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This paper presents a numerical study of dynamic compaction (DC) on ground improvement in foundation with a high groundwater table, based on a dynamic fluid–solid coupled finite element method with a cap model. Firstly, an analysis of dry ground was carried out to evaluate the effective improvement range, with the proposal of a normalized formula capturing the improvement effect. Then, the parametric studies include the effect of groundwater table, the permeability coefficient, drop energy, and soil type have been carried out to not only find that the groundwater table has a dominant influence on soil improvement by DC but also clarify densification mechanisms of ground improvement by DC on the soil nearby groundwater table, which is through analyzing the contours of effective mean stress. Finally, a relative enhancement index, RD, based on a total of 52 calculations is derived to evaluate the depth of improvement below the groundwater table for different scenarios. These relationships provide a valuable reference for the evaluation of ground improvement by DC for a foundation with high groundwater table and the applicability of the proposed procedure is illustrated by comparing its prediction with three cases of DC in the field.

Three-dimensional printing technology enables the personalization and on-demand production of edible products of individual specifications. Four-dimensional printing technology expands the application scope of 3D printing technology, which controllably changes the quality attributes of 3D printing products over time. The concept of 5D/6D printing technology is also gradually developing in the food field. However, the functional value of food printing technology remains largely unrealized on a commercial scale due to limitations of printability and printing efficiency. This review focuses on recent developments in breaking through these barriers. The key factors and improvement methods ranging from ink properties and printer design required for successful printing of personalized foods (including easy-to-swallow foods, specially shaped foods, and foods with controlled release of functional ingredients) are identified and discussed. Novel evaluation methods for printability and printing precision are outlined. Furthermore, the design of printing equipment to increase printing efficiency is discussed along with some suggestions for cost-effective commercial printing.

Numerous organizations and Analysis Centers (AC) currently offer various Ambiguity Resolution (AR) products using various methodologies. However, there are no associated studies on their use for time-frequency transfer. This paper examines 16 Multi-GNSS Experiment (MGEX) stations with external high-precision atomic clocks to constitute 15 international time comparison links, and uses AR products data from CNES, SGG, CODE, and PRIDE laboratories, using three ambiguity-fixed strategies, to thoroughly evaluate the effects of various strategies and AR products for high-precision time-frequency transfer. We reach the following results by using the IGS final clock product as a reference and comparing it to ambiguity-float. With various ambiguity-fixed procedures, the time stability Standard Deviation (STD) of time transfer is increased for a single GPS, and the improvement ranges from 10 to 40%. The frequency stability has barely improved; up to 40%, the most notable improvement comes from FCB with GRM products. The time stability STD of combinations has improved after the addition of the Galileo system compared to the single GPS, and the improvement ranges from 2 to 9%. Most strategies have been improved, while a few techniques have been weakened with the GEC (GPS + Galileo + BDS) combination. We feel that the stability has not significantly increased with the systems’ increase in terms of short-term stability after comparing multiple groups of linkages.

Bunyamwera virus is the prototype of the Bunyamwera serogroup, which belongs to the order Bunyavirales of the Orthobunyavirus genus in the Peribunyaviridae family. Bunyamwera is a negative-sense RNA virus composed of three segments S, M, and L. Genetic recombination is possible between members of this order as it is already documented. Additionally, it can lead to pathogenic or host range improvement, if it occurs with viruses of public health and agricultural importance such as Rift Valley fever virus and Crimea–Congo hemorrhagic fever virus. Here, we characterize five African Orthobunyavirus viruses from different geographical regions. Our results suggest that the five newly characterized strains are identified as Bunyamwera virus strains. Furthermore, two of the five strains sequenced in this study are recombinant strains, as fragments of their segments are carried by Ngari and Bunyamwera strains. Further investigations are needed to understand the functional impact of these recombinations.

This paper focuses on improvement effects on soil foundations under dynamic compaction (DC). Firstly, a confocal ellipsoidal densification model (CEDM) composed of a heavy compacted zone (HCZ) and a weak compacted zone (WCZ) was proposed to describe the subarea characteristic of an improvement range. Next, based on a confocal assumption of HCZ and WCZ ellipses, a mass balance equation considering changes in soil dry density in different compacted zones was established for solving the ellipsoidal parameters. Then, a designed laboratory test was conducted and a two-dimensional (2D) finite element model (FEM) established. The simulated crater depth and dynamic stress agreed well with testing results, confirming that the established FEM could be used for investigating the DC process. Finally, the applicability of the solution procedure for the proposed CEDM was verified. The predicted HCZ and WCZ were in close agreement with the simulated results, indicating that the proposed CEDM could be used for estimating the soil improvement range. With increases in tamping times, the HCZ ellipse moved down in the vertical direction without volumetric expansion, while the WCZ ellipse expanded along the depth and lateral directions. These findings may offer some guidelines for research into improvement effects on soil foundation under DC.

Ecosystem managers face a difficult decision when managing invasive species. If they use aggressive practices to reduce invader abundances, they will likely reduce invaders' competitive impacts on natives. But it is often difficult or impossible to reduce invaders without damaging natives. So a critical question becomes: Which is worse for native biota, invaders or things done to control invaders? We attempted to answer this question for a common scenario. We studied several grassland natives exhibiting long-term coexistence with an invader and asked how aggressive management (herbicide use) affected the natives. Whether or not grazing was excluded, one-time herbicide use made two native forbs exceedingly rare for our entire 16-year study period. Herbicide also made several other native forbs rare, but only when grazing was excluded, and there is evidence that the dominant invader became more abundant in response to the decreases in native-forb abundances. Throughout the world, terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems are receiving herbicide applications for exotic-species control. Some of the applications are doubtless warranted because they target small invader patches or larger areas with virtually no remaining natives. However, other herbicide applications occur where large native populations occur, and our data suggest that these applications can be ill advised. Our cautionary tale is told using an herbicide-treated grassland, but our results should be considered wherever invasive-species management damages native species.

Objective To compare the survival and risk of serious adverse events in older patients with stages II-IIIA non-small cell lung cancer treated with or without postoperative platinum based chemotherapy.Design Observational cohort study.Setting Cases of lung cancer in Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results registry linked to Medicare files, 1992-2005, and follow-up data to December 2007.Participants 3324 patients aged more than 65 years with resected stages II-IIIA lung cancer.Main outcome measures Primary outcome was overall survival and secondary outcome was the rate of serious adverse events among older patients treated with or without adjuvant chemotherapy.Results Overall, 21% (n=684) of patients received platinum based chemotherapy. Analyses adjusted, stratified, or matched by propensity scores showed that chemotherapy was associated with improved survival (hazard ratio range 0.78-0.81). The beneficial effect of chemotherapy was also observed among patients treated with radiation therapy (0.75-0.77) or without radiation therapy (0.74-0.77); however, chemotherapy was not beneficial for patients aged 80 or more (1.32-1.46). Adjuvant chemotherapy was associated with an increased odds of serious adverse events (odds ratio 2.0, 95% confidence interval 1.5 to 2.6).Conclusions Platinum based adjuvant chemotherapy is associated with reduced mortality and increased risk of serious adverse events in older patients with stages II-IIIA lung cancer. The magnitude of the benefit is similar to that observed in randomised controlled trials carried out among selected patients.

Distributed water infrastructure (located at the community or the household level) is relatively untried and unproven, compared with technologies for managing urban water at higher (e.g. regional) levels. This work presents a review of currently available options for distributed water infrastructure and illustrates the potential impact of their deployment through a number of indicative infrastructure strategies. The paper summarises the main categories of both centralised and decentralised water infrastructure, covering all three flows (water supply, wastewater and drainage) and their integration through recycling and reuse. The potential impact of the identified infrastructure options for urban water management is examined. The desirability of the strategies examined, is dependent on (case specific) constraints to urban development, including for example regional or local water resource availability, treatment plant capacity, cost of upgrading infrastructure, potential for (distributed) energy (micro) generation and climatic changes (and other non-stationary processes). The results are presented and discussed. It is concluded that there is currently a significant potential for a range of improvements in urban water management which could result from the context-aware deployment of a portfolio of technological infrastructure options. It is also suggested that there are trade-offs between water use, energy use and land use, and these have an equilibrium point that is associated with the technological state-of-art. At a given technological state-of-art, further reductions in water savings signify increase either energy consumption (for high-tech solutions) or land use (for low-tech solutions). The strategies' evaluation indicates however, that until this equilibrium point is reached there can be significant gains in all three aspects. After this equilibrium, improvements in one aspect inevitably signify costs in others. The choice of desired trade-off then depends on the specific constraints of the problem at hand.

Abstract Objective To evaluate the effects of an early community based pulmonary rehabilitation programme after hospitalisation for acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Design A single centre, randomised controlled trial. Setting An inner city, secondary and tertiary care hospital in London. Participants 42 patients admitted with an acute exacerbation of COPD. Intervention An eight week, pulmonary rehabilitation programme for outpatients, started within 10 days of hospital discharge, or usual care. Main outcome measures Incremental shuttle walk distance, disease specific health status (St George's respiratory questionnaire, SGRQ; chronic respiratory questionnaire, CRQ) and generic health status (medical outcomes short form 36 questionnaire, SF-36) at three months after hospital discharge. Results Early pulmonary rehabilitation, compared with usual care, led to significant improvements in median incremental shuttle walk distance (60 metres, 95% confidence interval 26.6 metres to 93.4 metres, P = 0.0002), mean SGRQ total score (−12.7, −5.0 to −20.3, P = 0.002), all four domains of the CRQ (dyspnoea 5.5, 2.0 to 9.0, P = 0.003; fatigue 5.3, 1.9 to 8.8, P = 0.004; emotion 8.7, 2.4 to 15.0, P = 0.008; and mastery 7.5, 4.2 to 10.7, P < 0.001) and the mental component score of the SF-36 (20.1, 3.3 to 36.8, P = 0.02). Improvements in the physical component score of the SF-36 did not reach significance (10.6, −0.3 to 21.6, P = 0.057). Conclusion Early pulmonary rehabilitation after admission to hospital for acute exacerbations of COPD is safe and leads to statistically and clinically significant improvements in exercise capacity and health status at three months.

The generalized spectral subtraction algorithm (GBSS), which has extraordinary ability in background noise reduction, is historically one of the first approaches used for speech enhancement and dereverberation. However, the algorithm has not been applied to de-noise the room impulse response (RIR) to extend the reverberation decay range. The application of the GBSS algorithm in this study is stated as an optimization problem, that is, subtracting the noise level from the RIR while maintaining the signal quality. The optimization process conducted in the measurements of the RIRs with artificial noise and natural ambient noise aims to determine the optimal sets of factors to achieve the best noise reduction results regarding the largest dynamic range improvement. The optimal factors are set variables determined by the estimated SNRs of the RIRs filtered in the octave band. The acoustic parameters, the reverberation time (RT), and early decay time (EDT), and the dynamic range improvement of the energy decay curve were used as control measures and evaluation criteria to ensure the reliability of the algorithm. The de-noising results were compared with noise compensation methods. With the achieved optimal factors, the GBSS contributes to a significant effect in terms of dynamic range improvement and decreases the estimation errors in the RTs caused by noise levels.