a]pyridin-8-yl)phenyl)-1H-phenanthro[9,10-d]imidazole (o'-PPI-TP), based on [1,2,4]triazolo[1,5-a]pyridine (TP) as electron-transporting unit and 1,2-diphenyl-1H-phenanthro[9,10-d]imidazole (PPI) as hole-transporting moiety serving as emitting block concurrently. All three compounds were demonstrated to be thermally stable with decomposition temperatures (Td) in the range of 454–476 °C and high photoluminescence quantum yields over 86%. Besides, high exciton utilization efficiency (EUE) via “hot exciton” process was proved according to photophysical experiments and theoretical calculations analysis. What’s more, the structure–property relationships between different substituted sites of the TP building block and PPI unit were also unveiled. Finally, the non-doped blue and doped deep-blue OLEDs were fabricated with high external quantum efficiency (EQE) approaching 8%. The yellow and red phosphorescent OLEDs (PHOLEDs) based on m-PPI-TP as the host material achieved the best EL performance with EQE of 26.55% and 20.35%, respectively.

Building block 3D printing based on molecular self-assembly monolayer with self-healing properties

The spontaneous formation of biological substances, such as human organs, are governed by different stimuli driven by complex 3D self-organization protocols at the molecular level. The fundamentals of such molecular self-assembly processes are critical for fabrication of advanced technological components in nature. We propose and experimentally demonstrate a promising 3D printing method with self-healing property based on molecular self-assembly-monolayer principles, which is conceptually different than the existing 3D printing protocols. The proposed molecular building-block approach uses metal ion-mediated continuous self-assembly of organic molecular at liquid–liquid interfaces to create 2D and 3D structures. Using this technique, we directly printed nanosheets and 3D rods using dithiol molecules as building block units.

Accurate sectional and differential acidizing technique to highly deviated and horizontal wells for low permeable Sinian Dengying formation in Sichuan Basin of China

The Sinian Dengying formation reservoirs in Sichuan Basin of China have characteristics of high temperature, high pressure, deep buried depth, strong heterogeneity, low porosity and permeability, rich pore, natural fractures, vugs and high concentration H2S, CO2, which limit the reconstruction technologies about the gas reservoir. The formation poroperm of Tainei block Dengying unit is worse than that of Taiyuan block’s, and the difference of gas well productions in Tainei block is enormous. The technique of retarded acidizing with segmented by mechanical system was developed and applied in Dengying unit of Taiyuan block, which significantly raised the gas well production. It is difficult for the retarded acidizing technique to applied to gas wells in Tainei block, for the lower formation quality and immature fractures/vugs. The keys to formation reconstruction for highly deviated and horizontal wells are acid homogeneous placement and deep penetrating in order to connecting natural fracture and vugs system. With exploration and practice over several years, a set of segment acid fracturing comprehensive technologies for highly deviated and horizontal wells were formed, including accurate fragmenting based on quantizing evaluation of formation quality, differential acidizing of retarded acid and self-generation acid. The slow acid fracturing technology is used for the formation which the RES is over 1.0. Then, the multistage alternating injection acid fracturing technology is used for the formation which the RES is lower 1.0. The acid fracturing process parameters, such as displacement and acid strength, were optimized by experiments. The precision acidizing technique was applied for gas well of Tainei block Dengying unit, which the testing production of gas well is over 1 million cubic meter per day after aciding stimulated. The precision acidizing technique significantly raised gas well production of Tainei block Dengying unit and is helpful for exploratory development of Tainei block Dengying unit with low formation quality.

METHODS OF EDUCATIONAL FACILITY DESIGN USING UNIFIED BLOCK UNITS

The article covers the effective methods of a timesaving public facility design and construction and specifies the method of the kindergarten and primary school design using unified block units. The war started by the hostile country against Ukraine has completely changed our lives. Demolished houses and public buildings, industrial facilities, the infrastructure, whole villages and cities became striking realities that challenged the architects and urban designers to solve the issue of prompt and complex reconstruction in the cities. Because of the war, Ukraine will soon face the demand for fast residential area development and complex construction of facilities, such as kindergartens and secondary schools, raising concerns on the effective methods of timesaving public facility design and construction. At the end of the twentieth century, an expert team at the Kiev National University of Construction and Architecture developed a standardized unit block system for housing and public areas prompting the unified block unit residential building and public area construction.
 The block-modular method can be used in present environment for educational facility construction, considering the architectural and construction trends. To outline the practices and structure the typical evaluation at educational facility design, the following diverse unified functional elements were introduced: a single and a double block of cells for a kindergarten; one, two and three-unit assembly standardized functional block for a primary school educational area; a standardized functional block of common use sharing kindergarten premises and primary school.

Town Centricity Model – Delimiting the center of Athens, Greece

Town centres have been analysed by researchers according to the specific parameters of their studies such as concentration cores of economic activity or on the basis of social and demographic attributes, diversity of land uses, etc. However, it is the synthesis of all centre’s characteristics that most completely define it. Moreover, in Greece, there is no sufficient statistical information available concerning town centres and it is necessary to create such data in order to improve their monitoring, control and planning. In order to apply this information, the boundary of town centre has to be set. This paper envisages in the definition of a town centre, the creation of a “Town Centricity Model” and the development and implementation of a consistent methodology resulting to its delimitation. After survey, analysis and evaluation of characteristics serving as centrality estimators, the most critical are deployed and the methodology is implemented. The latter concerns the design and creation of a geodatabase in a Geographic Information System (GIS) with features and attributes set to the spatial reference unit of a building block. The use of both vector and raster spatial analyses are addressed, the most representative qualitative methods are surveyed and weighting factors with the use of Delphi method are assigned. The pilot study of the aforementioned methodology is implemented in a case study area located in the municipality of Athens in Greece, resulting to the delimitation of its centre. The results are presented and ongoing future research is further discussed.

A generalized network based on multi-scale densely connection and residual attention for sound source localization and detection.

Sound source localization and detection (SSLD) is a joint task of identifying the presence of individual sound events and locating the sound sources in space. However, due to the diversity of sound events and the variability of sound source location, SSLD becomes a tough task. In this paper, we propose a SSLD method based on a multi-scale densely connection (MDC) mechanism and a residual attention (RA) mechanism. We design a MDC block to integrate the information from a very local to exponentially enlarged receptive field within the block. We also explored three kinds of RA blocks that can facilitate the conductivity of information flow among different layers by continuously adding feature maps from the previous layers to the next layer. In order to recalibrate the feature maps after convolutional operation, we design a dual-path attention (DPA) unit that is largely embodied in MDC and RA blocks. We firstly verified the effectiveness of the MDC block, RA block, and DPA unit, respectively. We then compared our proposed method with another four methods on the development dataset; finally, with SELDnet and SELD-TCN on another five datasets, experimental results show the generalization of our proposed method.

Bouquet-like uranium-containing selenotungstate consisting of two different Keggin-/Anderson-type units with excellent photoluminescence quantum yield

We present the synthesis, characterization and photoluminescence properties of uranium-containing selenotungstate, [(UO2)3(SeO3)3Na5(H2O)6(SeW6O21)(SeW9O33)3]21–, which was isolated by a one-pot reaction of uranium nitrate with sodium tungstate and sodium selenite in a pH 5.2 aqueous solution at 90 °C. In this study, the effect of the introduction of lone-electron pair containing heteroatoms on the structure is demonstrated, a three-layered heterometallic {Se3U3Na5} cluster is encapsulated by two different anionic building block units: three trivacant Keggin {B-α-SeW9O33} and one Anderson {SeW6O21}. To our knowledge, the {Se3U3Na5} cluster has never been observed in the polyoxometalate chemistry. The solid-state photoluminescence properties and lifetime decay behaviours of the title compound (1) have been measured at room temperature, and the photoluminescence spectrum displays the characteristic emission bands of corresponding uranyl cations. In addition, the photoluminescence quantum yield of 1 is 72%, which is almost three times that of starting material UO2(NO3)2·6H2O (27%). By using this strategy, we envision that an increasing number of assemblies with ‘open’ clusters may be designed and obtained, in which the exposed oxygen atoms show strong affinity towards metal ions, providing new opportunities to generate bigger clusters or to tune existing properties.

Image Dehazing via Weighted Guided Filtering with Removing Lighting Effects

In fog images with the influence of light sources, the light source can easily introduce halo that does not exist in foggy days, which will affect the accuracy of atmospheric light value and transmittance estimation. To solve this problem, a simple and easy dehazing algorithm is proposed to dehaze fog images affected by light sources. Firstly, the light source area is determined in CIELab color space based on super pixel segmentation. Then the light attenuation factor based on distance measurement is introduced to eliminate the influence of light sources. Finally atmospheric light value is estimated in the unit of superpixel block, and weighted guidance filtering is used to iteratively optimize the transmittance to obtain the dehazing result map under the influence of light sources, which improves the efficiency and accuracy. The restoration experiment is carried out on the SOTS dataset and images affected by light sources. Comparing with existing mainstream algorithms subjectively and objectively, the restoration results of the proposed algorithm has lower NIQE and BRISQUE value. And these results have the advantages of high definition, low noise, rich texture details and high color restoration.

The Places–People Exercise: Understanding Spatial Patterns and the Formation Mechanism for Urban Commercial Fitness Space in Changchun City, China

The fitness industry is rapidly developing due to the demand for fitness activities, and a large number of commercial fitness spaces have emerged in Changchun city. The distribution of commercial fitness spaces in the city is not chaotic; different types of fitness spaces should have different spaces to choose from. The purpose of this article is to summarize the spatial distribution characteristics and laws of urban commercial fitness spaces, to help better develop commercial fitness spaces. Using Changchun (a central city in northeastern China) as an example, the article divides commercial fitness spaces into five categories. Then, GIS tools are used to analyze the distribution patterns, level distributions, and agglomeration characteristics of commercial fitness spaces. The city’s commercial fitness space distribution patterns are subjected to further study, along with the influencing factors and forming mechanisms of the pattern. Moreover, based on the research results, this study provides targeted suggestions for the development of fitness spaces. The study found that the commercial fitness space in Changchun city has formed a multi-core spatial pattern. Various types of fitness spaces show significant spatial differentiation in many aspects, such as “center-periphery” characteristics, the spatial distribution form, and the specialized characteristics of each block unit. Fitness needs, national policies, transportation accessibility, spatial agglomeration, land rent, urban population distribution, etc., are the main factors affecting the spatial distributions of fitness spaces.

Software-Level Memory Regulation to Reduce Execution Time Variation on Multicore Real-Time Systems

Modern real-time embedded systems are equipped with multi-core processors to execute computationally intensive tasks. In multi-core architecture, last-level cache memory is shared by cores. The shared cache becomes a non-deterministic resource, which affects the independent execution of real-time tasks. We propose a solution to remedy a variation in execution time when interference happens in a shared cache. Current solutions have relied on memory scheduling approaches that avoid concurrent memory access to guarantee deterministic execution time. However, these methods required complex analysis to accurately estimate the worst-case execution time and to schedule tasks in an overly conservative manner. Unlike existing works, the proposed method prevents simultaneous memory access using the side effect of memory barriers rather than the complicated analysis. A memory barrier is inserted based on a simple code analysis that is performed in units of basic blocks using the LLVM compiler. The proposed method not only does not require the modification of the operating system or task execution flow but also relatively shows fast analysis time. Experimental results show that the proposed basic block-based memory barrier insertion method can reduce the variation in execution time by up to 80% when interference occurs.

Arhitektura kao gest savremene kulture poslovni objekat, kampus multinacionalne kompanije "NCR", Novi Beograd

The NCR campus is the first facility completed within the newly-planned unit of Block 42, according to an urban and architectural competition from 2014, which includes the design of a bus and train station, with an accompanying complex of business facilities and towers. The building in question is a business facility, positioned directly next to the platforms of the railway station, which leans on the existing physical structure with accentuated horizontality, and which has space in front of it reserved for a square, green areas and urban elements. The structure of the building is linear, longitudinal, and defi ned by the functional and technological conditions of the program and urban parameters, and the public square planned in front of it is an important integrative element in the composition. All of the floors in the facility are exclusively for business use, with offices, and rooms for meetings and presentations, and the necessary accompanying amenities. The facade is characterized by free, sculptural access to glass planes and aluminium brise soleils, and segmenting of the extremely long facade front into smaller units reduces the impression of the size of the building, introducing it to measurable urban dimensions. On the northeastern facade, facing the square, glass panels of different reflections have been placed at different depths and are intersected with a frame of horizontal and vertical metal brise soleils, creating an impression of spontaneity and irregularity. The facade oriented towards the railway platforms has a more industrial character and accentuated horizontal elements. The quality of the final aesthetic experience of the building was achieved by carefully applying the technical characteristics of the materials and functioning of the adopted details.

A roundabout strategy for high-purity glycolic acid biopreparation via a resting cell bio-oxidation catalysis of ethylene glycol

High-purity glycolic acid (GA) is a necessary building block unit of medical materials which provides a promising value-added utilization of ethylene glycol (EG).

Multidimensional Urban Vitality on Streets: Spatial Patterns and Influence Factor Identification Using Multisource Urban Data

Urban vitality is a key indicator for measuring urban development. This topic has been trending in urban planning and sustainable development, and significant progress has been made in measuring single indicators of urban vitality based on parcel or block units. With the continuous development of smart sensing technology, multisource urban data are becoming increasingly abundant. The application of such data to measure the multidimensional urban vitality of street space, reflecting multiple functions of an urban space, can significantly improve the accuracy of urban vitality analyses and promote the construction of people-oriented healthy cities. In this study, streets were taken as the analysis unit, and multisource data such as the trajectories of taxies and shared bicycles, user reviews and cultural facility points of interest (POIs) in Chengdu, a city in southwestern China, were used to identify spatial patterns of urban vitality on streets across social, economic and cultural dimensions. The correlation between the built environment factors and the multidimensional urban vitality on the street was analyzed using a multiple regression model. The spatial distribution of the different dimensions of urban vitality of the street space in Chengdu varies to a certain extent. It is common for areas with high social vitality to have production and life centers nearby. High economic vitality centers are typically found along busy streets with a high concentration of businesses. Areas with high cultural vitality centers tend to be concentrated on the city’s central streets. Land use, transportation, external environment, population and employment are all closely linked to urban vitality on streets. The crowd counting and POI density have the greatest impact on multidimensional urban vitality. The crowd and the level of service facilities profoundly affect social interaction, trade activities and cultural communication. The goodness of fit (R2) of the regression models for social, economic and cultural vitality are 0.590, 0.423 and 0.409, respectively. Using multisource urban data, our findings can help stakeholders better understand the spatial patterns and influencing factors of multidimensional urban vitality on streets and provide sustainable urban planning and development strategies for the future.

Reconstruction of Rodinia supercontinent: Evidence from the Erguna Block (NE China) and adjacent units in the eastern Central Asian orogenic Belt

The Central Asian Orogenic Belt is sandwiched between the Siberian, East European (Baltica), Tarim, and North China cratons, which contain several Precambrian micro-continental blocks, such as the Kazakhstan-Yili-Central Tianshan blocks, the Junggar Block and the Amuria Block. The tectonic nature and positions of these micro-continental blocks are unclear and disputed in many supercontinent reconstructions. In particular, the position of the Amuria Block in the eastern Central Asian Orogenic Belt, which is important for the reconstructions of the Precambrian Rodinia supercontinent, remains unknown because of the lack of late Palaeoproterozoic to Neoproterozoic geological and geochronological data. The Erguna Block, a part of the Amuria Block in NE China, has been considered as a constituent block of the Rodinia supercontinent. However, the late Palaeoproterozoic to Neoproterozoic tectonic evolution of the Erguna Block with respect to the assembly and break-up of Rodinia remains poorly understood. Here we present zircon U–Pb–Hf–O isotopic data and whole-rock elemental data of the newly discovered late Palaeoproterozoic and Neoproterozoic records in the northern Erguna Block. The gneissic granites have protolith and metamorphic ages of 1839 ± 24 and 497 ± 6 Ma, respectively, and relatively uniform two-stage Hf model ages (TDM1) of 2.67–1.26 Ga, indicating that the Erguna Block has a Palaeoproterozoic crystalline basement. The zircon U–Pb ages for the Neoproterozoic intrusive rocks define two stages of magmatism in early Neoproterozoic (Stage 1; i.e., ca. 946 Ma) and middle Neoproterozoic (Stage 2; i.e., 833–737 Ma), respectively, implying that the Erguna Block had switched to an intra-continental extensional setting (833–737 Ma) after the early Neoproterozoic (ca. 946 Ma) convergence–accretion. A comparison of data from the Erguna Block and its adjacent units reveals that the Erguna and Central Mongolia blocks were likely in a single crustal entity with the Tarim Craton associated with the Rodinia assembly at ca. 900 Ma. This composite block then detached from the Tarim Craton at ca. 800 Ma following the break-up of Rodinia, and drifted southwards to the vicinity of the Siberia Craton during the Cambrian.

Intelligent Reconfigurable Photovoltaic System

The global maximum power point tracking of a PV array under partial shading represents a global optimization problem. Conventional maximum power point tracking algorithms fail to track the global maximum power point, and global optimization algorithms do not provide global maximum power point in real-time mode due to a slow convergence process. This paper presents an intelligent reconfigurable photovoltaic system on the basis of a modified fuzzy neural net that includes a convolutional block, recurrent networks, and fuzzy units. We tune the modified fuzzy neural net based on modified multi-dimension particle swarm optimization. Based on the processing of the sensors’ signals and the photovoltaic array’s image, the tuned modified fuzzy neural net generates an electrical interconnection matrix of a photovoltaic total-cross-tied array, which reaches the global maximum power point under non-homogeneous insolation. Thus, the intelligent reconfigurable photovoltaic system represents an effective machine learning application in a photovoltaic system. We demonstrate the advantages of the created intelligent reconfigurable photovoltaic system by simulations. The simulation results reveal robustness against photovoltaic system uncertainties and better performance and control speed of the proposed intelligent reconfigurable photovoltaic system under non-homogeneous insolation as compared to a GA-based reconfiguration total-cross-tied photovoltaic system.

Liveable residential space, residential density, and hypertension in Hong Kong: A population-based cohort study.

BackgroundHypertension is a leading preventable risk factor of chronic disease and all-cause mortality. Housing is a fundamental social determinant of health. Yet, little is known about the impacts of liveable residential space and density on hypertension.Methods and findingsThis retrospective observational study (median follow-up of 2.2 years) leveraged the FAMILY Cohort, a large territory-wide cohort in Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region, People’s Republic of China to quantify associations of objectively measured liveable space and residential density with blood pressure outcomes among adults aged ≥16 years. Blood pressure outcomes comprised diastolic blood pressure (DBP), systolic blood pressure (SBP), mean arterial pressure (MAP), and hypertension. Liveable space was measured as residential floor area, and density was assessed using the number of residential units per building block and neighborhood residential unit density within predefined catchments. Multivariable regression models examined associations of liveable floor area and residential density with prevalent and incident hypertension. We investigated effect modifications by age, sex, income, employment status, and housing type. Propensity score matching was further employed to match a subset of participants who moved to smaller residences at follow-up with equivalent controls who did not move, and generalized linear models examined the impact of moving to smaller residences upon blood pressure outcomes. Our fully adjusted models of prevalent hypertension outcomes comprised 30,439 participants at baseline, while 13,895 participants were available for incident models at follow-up. We found that each interquartile range (IQR) increment in liveable floor area was associated with lower DBP (beta [β] = −0.269 mm Hg, 95% confidence interval [CI]: −0.419 to −0.118, p < 0.001), SBP (β = −0.317 mm Hg, −0.551 to −0.084, p = 0.008), MAP (β = −0.285 mm Hg, −0.451 to −0.119 with p < 0.001), and prevalent hypertension (odds ratio [OR] = 0.955, 0.918 to 0.993, p = 0.022) at baseline. Each IQR increment in residential units per building block was associated with higher DBP (β = 0.477 mm Hg, 0.212 to 0.742, p = <0.001), SBP (β = 0.750 mm Hg, 0.322 to 1.177, p = <0.001), MAP (β = 0.568 mm Hg, 0.269 to 0.866, p < 0.001), and prevalent hypertension (OR = 1.091, 1.024 to 1.162, p = 0.007). Each IQR increase in neighborhood residential density within 0.5-mi street catchment was associated with lower DBP (β = −0.289 mm Hg, −0.441 to −0.137, p = <0.001), SBP (β = −0.411 mm Hg, −0.655 to −0.168, p < 0.001), MAP (β = −0.330 mm Hg, −0.501 to −0.159, p = <0.001), and lower prevalent hypertension (OR = 0.933, 0.899 to 0.969, p < 0.001). In the longitudinal analyses, each IQR increment in liveable floor area was associated with lower DBP (β = −0.237 mm Hg, −0.431 to −0.043, p = 0.016), MAP (β = −0.244 mm Hg, −0.444 to −0.043, p = 0.017), and incident hypertension (adjusted OR = 0.909, 0.836 to 0.988, p = 0.025). The inverse associations between larger liveable area and blood pressure outcomes were more pronounced among women and those residing in public housing. In the propensity-matched analysis, participants moving to residences of lower liveable floor area were associated with higher odds of incident hypertension in reference to those who did not move (OR = 1.623, 1.173 to 2.199, p = 0.002). The major limitations of the study are unmeasured residual confounding and loss to follow-up.ConclusionsWe disentangled the association of micro-, meso-, and macrolevel residential densities with hypertension and found that higher liveable floor area and neighborhood scale residential density were associated with lower odds of hypertension. These findings suggest adequate housing in the form of provisioning of sufficient liveable space and optimizing residential density at the building block, and neighborhood levels should be investigated as a potential population-wide preventive strategy for lowering hypertension and associated chronic diseases.

Anisotropic d-d Transition in Rutile TiO2.

The band gap state of TiO2, which is dominated by Ti3+ 3d character, is of great relevance to light absorption, electron trapping, charge recombination, and conduction band structure. Despite the importance, the explanation of the excitation from this state is controversial. To this end, the electronic structures of TiO2(110) and TiO2(011)-(2 × 1) have been systematically measured with two-photon photoemission spectroscopy. The results reveal the anisotropic nature of the electronic structure in rutile TiO2 at seemingly equivalent directions of [110] and [11̅0], the long axes of the TiO6 blocking unit. Although the resonant energy of these two d-d transitions is identical, the energy levels are systematically shifted by 0.1 eV. We propose this anisotropy originates from the broken symmetry of the rutile TiO2 crystals caused by the surface. The proposed asymmetry-caused electronic structure anisotropy could be generalized to other similar materials and may affect associated catalytic properties. This work provides an important benchmark for related calculations.