The emergence of blockchain technology has created a number of potential innovations in handling business activities across various industries. However, few studies discuss the potential influence of ...blockchain technology from a business process re-engineering perspective. This study focuses on the feasibility and inceptive application of supply chain processes. We proposed a blockchain-based framework along with the use of an affiliated technology, i.e., smart contracts, to derive the feasible benefits of the supply chain process design. Through the illustrative design of an integrated process, we provide an achievable use case of the disintermediation of business processes via a conceptual, shared information ledger. This ledger not only facilitates the sharing of tracking information but also promotes a network for multilateral collaboration among supply chain members. The pursuit of transparency and accountability across supply chain processes can potentially influence decentralization and automation. A comparative analysis of the current and proposed frameworks is conducted to support the core reasoning of this study. Additionally, future implications on managerial practice and academic research are explored to provide pervasive suggestions for similar attempts in different sectors. We conclude with an evaluation of the potential influence of blockchain technology on supply chain management.
•Blockchain and smart contract technology can help conduct business process re-engineering (BPR) across enterprise borders.•A blockchain-based BPR framework is proposed and explored to automate business flows in tracking supply chain processes.•Blockchain-based business apps can be designed and implemented using the proposed framework to harvest blockchain benefits.•Blockchain and smart contract based business applications may significantly affect our digital life in the near future.
Human infection with the novel avian-origin influenza A (H7N9) virus has aroused global concern. In this report, the clinical characteristics of 111 laboratory-confirmed cases in China are presented.
...On March 30, 2013, three patients with fatal cases of rapid, progressive pneumonia were confirmed to be infected with a novel avian-origin influenza A (H7N9) virus that had not been detected in humans and animals previously.
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,
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The new human H7N9 viruses are the product of reassortment of viruses that are of avian origin.
Global attention was soon focused on the situation because of the increasing number of new cases and the high rate of death associated with these infections.
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As of May 9, the World Health Organization (WHO) had reported 131 laboratory-confirmed cases, including 32 deaths.
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However, data on . . .
Abstract
Herein, we report an efficient protocol in which formate is used as a precursor of the CO
2
radical anion for the photoinduced defluorocarboxylation of α‐trifluoromethylstyrene. A wide range ...of
gem
‐difluorovinylacetic acids bearing a variety of functional groups were successfully obtained in the absence of metal catalysts. The synthetic value of this protocol was highlighted by successful gram‐scale synthesis and late‐stage modification for complex biologically active molecules. This protocol provides a complementary method that extends the range of currently available methodologies for accessing the structurally versatile
gem
‐difluoroalkenes.
Lilium is a large genus that includes approximately 110 species distributed throughout cold and temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The species-level phylogeny of Lilium remains unclear; ...previous studies have found universal markers but insufficient phylogenetic signals. In this study, we present the use of complete chloroplast genomes to explore the phylogeny of this genus. We sequenced nine Lilium chloroplast genomes and retrieved seven published chloroplast genomes for comparative and phylogenetic analyses. The genomes ranged from 151,655 bp to 153,235 bp in length and had a typical quadripartite structure with a conserved genome arrangement and moderate divergence. A comparison of sixteen Lilium chloroplast genomes revealed ten mutation hotspots. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for any two Lilium chloroplast genomes ranged from 8 to 1,178 and provided robust data for phylogeny. Except for some of the shortest internodes, phylogenetic relationships of the Lilium species inferred from the chloroplast genome obtained high support, indicating that chloroplast genome data will be useful to help resolve the deeper branches of phylogeny.
Background
Vessels encapsulating tumor clusters (VETC) pattern is a novel microvascular pattern associated with poor outcomes of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Preoperative estimation of VETC has ...potential to improve treatment decisions.
Purpose
To develop and validate a nomogram based on gadoxetate disodium‐enhanced MRI for estimating VETC in HCC and to evaluate whether the estimations are associated with recurrence after hepatic resection.
Study Type
Retrospective.
Population
A total of 320 patients with HCC and histopathologic VETC pattern assessment from three centers (development cohort:validation cohort = 173:147).
Field Strength/Sequence
A3.0 T/turbo spin‐echo T2‐weighted, spin‐echo echo‐planar diffusion‐weighted, and 3D T1‐weighted gradient‐echo sequences.
Assessment
A set of previously reported VETC‐ and/or prognosis‐correlated qualitative and quantitative imaging features were assessed. Clinical and imaging variables were compared based on histopathologic VETC status to investigate factors indicating VETC pattern. A regression‐based nomogram was then constructed using the significant factors for VETC pattern. The nomogram‐estimated VETC stratification was assessed for its association with recurrence.
Statistical Tests
Fisher exact test, t‐test or Mann–Whitney test, logistic regression analyses, Harrell's concordance index (C‐index), nomogram, Kaplan–Meier curves and log‐rank tests. P value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Results
Pathological VETC pattern presence was identified in 156 patients (development cohort:validation cohort = 83:73). Tumor size, presence of heterogeneous enhancement with septations or with irregular ring‐like structures, and necrosis were significant factors for estimating VETC pattern. The nomogram incorporating these indicators showed good discrimination with a C‐index of 0.870 (development cohort) and 0.862 (validation cohort). Significant differences in recurrence rates between the nomogram‐estimated high‐risk VETC group and low‐risk VETC group were found (2‐year recurrence rates, 50.7% vs. 30.3% and 49.6% vs. 31.8% in the development and validation cohorts, respectively).
Data Conclusion
The nomogram integrating gadoxetate disodium‐enhanced MRI features was associated with VETC pattern preoperatively and with postoperative recurrence in patients with HCC.
Evidence Level
4
Technical Efficacy
Stage 2
Hybrid manganese halide has attracted much attention in the field of environment friendly ferroelectric and photo‐responsive multifunctional materials. Here, the highly efficient photoluminescent ...inorganic framework MnBr42− is utilized to conceive and synthesize a series of hybrid manganese bromide compounds RQ2MnBr4 by introducing precisely designed quasi‐spherical cations RQ+ (R = H, Me, Et, FEt, Q = quinuclidine). The accurate and effective modification of cations not only achieves the satisfactory ferroelectricity, but also enhances the photoluminescence quantum yield from 38.7% to 83.65%. Moreover, FEtQ2MnBr4 shows a highly efficient X‐ray scintillator performance, including a large range of linear response to X‐ray dose rate from 0.3 to 414.2 μGyair s−1, a high light yield of 34 438 photons per MeV, and a low detection limit of 258 nGyair s−1. This work provides an efficient strategy for the preparation of hybrid manganese halide ferroelectrics with highly efficient light‐emission and X‐ray detection.
By coupling the design for high Curie temperature ferroelectrics and the modulation of photo‐responsive properties through precise modification of spherical cations, an A2MnBr4‐type hybrid ferroelectric with a high photoluminescence quantum yield of 83.65% is obtained. Moreover, the eco‐friendly crystal is promising for high performance X‐ray detectors compared with commercially available scintillators such as bismuth germanium oxide and lutetium yttrium oxyorthosilicate.
Background
Women and their health care providers need a reliable answer to this important question: If a woman chooses to participate in regular mammography screening, then how much will this choice ...improve her chances of avoiding a death from breast cancer compared with women who choose not to participate?
Methods
To answer this question, we used comprehensive registries for population, screening history, breast cancer incidence, and disease‐specific death data in a defined population in Dalarna County, Sweden. The annual incidence of breast cancer was calculated along with the annual incidence of breast cancers that were fatal within 10 and within 11 to 20 years of diagnosis among women aged 40 to 69 years who either did or did not participate in mammography screening during a 39‐year period (1977‐2015). For an additional comparison, corresponding data are presented from 19 years of the prescreening period (1958‐1976). All patients received stage‐specific therapy according to the latest national guidelines, irrespective of the mode of detection.
Results
The benefit for women who chose to participate in an organized breast cancer screening program was a 60% lower risk of dying from breast cancer within 10 years after diagnosis (relative risk, 0.40; 95% confidence interval, 0.34‐0.48) and a 47% lower risk of dying from breast cancer within 20 years after diagnosis (relative risk, 0.53; 95% confidence interval, 0.44‐0.63) compared with the corresponding risks for nonparticipants.
Conclusions
Although all patients with breast cancer stand to benefit from advances in breast cancer therapy, the current results demonstrate that women who have participated in mammography screening obtain a significantly greater benefit from the therapy available at the time of diagnosis than do those who have not participated.
After 20 years of follow‐up, women who participate in mammography screening have a 47% lower risk of dying from breast cancer. Although all patients with breast cancer potentially can benefit from advances in breast cancer therapy, women who participate in mammography screening obtain a significantly greater benefit from the therapy available at the time of diagnosis than those who do not participate.
We introduce two pioneering applications leveraging Distributed Fiber Optic Sensing (DFOS) and Machine Learning (ML) technologies. These innovations offer substantial benefits for fortifying telecom ...infrastructures and public safety. By harnessing existing telecom cables, our solutions excel in perimeter intrusion detection via buried cables and impulsive event classification through aerial cables. To achieve comprehensive intrusion detection, we introduce a label encoding strategy for multitask learning and evaluate the generalization performance of the proposed approach across various domain shifts. For accurate recognition of impulsive acoustic events, we compare several standard choices of representations for raw waveform data and neural network architectures, including convolutional neural networks (ConvNets) and vision transformers (ViT). We also study the effectiveness of the built-in inductive biases under both high- and low-fidelity sensing conditions and varying amounts of labeled training data. All computations are executed locally through edge computing, ensuring real-time detection capabilities. Furthermore, our proposed system seamlessly integrates with cameras for video analytics, significantly enhancing overall situation awareness of the surrounding environment.
Clean environment is essential to human health. The world is facing formidable challenges in meeting rising requirement to clean environment. Recently, persistent organic pollutants (POPs), heavy ...metals, etc. pollutants in water and soil are the key factors which make the environment worse. Even trace pollutants can enter human body and do harm to human health. Trace detection and treatment of these pollutants become an eagerly solved problem. Nanomaterials and nanotechnology provide a powerful method for detection and treatment of trace pollutants in the environment. This article reviews the recent progress of detection and treatment of POPs and heavy metal by using nanomaterials and analytical nanotechnology. And the application of nanomaterials and nanotechnology through enhancement of Raman scattering, surface plasmon resonance, fluorescent detection and electrochemical detection were described. We highlight recent advances on the development of novel nanomaterials and nanostructures and processes for treatment of POPs and heavy metals in water and soil. We also discussed the mechanisms of POPs degradation and heavy metal treatment.