Network reconfiguration (NR) is a highly complex combinatorial problem with discrete and nonlinear characteristics. With the expansion of the distribution network (DN), solving the NR problem faces the challenge of high dimensions. In this article, we propose a structural decomposition approach (SDA), where the NR problem is suitably allocated to three processes: partition, reconfiguration of equivalent networks, and merging. According to the loop in the original DN, the loop-oriented network partition model is proposed to divide the original DN into multiple equivalent networks, including a loop region and a compressed region. The reconfiguration model is built for the equivalent networks, and the solutions for the loop region and compressed region can be obtained. Then the merging model with the correction method is proposed to merge all reconfiguration solutions of equivalent networks, deal with the inconsistent solutions of different equivalent networks, and obtain the optimal reconfiguration solution of the original DN. Numerical case studies were conducted on the IEEE 33-bus and 119-bus DNs. Compared with other heuristic algorithms for solving NR problem, SDA reduces computation time by 70% while ensuring the optimality of NR strategies. These results demonstrate the effectiveness and exceptional performance of the proposed method.

To address the issues of single joint form of renewable energy units in multi-energy combined system, and the serious phenomenon of wind and solar power curtailment, this paper proposes a wind-solar-thermal power co-generation scheduling strategy incorporating concentrating solar power stations and constructs a day-ahead scheduling model for the system with the dual optimization objectives of maximizing net system revenue and achieving the strongest load-tracking capability. In the first place, the source-load output uncertainty is simulated using the Dynamically Stratified Latin hypercubic sampling method and the enhanced Synchronous Back Substitution Elimination method. Then, the Tent chaos mapping, the spiral movement strategy and the Cauchy variation method are assembled to improve the Grasshopper optimization algorithm to solve the scheduling model, enhancing its global optimization search performance and accelerating convergence speed by 26.3 %. Combining the proposed scheduling strategy and improved algorithm, simulations and analyses were conducted on an IEEE 30-node system, validating that the proposed optimal scheduling strategy for the multi-energy power generation system improves the consumption rate of wind and solar renewable energy generation by 9.8 % while ensuring solution accuracy and speed. Multi-scenario analysis further demonstrates robustness under contingency based scenario, confirming its scalability for modern power systems transitioning to net-zero emissions.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT), with high spatiotemporal selectivity, minimal side effects and less drug resistance, has emerged as a promising approach for the treatment of cancer. However, inadequate penetration depth and poor efficacy seriously restrict its practical application. To address these challenges, we developed a combined therapy platform (RENP@C/D-FA) based on rare-earth-doped nanoparticles (RENPs) with a structure of NaErF4:Tm(0.5

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) can lead to multiple complications. T2DM-related bone damage has been linked to abnormal bone turnover, but it cannot fully explain the mechanisms of T2DM bone disease. This study attempts to elucidate the underlying mechanisms of poor bone quality in T2DM. Hence, T2DM model was induced by a high-fat diet combined with a single streptozotocin injection in 7-week-old male SD rats. Osteoblasts derived from SD rats were cultured in high glucose to mimic hyperglycemia. Low bone turnover was observed in T2DM bone with elevated levels of advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) and receptor for AGEs (RAGE). Additionally, higher levels of oxidative stress and inflammatory factors were found in T2DM bone. AGEs content in bone was pairwise correlated with RAGE, hydrogen peroxide, and inflammatory factors. Serum levels of RAGE, oxidative stress, and inflammatory factors were higher in T2DM, while AGEs content tended to be lower. Besides, 35 differentially expressed metabolites were screened in T2DM serum. Osteoblasts exposed to high glucose displayed analogous abnormal changes in these biomarkers. Thus, low bone turnover in T2DM might be partially due to excess oxidative stress and inflammation induced by AGE-RAGE signaling. Furthermore, these biomarker levels in serum were mostly consistent with bone, demonstrating their possibility for predicting bone quality in T2DM.

The phenomena of intramolecular self-assembly of bidesmosidic kalopanaxsaponins was identified for the first time in this paper. NMR (1H-NMR, NOESY), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation techniques were used to compare the spatial structures of bidesmosidic kalopanaxsaponins and monodesmosidic kalopanaxsaponins. The results showed that the bidesmosidic kalopanaxsaponins formed a clustered and twisted structure in space, whereas the monodesmosidic kalopanaxsaponins were in an extended state. This discovery confirmed the presence of intramolecular self-assembly in bidesmosidic kalopanaxsaponins.

In this study, medium-chain fatty acid (MCFA) generation from mixed sludge (including primary sludge and waste activated sludge) was investigated without additional electron donors (EDs). 0.5 g COD/L of MCFAs was produced and the in situ generated ethanol could serve as the EDs during the anaerobic fermentation of mixed sludge without thermal hydrolysis process (THP) pretreatment. THP increased the MCFA production by approximately 128% in the anaerobic fermentation. During 102 days of operation, the fermentation of THP pre-treated mixed sludge stably generated 2.9 g COD/L MCFAs. The self-generated EDs could not maximize MCFA production, and external addition of ethanol improved MCFA yield. Caproiciproducens was the dominant chain-elongating bacteria. PICRUST2 revealed that both fatty acid biosynthesis and reverse β-oxidation pathways could participate in MCFA synthesis, and ethanol addition could enhance the contribution of the reverse β-oxidation pathway. Future studies should focus on the improvement of MCFA production from THP-assisted sludge fermentation.

Hepatic ischemia-reperfusion injury (HIRI) can severely impair liver function and has a potential relationship with reactive nitrogen species. Nitroxyl (HNO) has been discovered to be involved in some biological functions and pharmacological activities. However, till now, there has been no knowledge of the role of HNO in the HIRI process, mainly because accurately tracking its fluctuation at the molecular level in vivo is extremely difficult. Herein, we developed a responsive ratiometric near-infrared-II (NIR-II) nanoprobe with rare earth ions-doped nanoparticles (RENPs) as the luminophore and a molecular trigger that can specifically react with HNO to regulate the NIR-II emission of RENPs. With this nanoprobe, we revealed the relationship between HNO and the HIRI process and demonstrated that HNO may be a product of stress reactions during HIRI. This work not only creates a useful tool for visually tracking HNO in vivo but also provides first-hand information about its role in HIRI.

The shear strength of unsaturated granite residual soil (GRS) will decline rapidly when moisture content increases, because of loss of matric suction in the soil. This can lead to slope instability and embankment collapse during rainfall. Determining the matric suction of GRS accurately at different conditions can improve the accuracy of stability analysis. Generally, matric suction can be characterized as the soil–water characteristic curve (SWCC), and it is closely related to soil microstructure. In this study, the entire range of matric suction was measured using a combination of pressure plate method, filter paper method, and vapor equilibrium method. Microstructure change was investigated based on mercury intrusion porosimeter tests, in which the pore size distribution (PSD) curves of GRS samples with different initial densities and moisture content were measured. The PSDs of samples before and after wetting were also measured and compared to investigate the influence of water intrusion. Test results indicate that the combination of measurement methods can cover the entire matric suction range. The microstructure of GRS with different initial conditions presents a clear bimodal PSD. At the same density, the increase in initial moisture content can increase intra-aggregate pores and decrease inter-aggregate pores. When initial density increases, only the volume of inter-aggregate pores decreases. Wetting can decrease inter-aggregate pores and increase intra-aggregate pores. Finally, the Li model is applied in SWCC fitting for tested samples, the result of which performs well with a high correlation coefficient (R 2 > 0.95) and is recommended for GRS analysis.

Calcium treatment can reduce fruit softening and browning and enhance postharvest fruit quality. Chitosan (CS) had a certain viscosity. Therefore, in this study, calcium chloride (CaCl 2 ) was used as a calcium source and CS was used as a carrier to study the interaction of Ca 2+ and CS of the film coating through scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). At the same time, the softening and browning process of custard apple fruit was investigated by single and composite coating with 1% CS and 2% CaCl 2 . The results showed that Ca 2+ and CS produced physical and chemical cross-linking, and CS-CaCl 2 could maintain total calcium content in coated custard apple. Compared with other treatments, CS-CaCl 2 had the best postharvest effect on custard apple, which could reduce the weight loss rate of custard apple; maintain the firmness, color, moisture and cell wall material content of custard apple; and inhibit the rise and degradation of water-soluble pectin (WSP). At the same time, it could also improve the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and inhibit malondialdehyde (MDA), polyphenol oxidase (PPO), and cellulase (CX) activity. This study provides a theoretical basis for improving the shelf life of custard apple.

Recent studies have shown that adding active oxygen scavengers to edible coatings can maintain the storage quality and commercial value of postharvest fruit. In this research, the effect of a chitosan-based edible coating containing ascorbic acid (CH, 1% + AA, 1%) on Annona squamosa at storage conditions of 15 +/- 1 degrees C was investigated for twelve days. The results showed that CH+AA could delay the decrease of firmness, appearance deterioration, weight loss, and accumulation of MDA content during the storage of Annona squamosa. The CH+AA composite coating also delayed the deterioration of quality by maintaining high titratable acidity, moisture content and antioxidant enzyme activities. In addition, CH+AA inhibited the softening of fruit by regulating the activities of cell wall degrading enzymes and their gene expression levels. In conclusion, the CH+AA composite coating can keep the quality of Annona squamosa stored after harvesting.

ABSTRACT We explore whether accounting fraud can be detected using the information of firms economically linked to a focal firm. Specifically, we examine whether customer information disclosed by a supplier firm, combined with customers’ accounting information, helps to detect the supplier’s revenue fraud. We first confirm the economic link between the supplier and customers by showing a strong positive correlation between the supplier’s sales growth and the growth rate of total customer purchases. We then introduce two variables based on customer accounting information—the discrepancy between supplier sales growth and customer purchase growth and customer excess purchases—and show that they are predictive of supplier revenue fraud. We conduct a battery of cross-sectional tests and generally find results to vary cross-sectionally in a predictable way. Finally, the out-of-sample tests indicate that adding the two variables to Dechow, Ge, Larson, and Sloan (2011) model increases fraud prediction accuracy. JEL Classifications: G14; M40; M41; M42.

Recently the online advertising market has exhibited a gradual shift from second-price auctions to first-price auctions. Although there has been a line of works concerning online bidding strategies in first-price auctions, it still remains open how to handle budget constraints in the problem. In the present paper, we initiate the study for a buyer with budgets to learn online bidding strategies in repeated first-price auctions. We propose an RL-based bidding algorithm against the optimal non-anticipating strategy under stationary competition. Our algorithm obtains $\widetilde O(\sqrt T)$-regret if the bids are all revealed at the end of each round. With the restriction that the buyer only sees the winning bid after each round, our modified algorithm obtains $\widetilde O(T^{\frac{7}{12}})$-regret by techniques developed from survival analysis. Our analysis extends to the more general scenario where the buyer has any bounded instantaneous utility function with regrets of the same order.

Polysaccharide is one of the important bioactive components of Metarhizium taii. A homogeneous polysaccharide named as HLP-S was first purified from the mycelium of M. taii. HLP-S had a molecular weight of 2.81 x 103 kDa and consisted mainly of mannose, glucose, and galactose in a ratio of 2.31:2.89:3.59. The structure of HLP-S was determined by various chemical structure analysis methods, which showed that the sugar linkage units of HLP-S consist of T-Manp, T-Glcp, -> 4,6)-Glcp-(1 ->, -> 2)-Manp-(1 ->, -> 4)-Glcp-(1 ->, -> 4)-Galp-(1 ->, -> 4,6)-Manp-(1 ->, -> 3,4)-Glcp-(1 ->). The Hypoglycemic activity of HLP-S was investigated by enzyme inhibition assay in vitro and a model of insulin resistance in HepG2 cells. The results of alpha-glucosidase activity inhibition assay in vitro showed that different concentrations of HLP-S inhibited alpha-glucosidase activity with a mixture of competitive and non-competitive inhibition types. Various concentrations of HLP-S were applied to HepG2-IR cells. The results of the experiments suggested that HLP-S might effectively improve the glucose consumption of HepG2-IR cells and promote the synthesis of glycogen, hence reducing insulin resistance.

In repeated zero-sum games, instead of constantly playing an equilibrium strategy of the stage game, learning to exploit the opponent given historical interactions could typically obtain a higher utility. However, when playing against a fully adaptive opponent, one would have difficulty identifying the opponent’s adaptive dynamics and further exploiting its potential weakness. In this paper, we study the problem of optimizing against the adaptive opponent who uses no-regret learning. No-regret learning is a classic and widely-used branch of adaptive learning algorithms. We propose a general framework for online modeling no-regret opponents and exploiting their weakness. With this framework, one could approximate the opponent’s no-regret learning dynamics and then develop a response plan to obtain a significant profit based on the inferences of the opponent’s strategies. We employ two system identification architectures, including the recurrent neural network (RNN) and the nonlinear autoregressive exogenous model, and adopt an efficient greedy response plan within the framework. Theoretically, we prove the approximation capability of our RNN architecture at approximating specific no-regret dynamics. Empirically, we demonstrate that during interactions at a low level of non-stationarity, our architectures could approximate the dynamics with a low error, and the derived policies could exploit the no-regret opponent to obtain a decent utility.

This paper proposed a precast concrete pavement structure with the composite base layer comprised of the concrete beam and the filling low strength materials (B-PCP). The mechanical responses of the B-PCP induced by moving wheel loads coupled with temperature loads were analysed using the finite element method. Then the optimal geometry of the concrete beam was determined based on the sensitivity analysis, considering the tensile stress of both the slab and the beam of the base layer, the slab curling, and the faulting. Furthermore, the performance evaluation of the B-PCP was conducted by the numerical analysis and the scale experiment testing, respectively. The results showed that the optical concrete beam was 0.8 ∼ 1.0 m wide and 0.2 ∼ 0.3 m thick. The numerical results showed that the optimal B-PCP structure had a good fatigue resistance performance, and the corresponding slab curling decreased by almost 40% compared with that of the traditional precast concrete pavement. Meanwhile, the scale experiment testing verified that the optimal B-PCP structure exhibited an excellent ability to resist the deformation. The results also showed that the bearing capacity of the optimal B-PCP structure was larger than 350kN, indicating a good bearing capacity.

In this paper, the reasonable numerical model of CRCP with double-layer reinforcement under the action of temperature shrinkage is explored and verified. The error analysis and reliability analysis of the finite element calculation results and rectangular coordinate solutions are carried out to determine the reasonable analysis model. The L50 table was used to design the orthogonal test scheme of reinforcement factors, and the sensitivity analysis of design parameters affecting the reinforcement ratio of CRCP with double-layer reinforcement was carried out, and the influence law was studied. Through range analysis, variance analysis and significance evaluation, the sensitivity of each design parameter and the significance of the influence level are judged, the coefficient of linear expansion, temperature drop, reinforcement ratio, bond stiffness coefficient, and elastic modulus of steel rebars have significant effects on the mechanical response of CRCP with double layer reinforcement, and should be used as the main design indexes. It is suggested that the reinforcement ratio ρ according to ρ ∈[0.60%,0.80%]、 ρ ∈[0.80%,1.00%]、 ρ ∈[1.00%,1.20%] three value ranges for trial calculation; Take 1/3 of the thickness of CRC slab as the value point of longitudinal reinforcement.

This paper shows that worldwide earnings news can significantly influence the asset pricing in China, indicating the information transmission along the global supply chain. We investigate how stock prices of Chinese-listed firms react to the earnings announcements of their worldwide supply-chain partners and find that stock returns will exhibit a significant drift upwards (downwards) after the good (bad) news of their customers and suppliers. Moreover, we provide evidence that the equity price movement may be driven by the earnings information transmission between supply-chain partners and this effect is strengthened for the firms with higher information asymmetry or investor attention. Third, our primary results hold with a battery of robustness checks, including multiple controls consideration, proxy usage of earnings news, division of the sample, and length of market responses.

Consumer-level RGB-D cameras have been widely used for dense 3D reconstruction of scenes. Especially for textureless or non-lambertian surfaces, consumer RGB-D cameras can ensure completeness of the reconstructed models at a low cost. However, the reconstruction quality relies heavily on the accuracy of the depth sensors. Digital cameras are also used popularly for capturing high-resolution pictures to achieve high-quality dense reconstruction of the scenes, but cannot handle textureless or non-lambertian regions well due to the visual ambiguity problem. To ensure both completeness and accuracy of the reconstructed 3D models, we propose a hybrid multi-view reconstruction pipeline named Hybrid-MVS, which combines the high-resolution images taken by a digital camera and the low-resolution RGB-D frames captured by a consumer RGB-D camera for robust reconstruction of complicated scenes with challenging textureless and non-lambertian surfaces. Unlike most existing multi-sensor systems which require explicit hardware calibration and synchronization of various sensors, the calibration and synchronization problems between the digital camera and RGB-D camera are implicitly solved for compositing reliable depth prior of the digital images in our pipeline. Especially, we propose a hybrid MVS framework for robust PatchMatch stereo and Delaunay meshing, which tightly couples both visual cues given by the digital images and depth cues from the RGB-D frames to maximize the complementary advantages. The experiments with quantitative and qualitative evaluations demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed Hybrid-MVS framework, which can successfully achieve high-quality 3D reconstruction of complicated natural scenes with robustness to weakly textured and non-lambertian areas.

The existing mechanical removal method of steel bridge deck asphalt mixture layer (SBDAML) after pavement diseases not only produces work noises and dust problems, but also damages the fished joints and bolts of the steel bridge deck. Given that, this paper innovatively proposes to use microwave heating technology to remove the SBDAML. It utilizes the steel bridge deck under the SBDAML to reflect and concentrate more microwave energy to heat the bottom of the SBDAML, so the bonding layer between the SBDAML and the steel bridge deck will be dissolved quickly. At this moment, the removing wedge device can be easily inserted into the interface to remove the whole SBDAML. In order to verify the feasibility, a 3D electro-magneto-thermal coupling model of steel bridge deck system with different SBDAML materials at different microwave heating frequencies and power was established. In addition, the laboratory experiments were conducted to determine the optimum removal temperature. Results show that the strongest peak of electromagnetic and temperature field is distributed at the bottom of the sample. The 2.45 GHz was selected as the optimal heating frequency, ensuring the highest bottom and lower surface temperature to achieve good removal effects. Furthermore, a larger heating power contributes to higher temperatures caused by dielectric loss and magnetic loss. Finally, based on the experimental and simulation results, the optimal removal temperature is 130 °C, and the different combinations of heating power and heating time of two kinds of SBDAML at 2.45 GHz are recommended.

The bitumen mastic composed of bitumen binder and fillers contributes to asphalt mixtures' anti-moisture and anti-cracking properties. Therefore, it is of great significance to investigate the properties of bitumen mastic and its corresponding influence factors. This study performed an investigation on bitumen mastics considering different mineral fillers. In particular, nine fillers were characterized in particle size distribution, chemical compositions, and microstructures. The binder bonding strength (BBS) was used to evaluate the properties of varying bitumen mastics. The moisture resistance was estimated by measuring the bitumen mastics after moisture treatments. In addition, the asphalt mixtures with optimal filler binder ratio were manufactured for the anti-cracking estimation. The results indicated that the variation of mineral fillers induced the property differ-ences of bitumen mastics. However, the deterministic factor was the filler binder ratio. The microstructure of fillers showed an explicit relationship with the bonding strength of bitumen mastics. The relationships between bonding strength and cracking indicators were weak, indicating a remarkable gap to upscale from bitumen mastics to asphalt mixtures. In addition, the correlation analysis also demonstrated that the cracking resistance of asphalt mixtures behaved indicator-dependent.