We present the first experimental evidence supported by simulations of kinetic effects launched in the interpenetration layer between the laser-driven hohlraum plasma bubbles and the corona plasma of ...the compressed pellet at the Shenguang-III prototype laser facility. Solid plastic capsules were coated with carbon-deuterium layers; as the implosion neutron yield is quenched, DD fusion yield from the corona plasma provides a direct measure of the kinetic effects inside the hohlraum. An anomalous large energy spread of the DD neutron signal (∼282 keV) and anomalous scaling of the neutron yield with the thickness of the carbon-deuterium layers cannot be explained by the hydrodynamic mechanisms. Instead, these results can be attributed to kinetic shocks that arise in the hohlraum-wall-ablator interpenetration region, which result in efficient acceleration of the deuterons (∼28.8 J, 0.45% of the total input laser energy). These studies provide novel insight into the interactions and dynamics of a vacuum hohlraum and near-vacuum hohlraum.
The Tibetan Plateau is the highest and one of the most demanding environments ever inhabited by humans. We investigated the timing and mechanisms of its initial colonization at the Nwya Devu site, ...located nearly 4600 meters above sea level. This site, dating from 40,000 to 30,000 years ago, is the highest Paleolithic archaeological site yet identified globally. Nwya Devu has yielded an abundant blade tool assemblage, indicating hitherto-unknown capacities for the survival of modern humans who camped in this environment. This site deepens the history of the peopling of the "roof of the world" and the antiquity of human high-altitude occupations more generally.
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has resulted in millions of patients infected worldwide and indirectly affecting even more individuals through disruption of daily living. Long-term ...adverse outcomes have been reported with similar diseases from other coronaviruses, namely Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). Emerging evidence suggests that COVID-19 adversely affects different systems in the human body. This review summarizes the current evidence on the short-term adverse health outcomes and assesses the risk of potential long-term adverse outcomes of COVID-19. Major adverse outcomes were found to affect different body systems: immune system (including but not limited to Guillain-Barré syndrome and paediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome), respiratory system (lung fibrosis and pulmonary thromboembolism), cardiovascular system (cardiomyopathy and coagulopathy), neurological system (sensory dysfunction and stroke), as well as cutaneous and gastrointestinal manifestations, impaired hepatic and renal function. Mental health in patients with COVID-19 was also found to be adversely affected. The burden of caring for COVID-19 survivors is likely to be huge. Therefore, it is important for policy makers to develop comprehensive strategies in providing resources and capacity in the healthcare system. Future epidemiological studies are needed to further investigate the long-term impact on COVID-19 survivors.
The role of metformin (MET) on treatment effect of diabetic tuberculosis (TB) patients has not been studied in China. Thus, we conducted a retrospective study to investigate whether MET exhibited ...more efficacy in combination with anti-TB regimens for diabetic TB patients. All patients recruited came from five tuberculosis control and prevention institutes from July 2009 to July 2016 and completed 3 years of follow-up. We used chi-square test or Fisher’s exact test to evaluate the demographic characteristics and the frequency of clinical outcome between MET and non-MET group. A total of 58 TB patients with diabetes mellitus (DM), of these 27.6% (16/58) patients in the MET group and 72.4% (42/58) patients in the non-MET group, there was no significant difference in blood glucose level between MET and non-MET group (
P
= 0.494), in addition, there was a higher proportion of treatment success (93.8 vs. 71.4%) and culture conversions by the end of 2 months (87.5 vs. 71.4%) among MET group; the relapse rates of patients in MET and non-MET group were 6.3% (1/16) and 35.7% (15/42) through a 3-year follow-up (
P
= 0.045). Our data revealed that the use of MET as a combination drug with existing regimen improved the success rate of anti-TB treatment and reduced the relapse rate in TB patients with DM.
ZnO nanorod arrays were fabricated using a hydrothermal method. The nanorods were studied by scanning electron microscopy, photoluminescence (PL), time-resolved PL, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, ...and positron annihilation spectroscopy before and after annealing in different environments and at different temperatures. Annealing atmosphere and temperature had significant effects on the PL spectrum, while in all cases the positron diffusion length and PL decay times were increased. We found that, while the defect emission can be significantly reduced by annealing at 200 °C, the rods still have large defect concentrations as confirmed by their low positron diffusion length and short PL decay time constants.
One of the most promising approaches to reach a high gain in inertial confinement fusion is the fast ignition scheme. In this scheme, a relativistic electron beam is generated; this passes through ...the imploded plasma and deposits parts of its energy in the core. However, the large angular spread of the relativistic electron beam and the poorly controlled compression of the target affect realization of the fast ignition technique. Here, we demonstrate that indirectly driven (that is, driven by X-rays generated inside a gold hohlraum) implosions with a ‘high-foot’ and a short-coast time of less than 200 ps allow us to tightly compress the shell. Furthermore, we show the ability to optimize the symmetry of the imploding shell by changing the hohlraum length, successfully tuning a suitable tube-shaped shell to compensate for the large angular spread of the relativistic electron beam and to enhance the electron-to-core coupling efficiency via resistive magnetic fields. Benefiting from those experimental techniques, a significant enhancement in neutron yield was achieved in our indirectly driven fast ignition experiments. These results pave the way towards high-coupling fast ignition experiments with indirectly driven targets similar to those at the National Ignition Facility.Experiments realizing the indirect-drive fast ignition scheme for inertial confinement fusion are reported. Enabled by a tightly compressed target, an increase of neutron yield is observed.
Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are millisecond-duration radio transients of unknown physical origin observed at extragalactic distances
. It has long been speculated that magnetars are the engine powering ...repeating bursts from FRB sources
, but no convincing evidence has been collected so far
. Recently, the Galactic magnetar SRG 1935+2154 entered an active phase by emitting intense soft γ-ray bursts
. One FRB-like event with two peaks (FRB 200428) and a luminosity slightly lower than the faintest extragalactic FRBs was detected from the source, in association with a soft γ-ray/hard-X-ray flare
. Here we report an eight-hour targeted radio observational campaign comprising four sessions and assisted by multi-wavelength (optical and hard-X-ray) data. During the third session, 29 soft-γ-ray repeater (SGR) bursts were detected in γ-ray energies. Throughout the observing period, we detected no single dispersed pulsed emission coincident with the arrivals of SGR bursts, but unfortunately we were not observing when the FRB was detected. The non-detection places a fluence upper limit that is eight orders of magnitude lower than the fluence of FRB 200428. Our results suggest that FRB-SGR burst associations are rare. FRBs may be highly relativistic and geometrically beamed, or FRB-like events associated with SGR bursts may have narrow spectra and characteristic frequencies outside the observed band. It is also possible that the physical conditions required to achieve coherent radiation in SGR bursts are difficult to satisfy, and that only under extreme conditions could an FRB be associated with an SGR burst.
Background
Radiotherapy (RT) is a common treatment for prostate cancer, yet the risk of second primary colorectal cancer (SPCRC) in patients with prostate cancer undergoing RT has not been adequately ...studied.
Methods
This study employed a population-based cohort design using the US Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database to identify individuals diagnosed between January 1975 and December 2015. The cumulative incidence of SPCRC was estimated using Fine–Gray competing risk regression. Poisson regression analysis was used to estimate the risk associated with RT. Survival outcomes of patients with SPCRC were evaluated using the Kaplan–Meier method.
Results
A total of 287,607 patients diagnosed with prostate cancer were identified. The cumulative incidences were higher in patients who did not receive RT (2.00%) compared to those who underwent RT (2.47%) after 25 years. After adjustment for multiple variables, RT was associated with an increased risk of developing combined SPCRC (adjusted HR 1.590). Additionally, the overall survival was significantly lower in patients who developed colorectal cancer after receiving RT as compared to those who did not receive RT.
Conclusion
These findings underscore the need for diligent long-term monitoring and effective management strategies to detect SPCRC in patients treated with RT for prostate cancer.
•Severe general corrosion accompanied by localized pitting occurred on 316L SS surface in a high acidified chloride solution.•Surface roughness, surface potential difference and the electrochemical ...non-homogeneity of 316L SS in the test solution were investigated.•TA2, type 2507 SS and type 254SMo SS exhibit good corrosion resistance in the test solution.
The corrosion behaviour of a type 316L (UNS S31603) stainless steel (SS) expansion joint in a simulated leaching solution of sediment on blast furnace gas pipeline in a power plant is investigated by using dynamic potential polarization curves, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), optical microscope, atomic force microscope (AFM) and Scan Kelvin Probe (SKP). Severe general corrosion accompanied by pitting corrosion occurs on the type 316L SS surface in this solution. As the immersion period increases, the charge transfer resistance Rct decreases, the dissolution rate accelerates, the surface roughness increases and the surface potential difference enhances significantly. Then eight corrosion-resistant materials are tested, the corrosion rates of type 254SMo SS, type 2507 SS and TA2 are relatively minor in the solution. The corrosion resistance properties of TA2 is most excellent, indicating it would be the superior material choice for blast furnace gas pipeline.
Following implantation, the naive pluripotent epiblast of the mouse blastocyst generates a rosette, undergoes lumenogenesis and forms the primed pluripotent egg cylinder, which is able to generate ...the embryonic tissues. How pluripotency progression and morphogenesis are linked and whether intermediate pluripotent states exist remain controversial. We identify here a rosette pluripotent state defined by the co-expression of naive factors with the transcription factor OTX2. Downregulation of blastocyst WNT signals drives the transition into rosette pluripotency by inducing OTX2. The rosette then activates MEK signals that induce lumenogenesis and drive progression to primed pluripotency. Consequently, combined WNT and MEK inhibition supports rosette-like stem cells, a self-renewing naive-primed intermediate. Rosette-like stem cells erase constitutive heterochromatin marks and display a primed chromatin landscape, with bivalently marked primed pluripotency genes. Nonetheless, WNT induces reversion to naive pluripotency. The rosette is therefore a reversible pluripotent intermediate whereby control over both pluripotency progression and morphogenesis pivots from WNT to MEK signals.
PDF
