Background
The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of epidemiologic and physician‐diagnosed pollen‐induced AR (PiAR) in the grasslands of northern China and to study the impact of the ...intensity and time of pollen exposure on PiAR prevalence.
Methods
A multistage, clustered and proportionately stratified random sampling with a field interviewer‐administered survey study was performed together with skin prick tests (SPT) and measurements of the daily pollen count.
Results
A total of 6043 subjects completed the study, with a proportion of 32.4% epidemiologic AR and 18.5% PiAR. The prevalence was higher in males than females (19.6% vs 17.4%, P = .024), but no difference between the two major residential and ethnic groups (Han and Mongolian) was observed. Subjects from urban areas showed higher prevalence of PiAR than rural areas (23.1% vs 14.0%, P < .001). Most PiAR patients were sensitized to two or more pollens (79.4%) with artemisia, chenopodium, and humulus scandens being the most common pollen types, which were similarly found as the top three sensitizing pollen allergens by SPT. There were significant regional differences in the prevalence of epidemiologic AR (from 18.6% to 52.9%) and PiAR (from 10.5% to 31.4%) among the six areas investigated. PiAR symptoms were positively associated with pollen counts, temperature, and precipitation (P < .05), but negatively with wind speed and pressure P < .05).
Conclusion
Pollen‐induced AR (PiAR) prevalence in the investigated region is extremely high due to high seasonal pollen exposure, which was influenced by local environmental and climate conditions.
Abstract
At the interface between monolayer FeSe films and SrTiO
3
substrates the superconducting transition temperature (
T
c
) is unexpectedly high, triggering a surge of excitement. The mechanism ...for the
T
c
enhancement has been the central question, as it may present a new strategy for seeking out higher
T
c
materials. To reveal this enigmatic mechanism, by combining advances in high quality interface growth,
16
O
$$\leftrightarrow$$
↔
18
O isotope substitution, and extensive data from angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy, we provide striking evidence that the high
T
c
in FeSe/SrTiO
3
is the cooperative effect of the intrinsic pairing mechanism in the FeSe and interactions between the FeSe electrons and SrTiO
3
phonons. Furthermore, our results point to the promising prospect that similar cooperation between different Cooper pairing channels may be a general framework to understand and design high-temperature superconductors.
This study assessed the antimicrobial activity of nanoparticles (consisting of a mixture of silver nitrate and titanium dioxide) and nanoparticle-coated facemasks to protect against infectious ...agents. The minimum inhibitory concentrations of the nanoparticles against
Escherichia coli and
Staphylococcus aureus were 1/128 and 1/512, respectively. The antibacterial activity of nanoparticle-coated masks was quantified according to the procedures of AATCC 100-1999. A 100% reduction in viable
E. coli and
S. aureus was observed in the coated mask materials after 48
h of incubation. Skin irritation was not observed in any of the volunteers who wore the facemasks. Nanoparticles show promise when applied as a coating to the surface of protective clothing in reducing the risk of transmission of infectious agents.
At the interface between monolayer FeSe films and SrTiO
substrates the superconducting transition temperature (T
) is unexpectedly high, triggering a surge of excitement. The mechanism for the T
...enhancement has been the central question, as it may present a new strategy for seeking out higher T
materials. To reveal this enigmatic mechanism, by combining advances in high quality interface growth,
O Formula: see text
O isotope substitution, and extensive data from angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy, we provide striking evidence that the high T
in FeSe/SrTiO
is the cooperative effect of the intrinsic pairing mechanism in the FeSe and interactions between the FeSe electrons and SrTiO
phonons. Furthermore, our results point to the promising prospect that similar cooperation between different Cooper pairing channels may be a general framework to understand and design high-temperature superconductors.
Upper digestive endoscopy with biopsy and histopathological evaluation of the biopsy material is the standard method for diagnosing gastric cancer (GC). However, this procedure may not be widely ...available for screening in the developing world, whereas in developed countries endoscopy is frequently used without major clinical gain. There is a high demand for a simple and non-invasive test for selecting the individuals at increased risk that should undergo the endoscopic examination. Here, we studied the feasibility of a nanomaterial-based breath test for identifying GC among patients with gastric complaints.
Alveolar exhaled breath samples from 130 patients with gastric complaints (37 GC/32 ulcers / 61 less severe conditions) that underwent endoscopy/biopsy were analyzed using nanomaterial-based sensors. Predictive models were built employing discriminant factor analysis (DFA) pattern recognition, and their stability against possible confounding factors (alcohol/tobacco consumption; Helicobacter pylori) was tested. Classification success was determined (i) using leave-one-out cross-validation and (ii) by randomly blinding 25% of the samples as a validation set. Complementary chemical analysis of the breath samples was performed using gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry.
Three DFA models were developed that achieved excellent discrimination between the subpopulations: (i) GC vs benign gastric conditions, among all the patients (89% sensitivity; 90% specificity); (ii) early stage GC (I and II) vs late stage (III and IV), among GC patients (89% sensitivity; 94% specificity); and (iii) ulcer vs less severe, among benign conditions (84% sensitivity; 87% specificity). The models were insensitive against the tested confounding factors. Chemical analysis found that five volatile organic compounds (2-propenenitrile, 2-butoxy-ethanol, furfural, 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one and isoprene) were significantly elevated in patients with GC and/or peptic ulcer, as compared with less severe gastric conditions. The concentrations both in the room air and in the breath samples were in the single p.p.b.v range, except in the case of isoprene.
The preliminary results of this pilot study could open a new and promising avenue to diagnose GC and distinguish it from other gastric diseases. It should be noted that the applied methods are complementary and the potential marker compounds identified by gas-chromatography/mass spectrometry are not necessarily responsible for the differences in the sensor responses. Although this pilot study does not allow drawing far-reaching conclusions, the encouraging preliminary results presented here have initiated a large multicentre clinical trial to confirm the observed patterns for GC and benign gastric conditions.
FeSe layer-based superconductors exhibit exotic and distinctive properties. The undoped FeSe shows nematicity and superconductivity, while the heavily electron-doped KxFe2-ySe2 and single-layer ...FeSe/SrTiO3 possess high superconducting transition temperatures that pose theoretical challenges. However, a comprehensive study on the doping dependence of an FeSe layer-based superconductor is still lacking due to the lack of a clean means of doping control. Through angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy studies on K-dosed thick FeSe films and FeSe0.93S0.07 bulk crystals, here we reveal the internal connections between these two types of FeSe-based superconductors, and obtain superconductivity below ∼ 46 K in an FeSe layer under electron doping without interfacial effects. Moreover, we discover an exotic phase diagram of FeSe with electron doping, including a nematic phase, a superconducting dome, a correlation-driven insulating phase and a metallic phase. Such an anomalous phase diagram unveils the remarkable complexity, and highlights the importance of correlations in FeSe layer-based superconductors.
The interface between transition metal compounds provides a rich playground for emergent phenomena. Recently, significantly enhanced superconductivity has been reported for single-layer FeSe on ...Nb-doped SrTiO3 substrate. Yet it remains mysterious how the interface affects the superconductivity. Here we use in situ angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to investigate various FeSe-based heterostructures grown by molecular beam epitaxy, and uncover that electronic correlations and superconducting gap-closing temperature (Tg) are tuned by interfacial effects. Tg up to 75 K is observed in extremely tensile-strained single-layer FeSe on Nb-doped BaTiO3, which sets a record high pairing temperature for both Fe-based superconductor and monolayer-thick films, providing a promising prospect on realizing more cost-effective superconducting device. Moreover, our results exclude the direct correlation between superconductivity and tensile strain or the energy of an interfacial phonon mode, and highlight the critical and non-trivial role of FeSe/oxide interface on the high Tg, which provides new clues for understanding its origin.
Vocational interest measurement has long played a significant role in work contexts, particularly in helping individuals make career choices. A recent meta‐analysis indicated that interest ...inventories have substantial validity for predicting career choices. However, traditional approaches to interest inventory scoring (e.g., profile matching) typically capture broad, or average relations between vocational interests and occupations in the population, yet may not be accurate in capturing the specific relations in a given sample. Machine learning (ML) approaches provide a potential way forward as they can effectively take into account complexities in the relation between interests and career choices. Thus, this study aims to enhance the accuracy of interest inventory‐based career choice prediction through the application of ML. Using a large sample (N = 81,267) of employed and unemployed participants, we compared the prediction accuracy of a traditional interest profile method (profile matching) to a new machine‐learning augmented method in predicting occupational membership (for employed participants) and vocational aspirations (for unemployed participants). Results suggest that, compared to the traditional profile method, the machine‐learning augmented method resulted in higher overall accuracy for predicting both types of career choices. The machine‐learning augmented method was especially predictive of job categories with high base rates, yet underpredicted job categories with low base rates. These findings have practical implications for improving the utility of interest inventories for organizational practice, contributing to areas such as employee development, recruitment, job placement, and retention.
A general feature of unconventional superconductors is the existence of a superconducting dome in the phase diagram. Here we report a series of discrete superconducting phases in the simplest ...iron-based superconductor, FeSe thin flakes, by continuously tuning the carrier concentration through the intercalation of Li and Na ions with a solid ionic gating technique. Such discrete superconducting phases are robust against the substitution of 20% S for Se, but they are vulnerable to the substitution of 2% Cu for Fe, highlighting the importance of the iron site being intact. The superconducting phase diagram for FeSe derivatives is given, which is distinct from that of other unconventional superconductors.
To reduce adverse impact potential and improve diversity outcomes from personnel selection, one promising technique is De Corte, Lievens, and Sackett's (2007) Pareto-optimal weighting strategy. De ...Corte et al.'s strategy has been demonstrated on (a) a composite of cognitive and noncognitive (e.g., personality) tests (De Corte, Lievens, & Sackett, 2008) and (b) a composite of specific cognitive ability subtests (Wee, Newman, & Joseph, 2014). Both studies illustrated how Pareto-weighting (in contrast to unit weighting) could lead to substantial improvement in diversity outcomes (i.e., diversity improvement), sometimes more than doubling the number of job offers for minority applicants. The current work addresses a key limitation of the technique-the possibility of shrinkage, especially diversity shrinkage, in the Pareto-optimal solutions. Using Monte Carlo simulations, sample size and predictor combinations were varied and cross-validated Pareto-optimal solutions were obtained. Although diversity shrinkage was sizable for a composite of cognitive and noncognitive predictors when sample size was at or below 500, diversity shrinkage was typically negligible for a composite of specific cognitive subtest predictors when sample size was at least 100. Diversity shrinkage was larger when the Pareto-optimal solution suggested substantial diversity improvement. When sample size was at least 100, cross-validated Pareto-optimal weights typically outperformed unit weights-suggesting that diversity improvement is often possible, despite diversity shrinkage. Implications for Pareto-optimal weighting, adverse impact, sample size of validation studies, and optimizing the diversity-job performance tradeoff are discussed.
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