Continuity in research group collective knowledge is critical for running a successful research program but in an undergraduate research lab, this can be particularly challenging. A wiki site dedicated to the research laboratory, a lab wiki, can bridge gaps in student-to-student knowledge transfer and contribute to longevity of a research program. A lab wiki is an organized, easily accessible, collaborative resource that can contain tutorials, group-specific directions, links to resources and guides to writing papers or proposals. The wiki language is easy for students to pick up and contributes to their participation in preserving group knowledge. This tutorial introduces the concept of a lab wiki, the advantages of it, example content and practical implementation advice.

As issues surrounding depleting fossil fuels, climate change, and various other environmental impacts are becoming more prevalent, there is a growing interest in technological shifts toward a bio-based economy. Various advanced biotechnological tools have been developed to customize cell factories for the production of a wide range of complex fine chemicals from renewable feedstock. Herein, we report development of a microbial bioprocess for high-level and potentially economical production of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA), a valuable non-proteinogenic amino acid with multiple applications in medical, agricultural, and food industries, using Escherichia coli as a cell factory. We first implemented the Shemin (i.e., C4) pathway for heterologous 5-ALA biosynthesis in E. coli. To reduce, but not to abolish, the carbon flux toward essential tetrapyrrole/porphyrin biosynthesis, we applied Clustered Regularly Interspersed Short Palindromic Repeats interference (CRISPRi) to repress hemB expression, leading to extracellular 5-ALA accumulation. We then applied metabolic engineering strategies to direct more dissimilated carbon flux toward the key precursor of succinyl-CoA for enhanced 5-ALA biosynthesis. Using these engineered E. coli strains for bioreactor cultivation, we successfully demonstrated high-level 5-ALA biosynthesis solely from glycerol (~30 g l-1) under both microaerobic and aerobic conditions, achieving up to 5.95 g l-1 (36.9% yield) and 6.93 g l-1 (50.9% yield) 5-ALA, respectively. This study represents one of the most effective bio-based production of 5-ALA from a structurally unrelated carbon to date, highlighting the importance of integrated strain engineering and bioprocessing strategies to enhance bio-based production.

Letter to the Editor, BJOG Exchange

Objective:We tried to provide an overview of philatelic materials related to Gynecology and Obstetrics. Design:Sample philatelic materials including stamps, first day covers and stamped postcards, all related to obstetrics and gynecology, from the senior author’s personal archive were grouped according to their titles and evaluated in detail. Setting:We examine how stamp designers use visual imagery to convey information to those who see, collect, and use stamps. Method:Sample philatelic materials, related to obstetrics and gynecology, were grouped according to their titles and evaluated in detail. Main outcome measures:Stamps dedicated to the Obstetrics and Gynecology are usually printed in order to (a)pay tribute to the pioneers of Obstetrics and Gynecology, (b)commemorate important Obstetrics and Gynecology Facilities&Hospitals, (c)announce solid improvements and innovations in the field or (d)memorialize important meetings. Results:The initial use of postage stamps was solely to pay the fare of a postal service. Later on it was discovered that by using stamps it was possible to distribute ideas and news among people and also to inform them about developments, inventions, achievements and historical facts. Collecting Gynecology related philatelic materials is a very specialized branch of medical philately. In general, the subjects of the stamps dedicated to Obstetrics and Gynecology are, pioneers of Obstetrics and Gynecology, important Obstetrics and Gynecology Facilities&Hospitals, solid improvements and innovations in the field and important meetings. Conclusion:Even though use of postage stamps is decreasing, they are still among the best mediums to convey messages to broad audience. Funding:None. Keywords:Commemoration, First Day Covers, Philately, Pionee

Objective We compare the adverse events in the 12 hours after double balloon catheter(DBC) or first prostaglandin(PGE) inserted and the efficacy of DBC to that of PGE in labour induction. Design Multi-centre Randomised controlled Trial (RCT), in 2 centers with 2 arms: (i)DBC (ii)prostaglandin pessary. Setting 2 tertiary hospitals, Singapore and Malaysia Population Southeast-Asian women Method This is a prospective cohort randomised controlled study. 210 women were recruited in each center and assigned randomly to cervical ripening with either DBC or prostaglandin pessary. Main outcome The adverse events in the 12 hours after DBC or first PGE inserted and the efficacy of a DBC to that of a prostaglandin in labour induction were evaluated. Results There were significantly less women with uterine hyperstimulation in the double balloon catheter group (2 vs 24, p=<0.0001) compared to the prostaglandin group. There were no women with uterine hyperstimulation and non-reassuring fetal status in the double balloon group while there were 5 women with uterine hyperstimulation and fetal distress in the prostaglandin group. Use of pain relief was significantly less in the double balloon catheter group (p=0.009). There were no significant differences in both groups in mode and time to delivery, although significant less time was needed to achieve os dilation more than 4cm in the double balloon catheter group (p=<0.0001). Conclusion DBC remains a good alternative method for inducing women in view of low adverse events and a good safety profile with low risk of hyperstimulation. Keywords: Double balloon catheter;prostaglandin;hyperstimulation;induction of labour ClinicalTrials.govIdentifier:NCT02620215.URL:https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02620215

Objective. This study aimed to determine the real-world, long-term prognostic impact and adverse effects (AEs) of bevacizumab (BEV) in Asian patients with ovarian/tubal/peritoneal cancers. Design Hospital-based observational cohort study. Setting Tertiary medical centre in Southern Taiwan. Population Women diagnosed with ovarian, tubal, peritoneal cancer. Methods. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of consecutive patients on front-line chemotherapy with or without BEV (Cohort 1) and those who relapsed following chemotherapy and/or BEV (Cohort 2) between 2011 and 2018. Main outcome measures Patient clinicopathological characteristics, BEV dosages, clinical outcomes, survivals, and AEs were analysed. Hazard ratios for disease progression and death were analysed using a Cox model. Results. Benefits of BEV used throughout triweekly, in terms of improved progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS), were observed at a dosage of 7.5–15 mg/kg/cycle among advanced-stage Cohort 1 patients. A progression-free interval of <6 months was the strongest predictor of disease progression and death in advanced-stage patients. BEV throughout and optimal cytoreduction were independent predictors of reduced disease progression. Histology was not a prognostic predictor. BEV resulted in improved OS in Cohort 2 patients, especially in the platinum-sensitive subgroup. Most patients had a front-line BEV dosage <10 mg/kg per cycle with <10 treatment cycles. Low rates and grades of BEV-related AEs were observed. Conclusions BEV used throughout effectively extended PFS and OS in advanced-stage patients. Patients with platinum-sensitive carcinoma, treated with BEV, had a significant improvement in OS and extended PFS. Therefore, BEV can safely be added to chemotherapy for ovarian/tubal/peritoneal cancers.

To describe the method in which fallopian tube recanalization can be safely performed laparoscopically after tube ligation with two-stitch technique. Laparoscopic reversal of the unilateral tube was performed to a 38-year-old woman who underwent unilateral salpingectomy due to ectopic pregnancy. At 3 days after surgery, tubal patency was determined via hydrotubation, and the results were satisfactory. The patient was assessed via hysterosalpingography after 2 months to confirm the patency of the anastomosed fallopian tube, and no tube obstruction was noted. The two-stitch procedure can reduce surgical time and prevent the possibility of new scar formation compared to traditional four-stitch approach.

Background: PAR1 activation plays an important role in acute myocardial infarction, but the mechanism underlying the PAR1 expression under hypoxia is not clear. Method and Result: Cardiomyocytes from neonatal rats, cultured in hypoxic conditions, showed decreased PAR1 expression. The introduction of TRAP rescued the loss of PAR1 expression within 1 h of treatment. However, PAR1 expression was not affected by PAR1 activation, under normoxic condition. We detected mRNA expressions of Rab11A, Rab11B, FIP2, FIP3，and Rip11 but no Rab25, FIP1 and FIP4 in cardiomyocytes. Rab11A protein levels increased and reached the peak during the first 4h of hypoxia (4h: 179.93% ± 9.82% of control, control = normoxic group, n=5, P<0.05) and thereafter decreased; however, Rab11B protein decreased. Addition of TRAP caused 15,87 folds decrease in hypoxia-induced Rab11A expression, but 8.96 folds increase in hypoxia-decreased Rab11B expression after 4 h of hypoxia. Knockdown (with siRNA) of Rab11B, but not Rab11A, caused decreased PAR1 expression. Knockdown of Rip11 significantly inhibited the TRAP-rescued-PAR1 expression in cardiomyocytes during hypoxia. Rip11 levels decreased during hypoxia. The ratio of phosphorylated vs. non-phosphorylated Rip11 in TRAP-treated group and pervanadate-treated group showed 2 folds and 7 folds of that in vehicle group, respectively (P<0.05，n = 5). HIF-1α knockdown ( with siRNA) inhibited TRAP-rescued-PAR1 expression and Rip11 expression in hopxia cardiomyocytes. Conclusion: PAR1 activation reverses hypoxia-inhibited PAR1 expression through inhibiting Rab11A，enhancing Rab11B expression and phosphorylated HIF-1α-induced-Rip11 in cardiomyocytes during hypoxia.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The use of human intestinal alkaline phosphatase (IAP) has already been validated as a novel treatment for endotoxin lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammatory diseases, which is mediated through IAP’ s ability to detoxify LPS. However, there has been little investigation into the full extent of IAP’ s physiological function. This study investigates IAP’s non-LPS related functions and clinical applications. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH In this study, we use freshly extracted human leukocytes to study effects of a recombinant human intestinal alkaline phosphatase (recIAP) on secretion of TNF-ɑ and IL-6 by the leukocytes in absence of LPS. Physiological substrates of alkaline phosphatase and their dephosphorylated products at neutral pH including ATP, ADP, AMP and adenosine were employed to investigate their effects on secretion of TNF-ɑ by the leukocyte. KEY RESULTS We found that recIAP inhibit TNF-α and IL-6 secretion by freshly extracted human leukocyte in the absence of LPS. recIAP dephosphorylates ATP and ADP etc at physiological pH. The dephosphorylated products by recIAP including AMP and adenosine inhibit TNF-α secretion of the freshly extracted human leukocyte. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS Human leukocyte migrates into inflamed tissues and secretes TNF-α and IL-6. Thus, leukocyte plays an important role in inflammatory diseases. recIAP inhibits TNF-α and IL-6 secreted by freshly extracted human leukocyte in the absence of LPS. The results in this study indicate that recIAP is a promising therapeutic candidate for diseases related to leukocyte TNF-α and IL-6 secretion.

Metalloenzyme lytic polysaccharide monooxygenase (LPMO) is a breakthrough enzyme, acting as a catalyst in the process of plant biomass conversion to biofuels. LPMOs oxidize polysaccharide in crystalline area, providing accessibility to other polysaccharide hydrolases for enhancing the saccharification process. In this review an in-silico analysis explores the active copper center and evolutionary relationship of LPMO. A radial phylogram of 168 LPMO genes from archaea to terrestrial plant infers their evolution as a paralogous enzyme catalyzing the same function in different domains. The review also emphasizes on the mechanism, electron flow, and diversity of electron-donating system for LPMO. The 3-D modeling of unexplored bacterial LPMO derived from extreme environment and its structural comparison by super positioning with well-defined TfAA10A (LPMO) of Thermobifida fusca was investigated. Result indicates the conservation in active copper center and flat surface for substrate binding from halophilic archaea to deep marine bacteria. Furthermore, annotation of different CAZymes in bacterial species with characterized LPMO and full range of glycoside hydrolase overcomes the need for consortia. The vast diversity and substrate flexibility of LPMOs along with its crucial role in pre-treatment steps of plant biomass, nano-cellulose formation, and insecticidal activity opens a wide array of biotechnological applications.

Objective: To determine whether planned cesarean section (CS) for a second delivery protects anal continence in women with obstetrical anal sphincter lesions. Design: Randomized trial. Setting: 6 maternity units in the Paris area. Sample : Women at high risk of sphincter lesions (first delivery with 3d degree laceration and/or forceps) but no symptomatic anal incontinence. Methods : Endoanal ultrasound was performed in the third trimester of the second pregnancy. Women with sphincter lesions were randomized to planned CS or vaginal delivery (VD). Main outcome measures : Anal continence at 6 months post-partum. Secondary outcomes were urinary continence, sexual morbidity, maternal and neonatal morbidities and worsening of external sphincter lesions. Results : Anal sphincter lesions were detected by ultrasound in 264/434 women enrolled (60.8%) ; 112 were randomized to planned VD and 110 to planned CS. At 6-8 weeks after delivery, there was no significant difference in anal continence between the 2 groups. At 6 months after delivery, median Vaizey scores of anal continence were 1 [IQR 0-4] in the CS group and 1 [IQR 0-3] in the VD group (p = 0.34). There were no significant differences for urinary continence, sexual functions or for other maternal and neonatal morbidities. Conclusions : In women with asymptomatic obstetrical anal sphincter lesions diagnosed by ultrasound, planning a CS had no significant impact on anal continence 6 months after the second delivery. These results do not support advising systematic CS for this indication.

Shared phylogenetic breaks across taxa, syntopic clusters of endemics, and paleogeographic reconstruction of isostatic and vegetation change over time suggest the existence of one or more ice-free glacial refugia off of North America’s North Pacific Coast. An incomplete fossil record, however, creates uncertainty over which species persisted in hypothesized refugia, obscuring interpretation of the timing, potential duration, and surrounding paleoenvironments. We use whole-genome resequencing to assess the historical biogeography of these complex northern landscapes that consist of multiple coastal archipelagos and mountain ranges. Discovery of distinct insular and continental clades within Pacific martens (M. caurina) is consistent with previous morphometric and parasitological studies and also with the Coastal Refugium Hypothesis, thereby supporting the persistence of diverse, potentially forested refugial communities along the western edges of the Alexander Archipelago. We found no evidence of admixture on islands that received translocations of American pine martens (M. americana) in the mid 1900s, but we detected introgression in two geographically distinct zones of secondary contact. Evidence of early-generational hybrids across multiple hybrid zones, each backcrossed with M. americana, is consistent with a history of genetic dilution of M. caurina through outbreeding with M. americana. Into the future, these hybrid zones will serve as iterative tests for the outcome of admixture, providing instructive natural experiments for forecasting outcomes of proactive measures such as genetic rescue by natural resource managers.

Leaf shape is a defining feature of how we recognise and classify plant species. Although there is extensive variation in leaf shape within many species, few studies have disentangled the underlying genetic architecture. We characterised the genetic architecture of leaf shape variation in Eurasian aspen (Populus tremula L.) by performing a genome wide association studies (GWAS) for physiognomy traits. To ascertain the roles of identified GWAS candidate genes within the leaf development transcriptional program, we performed gene co-expression network analyses from a developmental series, which is publicly available at http://aspleaf.plantgenie.org. We additionally used gene expression measurements across the population to analyse GWAS candidate genes in the context of a population-wide co-expression network and to identify genes that were differentially expressed between groups of individuals with contrasting leaf shapes. These data were integrated with expression GWAS (eQTL) results to define a set of candidate genes associated with leaf shape variation. Our results identified no clear adaptive link to leaf shape variation and indicate that leaf shape traits are genetically complex, likely determined by numerous small-effect variations in gene expression. Genes associated with shape variation were peripheral within the population-wide co-expression network, were not highly connected within the leaf development co-expression network and exhibited signatures of relaxed selection. As such, our results are consistent with the omnigenic model.

Most new cryptic species are described using conventional tree- and distance-based species delimitation methods (SDMs), which rely on phylogenetic arrangements and measures of genetic divergence. However, although numerous factors such as spatial population structure and gene flow are known to confound phylogenetic and species delimitation inferences, the influence of these processes on species estimation is rarely evaluated. Using large amounts of exons, introns, and ultraconserved elements obtained using the FrogCap sequence-capture protocol, we compared conventional SDMs with more robust genomic analyses that assesses spatial population structure and gene flow to characterize species boundaries in a Southeast Asian frog complex (Pulchrana picturata). Our results showed that gene flow and introgression can produce phylogenetic patterns and levels of divergence that resemble distinct species (up to 10% divergent in mitochondrial DNA). Hybrid populations were inferred as independent (singleton) clades that were highly divergent from adjacent populations (7–10%) and unusually similar (<3%) to allopatric populations. Such anomalous patterns are not uncommon in Southeast Asian amphibians, which brings into question whether the high cryptic diversity observed in other amphibian groups reflect distinct cryptic species—or, instead, highly structured and admixed metapopulation lineages. Our results also provide an alternative explanation to the conundrum of divergent (sometimes non-sister) sympatric lineages―a pattern that has been celebrated as indicative of true cryptic speciation. Based on these findings, we recommend that species delimitation of continuously distributed “cryptic” groups should not rely solely on conventional SDMs but should necessarily examine spatial population structure and gene flow to avoid taxonomic inflation.

The purpose of this study is to analyze the effects of surface defects (e.g., notches) and external environment conditions (e.g., operating temperature, the number of re-welding) on the static strength and fatigue of Al3003-O aluminum tubes used in the heat exchangers of air conditioners. In this study by the aluminum tubes to perform fatigue tests on the actual tube product and then the fatigue characteristics were evaluated using stress-life(S–N) curves. Regarding the welding conditions (maximum 600 °C and 10 s), the grain size grew and the hardness decreased as the number of re-welding increased. The effects of the operating temperatures on the fatigue life were examined at a room temperature of 25 °C and a heat exchanger operating temperature of 125 °C, resulting in the fatigue limit(57.19 MPa -> 49.02 MPa) at operating temperature was lower than room temperature. Furthermore, the fatigue limit of 29.37 MPa measured in the notched specimens (notch angle of 90 ˚, notch radius of 0.02 mm, and depth of 0.115 mm) was lower than that obtained from those without notches. The material constant (0.03) used in the Peterson equation was then computed from the fatigue notch factor (1.67 = 49.02/29.37) and the stress concentration factor (2.73) of the notched tube specimens was obtained from the structural analysis. This material constant can be used to predict a decrease in the fatigue limit over varying notch sizes in aluminum tubes (Al3003-O).

Abstract: The causes of many blade fractures of a steam turbine in a power plant were analyzed by means of macro analysis, mechanical examination, metallographic examination, SEM and X-ray fluorescence spectrum analysis(XRF). The results show that the blade cracks due to corrosion fatigue. Cl -, K +, etc. react with the turbine blades in the steam environment in physical, chemical and electrochemical ways, causing local spot corrosion on the blades, forming corrosion pits.In addition, the steam condensate has an erosion effect on the blades, both of which form a corrosion fatigue source. The autocatalytic process of block cell is formed when Cl -, K +, etc. react with the turbine blades. Under the action of complex load, the current density i of activation dissolution of metal can be expressed as a function of complex stress state .Crack growth has an important relationship with stress, depth and width of corrosion pits. The larger the width of corrosion pit is, the deeper the depth is, the smaller threshold nominal stress range for crack elongation 〖∆σ〗_th is, the easier the blade cracks. Under the external conditions of complex alternating stress formed by tensile force, bending force, torsion force and exciting force, the complex alternating stress directly promotes the crack propagation until the fracture failure. Keywords:XRF;Corrosion fatigue;Corrosion pit;Threshold nominal stress range for crack elongation 〖∆σ〗_th;Complex alternating stress

Accurate prediction of protein secondary structure (alpha-helix, beta-strand and coil) is a crucial step for protein inter-residue contact prediction and ab initio tertiary structure prediction. In a previous study, we developed a deep belief network-based protein secondary structure method (DNSS1) and successfully advanced the prediction accuracy beyond 80%. In this work, we developed multiple advanced deep learning architectures (DNSS2) to further improve secondary structure prediction. The major improvements over the DNSS1 method include (i) designing and integrating six advanced one-dimensional deep convolutional/recurrent/residual/memory/fractal/inception networks to predict secondary structure, and (ii) using more sensitive profile features inferred from Hidden Markov model (HMM) and multiple sequence alignment (MSA). Most of the deep learning architectures are novel for protein secondary structure prediction. DNSS2 was systematically benchmarked on two independent test datasets with eight state-of-art tools and consistently ranked as one of the best methods. Particularly, DNSS2 was tested on the 82 protein targets of 2018 CASP13 experiment and achieved the best Q3 score of 83.74% and SOV score of 72.46%. DNSS2 is freely available at: https://github.com/multicom-toolbox/DNSS2.

Olivia J. MurphySubmitted 9 Mar 20201085 wordsConscious will may be the cause of an action or the apparent cause of an action. Determinism states that it is the latter, whereas free will states the opposite (Wegner, D.M., 2002). Determinism implies that humans are not in control of their actions, but rather under the illusion that they have control. Both sides of the debate offer credible evidence, but much of the results from research in this area are still inconclusive. For example, it is not possible to determine which area of the brain the experience of will occurs at (Wegner, D.M., 2002). Therefore, it is difficult to determine the true nature of the cause of an individual’s actions. However, it is possible that free will and determinism co-occur equally or at differing percentages. That is, human actions may be due to an individual’s thoughts as well as predetermined factors that one is unaware of. If the actions of humans are indeed predetermined, then it becomes possible to accurately predict the decisions that a person will make. On the other hand, if free will truly exists alone, then actions would be unpredictable by a third party. Lifetime events may be easier to predict than daily events. It is dependent on the certainty with which one can conclude that an event is predetermined. There are many variables that affect this certainty, including dispositional and situational factors.Dispositional factors having a large impact on human behaviour would support the notion of determinism. Zautra A. J. et al. (1991) showed that personality has little to do with the causation of daily events in older adults, suggesting that actions may be triggered by thoughts and are not predetermined. Contrary to this notion, it has been shown that psychological stress levels can be anticipated by personality in people of all ages, helping to predict major life events such as depressive episodes (Kendler, K. S. et al., 2004). It is possible, however, that the personality that correlates with the depressive episodes is a result of the depressive episodes rather than the cause of them. If this is the case, then personality would be ruled out as a significant indicator of psychological stress. However, this does not account for factors such as context, which may also play a role in determining a person’s behaviour. Situational factors may determine how well a person copes with life as well as whether a female will confront gender discrimination or not (Ayres, M. M. et al., 2009; Fabes, R. A., & Eisenberg, N., 1997). This proves that although dispositional factors may be a weak predictor of daily life events, this is not the case for situational factors. Everyday behaviour in students in particular has been shown to be strongly influenced by situational factors including positive reinforcement and availability of support services (Jackson, Y., & Warren, J. S., 2000). It seems that context is an important predictor of behaviour for children and adults. Other than these internal and external factors, other causal factors exist in the anticipation of human behaviour.Wegner (2002) lists a number of “alternatives to thoughts as causes for actions” such as impulse and emotion. From this, he endeavours to explain that actions which are due to strong emotion lack voluntariness. Furthermore, he implies that actions are not largely a result of our thoughts and that we are being deceived when we attribute our actions to free will. On the contrary, it is very possible that impulsive actions, including those that are widely accepted as involuntary such as yawning, may be partly or largely voluntary. One could argue that emotions are heavily driven by our thoughts. Nussbaum (2001) goes as far as to refer to emotions as “upheavals of thoughts”. This would suggest that impulsive actions, which are due to emotions, are in fact due to intense thoughts. Thoughts may therefore be the cause of impulsive actions which may make these actions partly voluntary. Additionally, those with Autism Spectrum Disorder are said to struggle when it comes to feeling empathy (Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, University of L’Aquila, 2014). As well as this, they are significantly less likely to yawn contagiously (Senju, A. et al., 2007). Furthermore, it is believed by some that yawning may be largely due to feelings of empathy (Palagi, E. et al., 2009). It can be construed from this that yawning, an impulsive action, may be caused by an “upheaval of thoughts” (Nussbaum, M.C., 2003), making it a voluntary action. However, this would not be labelled as part of conscious free will, as we are unaware of the appearance of the urge to yawn before it appears (Wegner 2020). The evidence supports the notion that there may be merit to both the impression that we have control over our actions and the impression that it is actually an illusion. Therefore, actions may be partially under an individual’s own conscious control, and partially unconscious. However, other research suggests otherwise.The order of events when performing an action is crucial when it comes to the debate of determinism and free will. If conscious will were to be experienced prior to the biological processes involved in acting out a movement, then free will would likely be a reality. On the other hand, if research were to show that the body prepares for action even milliseconds before the individual becomes aware of deciding to perform that action, then it would be very likely that all actions are indeed predetermined. In reality, the latter appears to be true, as “conscious will kicks in after the brain has already started preparing for the action” (Wegner, 2002). This strongly points to determinism and could completely rule out the possibility that free will exists. However, there have been little replications of the experiment used to unearth this evidence and therefore its credibility can be questioned (Wegner, 2002). It seems that although research strongly suggests predetermination of actions, more research is required to stabilize the determinism claim and determine if human behaviour can in fact be predicted accurately.It is clear that there is not enough evidence to conclude whether free will exists or not. Further research is required to determine to what length the behaviour of others can be predicted and how accurate these predictions can be. Evidence points towards a combination of predeterminism and conscious choice, which suggests that some behaviour can be predicted. In particular, external factors influence the daily life events of individuals and allow us to make predictions, whilst internal factors are possibly an influence for major life events.Ayres, M. M., Friedman, C. K., & Leaper, C. (2009). Individual and situational factors related to young women’s likelihood of confronting sexism in their everyday lives. Sex Roles , 61 . doi.: 10.1007/s11199-009-9635-3Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, University of L’Aquila. (2014). Affective and cognitive empathy in adolescents with autism spectrum disorder. Frontiers, 8 . doi.: 10.3389/fnhum.2014.00791Fabes, R. A., & Eisenberg, N. (1997). Regulatory control and adults’ stress-related responses to daily life events. Journal of personality and social psychology , 73 . doi.: 10.1037/0022-3514.73.5.1107Jackson, Y., & Warren, J. S. (2000). Appraisal, social support, and life events: Predicting outcome behavior in school‐age children.Child development , 71 . doi.: 10.1111/1467-8624.00238Kendler, K. S., Kuhn, J., & Prescott, C. A. (2004). The interrelationship of neuroticism, sex, and stressful life events in the prediction of episodes of major depression. American Journal of Psychiatry , 161 . doi.: 10.1176/appi.ajp.161.4.631Nussbaum, M.C. (2003). Upheavals of thought: The intelligence of emotion . (pg. 2). Cambridge University Press.Palagi, E., Leone, A., Mancini, G., & Ferrari, P.F. (2009). Contagious yawning in gelada baboons as a possible expression of empathy.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 46 . doi.: 10.1073/pnas.0910891106Senju, A., Maeda, M., Kikuchi, Y., Hasegawa, T., Tojo, Y., & Osanai, H. (2007). Absence of contagious yawning in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. The Royal Society Publishing, 6 . doi.: 10.1098/rsbl.2007.0337Wegner, D.M. (2002). The illusion of conscious will . Massachusetts Institute of Technology.Zautra A. J., Finch, J.F., Reich, J.W., & Guamaccia, C.A. (1991). Predicting the everyday life events of older adults. Journal of Personality, 59 . doi.: 10.1111/j.1467-6494.1991.tb00258.x

It is important for drought risk assessment and sustainable development of water resources on the basis of understanding the spatio-temporal characteristics of drought and return period. This study introduced a new drought index, standardized supply-demand water index (SSDI), and a run theory which are applied to identify ecological drought events and parameters (e.g. duration, severity, peak and coverage area) in the Yangtze River Source Region (YRSR). And the bivariate probability and return period were calculated via 2-dimensional joint copula to investigate the drought-prone regions. The results indicate that: (1) Compared with traditional meteorological drought index, the SSDI is reliable and can reflect the comprehensive characteristics of the ecological drought information more easily and effectively; (2) The YRSR had witnessed the most severe drought episodes in the periods of late-1970s, mid-1980s and mid-1990s, but the SSDI showed a wetting trend since mid-2000s. And droughts in the Southern YRSR were relatively more severe with longer drought duration; (3) In most areas of Togton River Basin and Dam River Basin, the severe ecological drought events happened more frequently; (4) Drought duration and severity in the YRSR were more susceptible to temperature when the temperature rise were above 1.0°C. The average drought duration and severity increased by 20.7% and 32.6% with a temperature rise of 1°C.

Extreme droughts of increased frequency due to climate change poses great challenges to the sustainability of plantations in drylands worldwide. Millions of plantations on China’s Loess Plateau which are mainly in drylands are threatened by serious degradation due to water scarcity. Here we aim to disentangle the impacts of combinations of terracing and mulching on water use strategy and its response to extreme droughts in a rainfed jujube (Ziziphus jujuba) plantation on the semiarid Loess Plateau, using three-year in situ field observations. Pruned jujube branches and maize straw were mulched on half-moon terraces to form two combined treatments, referred to as JBT and MST, respectively. The efficacy of these two combinations on the water use strategy of jujube trees was compared with terracing alone (SHT) and control (no terrace). We found that extreme drought clearly reduced soil water storage (SWS) under all treatments. However, the combined treatments showed significantly (P<0.05) higher SWS than the SHT and control. Furthermore, the combined treatments enhanced soil water use in deep layers during both normal and drought years, thus helping jujube trees to resist droughts. Moreover, the extreme drought significantly reduced transpiration whereas the moderate drought increased transpiration at both seasonal and annual scales. Nonetheless, the combined treatments were associated with enhanced transpiration compared to the SHT and control during drought periods. Finally, jujube trees exhibited isohydric behavior which also helped them to cope with prolonged droughts. Overall, the findings here may provide insights into land management of dryland plantations worldwide under climate change.

Many studies highlight the key role that farmers play in combating soil erosion, and measure their willingness to adopt sustainable cultivation practices in front of a monetary compensation. However, only a few of them focus on factors affecting the magnitude of such compensations, despite this information is crucial in the design and implementation of public supported actions aimed at combating agricultural land desertification. We try to contribute to fill this empirical gap by reporting results of a research carried out to investigate what factors influencing farmers’ compensation request for combating soil erosion in a significant Mediterranean cropland area. Using a discrete choice experiment, we measured cereal growers’ marginal compensation for adopting soil conservation practices. Then, using a post-estimation analysis based on a Seeming Unrelated REgression (SURE) model, we identified and analysed which farm’s and farmers characteristics significantly influenced the requested compensations. This post estimation analysis proved that farmers’ motivations, opinions and currently undertaken cultivation practices matter.

Molecular typing results are not routinely used for CHD. Aiming to uncover the underlying molecular features for different types of CHD, we screened the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) associated with CHD based on the GEO data and expanded in the NCBI-gene and OMIM databases to finally obtain 2021 DEGs. Then the weighted gene co-expression analysis (WGCNA) was performed on the candidate genes, and 6 distinctive WGCNA modules were identified, 2 of which were associated with CHD. Moreover, DEGs were mined as key genes for co-expression based on the module network relationship. Furthermore, the differential miRNAs of CHD and interactions in the database were mined in the GEO dataset to build a multi-factor regulatory network of key genes for co-expression. Combined these results, the CHD samples were further classified into 5 clusters by using the module core genes, and we defined FTH1, HCAR3, RGS2, S100A9 and TYROBP 5 genes in different subgroups. Finally, FTH1, S100A9 and TYROBP were significantly increased while HCAR3 decreased in mRNA level in CHD patients’ blood where RGS2 was hardly determined. In conclusion, the screened core clusters of genes may be potential target for diagnosis and treatment of CHD as a molecular typing module.

This paper present an accurate numerical algorithm to solve the space fractional-order Fisher’s equation where the derivative operator is described in the Caputo derivative sense. In the presented discretization process, first we use the compact nite difference (CFD) to occur a semi-discrete in time derivative, and implement the Chebyshev spectral collocation method (CSCM) of the third-kind to discretize the spatial fractional derivative. The presented method converts the studied problem to be a system of algebraic equations which can be easily solved. To study the convergence and stability analysis, some theorems are given with their profs. A numerical simulation is given to test the accuracy and the applicability of our presented algorithm.

In this paper, the relativistic Toda lattice (RTL) equation is investigated via N-fold Darboux transformation (DT) technique. Basing on the Lax pair and gauge transformation, we construct N-fold DT of the RTL equation, and derive two kinds of the N-fold explicit exact solutions from two different seed solutions. Structures of the one-, two-, three- and four-soliton solutions and periodic solutions which have important applications are shown graphically. By studying the elastic interactions among four-soliton solutions, we confirm those solutions’ shapes and amplitudes don’t change after the interaction, which are the main characteristics of solitons. In particular, we present the relationship between the structures of exact solutions and the parameters with N=1. Results in this paper might be helpful for interpreting certain physical phenomena.