People can extract summary statistical information from groups of similar objects, an ability called
ensemble perception
. However, not every object in a group is weighted equally. For example, in ...ensemble emotion perception, faces far from fixation were weighted less than faces close to fixation. Yet the contribution of foveal input in ensemble emotion perception is still unclear. In two experiments, groups of faces with varying emotions were presented for 100 ms at three different eccentricities (0°, 3°, 8°). Observers reported the perceived average emotion of the group. In two conditions, stimuli consisted of a central face flanked by eight faces (flankers) (central-present condition) and eight faces without the central face (central-absent condition). In the central-present condition, the emotion of the central face was either congruent or incongruent with that of the flankers. In Experiment
1
, flanker emotions were uniform (identical flankers); in Experiment
2
they were varied. In both experiments, performance in the central-present condition was superior at 3° compared to 0° and 8°. At 0°, performance was superior in the central-absent (i.e., no foveal input) compared to the central-present condition. Poor performance in the central-present condition was driven by the incongruent condition where the foveal face strongly biased responses. At 3° and 8°, performance was comparable between central-present and central-absent conditions. Our results showed how foveal input determined the perceived emotion of face ensembles, suggesting that ensemble perception fails when salient target information is available in central vision.
The smiling emoji has been claimed to be a marker of sarcastic intention among young Chinese users in computer-mediated communication. However, it is not well understood whether people interpret the ...emoji differently based on the characteristics or traits of the sender, as conveyed by occupation stereotypes. We investigated the effect of sender occupation on emoji-based sarcasm interpretation in both unambiguous (Experiment 1) and ambiguous (Experiment 2) contexts. The results showed that contextual incongruity was privileged over sender occupation in cueing sarcastic intention. In unambiguous contexts, sender occupation exerted no significant influence on the interpretation of emoji-based sarcastic statements. In contrast, sender occupation played an important role in the interpretation of emoji-based statements in ambiguous contexts. Specifically, emoji-based ambiguous statements delivered by senders in high‑irony occupations were more likely to be perceived as sarcastic than by those in low-irony occupations. However, sender occupation did not affect the interpretation of the emoji; instead, it biased the judgment of emoji in sarcasm interpretation. In a follow-up experiment (Experiment 3), we investigated the perceived characteristics of both high- and low-irony occupations. The results demonstrated that individuals in high-irony occupations were stereotyped with characteristics, including being humorous, insincere, easy to setting up close relationships, and of a lower social status. Taken together, our study suggests that stereotypical information about the sender could drive the interpretation of potentially sarcastic statements, and the contextual information modulates the effect of sender occupation on sarcasm interpretation.
Currently, exploring high‐volumetric‐capacity electrode materials that allow for reversible (de‐)insertion of large‐size K+ ions remains challenging. Tellurium (Te) is a promising alternative ...electrode for storage of K+ ions due to its high volumetric capacity, confirmed in lithium‐/sodium‐ion batteries, and the intrinsic good electronic conductivity. However, the charge storage capability and mechanism of Te in potassium‐ion batteries (KIBs) have not been unveiled until now. Here, a novel K–Te battery is constructed, and the K+‐ion storage mechanism of Te is revealed to be a two‐electron conversion‐type reaction of 2K + Te ↔ K2Te, resulting in a high theoretical volumetric capacity of 2619 mAh cm−3. Consequently, the rationally fabricated tellurium/porous carbon electrodes deliver an ultrahigh reversible volumetric capacity of 2493.13 mAh cm−3 at 0.5 C (based on Te), a high‐rate capacity of 783.13 mAh cm−3 at 15 C, and superior long‐term cycling stability for 1000 cycles at 5 C. This excellent electrochemical performance proves the feasibility of utilizing Te as a high‐volumetric‐capacity active material for storage of K+ ions and will advance the practical application of KIBs.
Tellurium (Te) is demonstrated to be a promising electrode material for the storage of K+ ions via a two‐electron conversion‐type reaction mechanism, 2K + Te ↔ K2Te. A rationally designed tellurium/porous carbon composited electrode that can alleviate the volume change and shuttle effect shows a high volumetric capacity as well as high rate and long‐term cycling performance.
Currently, renewable and low-cost electrode materials are being intensively pursued to meet the development of sustainable electrochemical energy-storage systems. Chitin, which is the second most ...abundant biopolymer throughout the natural world and can be sourced cheaply from the exoskeletons of arthropods and shells of cephalopods, has many attractive properties such as renewability, nontoxicity, intrinsically fibrous structure and high nitrogen content. In this study, nitrogen-doped amorphous carbon nanofibers (NACF) fabricated by direct pyrolysis of chitin, were used as the anode material in sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) for the first time. The NACF electrode delivered a high reversible capacity of 320.6mAhg−1 with excellent rate capability and long cyclability. The superior electrochemical performance can mainly be attributed to synergistic effects of the unique one-dimensional mesoporous nanofibers facilitating the transmission of electrons/electrolyte, and the N-doped amorphous nanostructure increasing electrical conductivity and number of active sites. Furthermore, a sodium-ion full cell was constructed by coupling the NACF electrode with a Prussian blue cathode, and it delivered 115mAhg−1 while retaining 90% of the capacity after 200 cycles. Our work will hopefully inspire the research community to explore other advanced materials with value-added attributes that can be generated by appropriate treatment of renewable bio-waste.
N-doped amorphous carbon nanofibers can be fabricated via facile direct pyrolysis of the bio-waste chitin. The as-prepared unique porous structure provides stable channels for electron/electrolyte transmission and more active sites for sodium-ion adsorption and storage, leading to a high specific capacity, energy density and extremely long cycle life. The renewable chitin-derived high-performance electrodes will have an important place in low-cost energy-storage devices. Display omitted
•N-doped amorphous carbon nanofibers (NACFs) are fabricated by pyrolysis of chitin.•NACFs based sodium-ion anode exhibits outstanding electrochemical performance.•A high-performance full cell is constructed by NACFs anode and Prussian blue cathode.
Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a new group of endogenous RNAs recently found to be involved in the development of various diseases, including their confirmed involvement in the progression of several ...types of cancers. Unluckily, the abnormal expression and functions of circRNAs in breast cancer shall be further investigated. This work aims to elucidate the action and molecular mechanism of circHSDL2 in the malignant progression of breast cancer. Differential expression profiles of circRNAs in breast cancer tissues relative to normal breast tissues and in the exosomes of breast cancer patients compared to healthy women were analyzed from databases to identify potentially functional circRNAs. CircHSDL2 was selected for further investigation. Cell proliferation, migration and invasion assays were done to assess the effect of circHSDL2 overexpression on breast cancer cells. Bioinformatics test and dual-luciferase reporter experiments were done to explore the interaction between circHSDL2 and miRNA. Downstream target genes were further investigated through proteomics analysis and Western blotting. The influence of circHSDL2 on breast cancer in vivo was evaluated through xenograft experiments in nude mice. Functional analysis demonstrated circHSDL2 overexpression promoted the division, movement, and invasion of breast cancer cells both in vivo and in vitro. Mechanistically, circHSDL2 acted as a sponge for miR-7978 to affect ZNF704 expression and thereby regulate the Hippo pathway in breast cancer cells. In conclusion, circHSDL2 regulates the Hippo pathway through the miR-7978/ZNF704 axis to facilitate the malignancy of breast cancer. This may be a potential biomarker and treatment target.
•Chitosan combined with clove oil showed in vitro synergistic antifungal activity against P. digitatum.•The combined treatment caused alterations in P. digitatum hyphal morphology and disruption of ...cell membranes.•The combined coating did show synergistic effects with artificial green mold on mandarins.•A combined coating improved the activities of PAL and chitinase at the later stage of incubation.
The antifungal activity of chitosan combined with clove oil against Penicillium digitatum, the causal agent of citrus green mold, was tested in vitro and in vivo. Chitosan combined with clove oil inhibited mycelial growth more than individual treatments, which was related to the greater release of cellular material and the largest alterations in hyphal morphology of P. digitatum. However, compared to chitosan alone, 1% chitosan coatings combined with various amounts of clove oil (0.5, 1 or 2mL/L) showed no greater ability in controlling decay development on artificially inoculated citrus fruit. 1% chitosan combined with 0.5mL/L clove oil appeared to slightly reduce lesion diameter and enhanced the activities of defense enzymes, including chitinase and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase at the later stages of incubation. This study indicated that the synergistic antifungal activity of chitosan-clove oil observed in in vitro studies was not found in in vivo tests. Therefore, the data suggest that a coating of 1% chitosan alone, not combined with clove oil, can effectively contribute to the control of green mold on citrus fruit.
Biodiversity underpins the fundamental elements for human well-being including food security, human health and access to clean water. In 2010, the Aichi Targets were adopted by world leaders to ...address the crisis of biodiversity loss. Despite conservation efforts, none of the Aichi Targets have been fully met. However, comprehensive analysis of the reasons for failure in terms of implementation mechanisms is, to date, rare and limited in scope. Here, we demonstrate that most parties did not set effective national targets in accordance with the Aichi Targets, and investments, knowledge and accountability for biodiversity conservation have been inadequate to enable effective implementation. We recommend that the new global targets under the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework should be adopted by parties as the minimum national targets to achieve the 2050 Vision. We propose that financial resources for biodiversity conservation are substantially increased through a variety of sources, including the deployment of new economic instruments such as payments for ecosystem services. In addition, science-policy interfaces at all levels need to be strengthened to integrate scientific, Indigenous and local knowledge to support decision-making. We suggest that a compliance and accountability mechanism, based on monitoring systems, is created to provide transparent and credible review of parties' implementation of the new global targets.
In the past few years, substantial efforts have been made in the design and preparation of polymeric micelles as novel drug delivery vehicles. Typically, polymeric micelles possess a spherical ...core–shell structure, with a hydrophobic core and a hydrophilic shell. Consequently, poorly water-soluble drugs can be effectively solubilized within the hydrophobic core, which can significantly boost their drug loading in aqueous media. This leads to new opportunities for some bioactive compounds that have previously been abandoned due to their low aqueous solubility. Even so, the payload of small molecular drugs is still not often satisfactory due to low drug loading and premature release, which makes it difficult to meet the requirements of in vivo studies. This problem has been a major focus in recent years. Following an analysis of the published literature in this field, several strategies towards achieving polymeric micelles with high drug loading and stability are presented in this review, in order to ensure adequate drug levels reach target sites.
The strategies for improve the payload of micelles. Display omitted
CircRNAs are a group of endogenous small noncoding RNAs that are involved in multiple diseases including cancers. At present, the functions of circRNAs in breast cancer need to be further explored. ...In this study, 3 pairs of breast cancer and paracancer tissues with axillary lymph node metastasis were collected for circRNA high-throughput sequencing. We have identified 17,966 distinct circRNA candidates. Significant differential expressions were found in 136 circRNAs in breast cancer tissues relative to the matched paracancer tissues. We aslo identified differentially expressed 156 miRNAs and 1105 mRNAs in breast cancer tissues and normal breast tissues from public databases. Then we constructed a regulatory ceRNA network. 12 mRNAs were associated with prognosis of breast cancer. We also constructed a circRNAs-mediated subnetwork which might be related to prognosis of breast cancer. This article provides a better understanding of circRNAs-mediated ceRNA regulatory network by which circRNAs compete for endogenous RNAs in breast cancer.
