An integrated optimization approach for timetable and berth allocation has been proposed to address congestion issues at transportation nodes in common-route corridors for dual-source trolleybus systems. The study integrates travel times and the uncertainty of passenger demand to establish a bi-objective mixed-integer optimization model for minimizing the fleet sizes and required number of berths at common stations. By utilizing a Monte Carlo simulation to obtain the expected values of the fleet size and number of berths during actual route operations, the model can generate robust timetables and determine the number of berths at the common stations. The solving algorithm comprises a multi-objective particle swarm optimization with random weight variations. The results from a case study on four dual-source trolleybus routes in Beijing demonstrate that the model reduces the fleet size by 7.78% and number of berths at common stations by 11.11%. Consequently, this model can effectively reduce the long-term operational costs of bus companies and minimize the impacts of route operations on the road network.

Acacia crassicarpa (Fabaceae), a nitrogen-fixing tree species, is critically important for coastal protection in southeast China. In this study, we report the complete chloroplast genome sequence of A. crassicarpa, with a length of 176,493 bp. It contains a pair of inverted repeats (IR 39,851 bp), a large single-copy region (LSC 91,869 bp), and a small single-copy region (SSC 4,922 bp). The complete genome comprises 138 genes, including 93 protein-coding genes, 37 tRNA, and 8 rRNA genes. Our phylogenetic analysis reveals that A. crassicarpa is closely related to A. podalyriifolia and A. dealbata.

Background : Betula fujianensis ( B. fujianensis ), a new Betulaceae species reported in 2008, is endemic and endangered in the Fujian province of China. However, little is known about it, and no special protection measures have been taken. So it is urgent to take some activities for its well conservation. Results : In this study, we systematically described its morphological characteristics, developed a cultivation method, and were the first to report its whole chloroplast genome sequence. We conducted a comparative analysis using its synonymous species ( B. luminifera) and identified its distinct characteristic , especially in bark and leaves. It has serrated leaves covered with glandular punctation and short and rare pubescences, and its bark gradually changes with age from smooth to exfoliate. We also observed that its chlorophyll content substantially changes with age. Furthermore, we also sequenced B. luminifera ’s chloroplast genome sequence, compared it with that of B. fujianensis, and found that gene rpl16 is absent in B. fujianensis . Phylogenetic analysis also showed that B. fujianensis is relatively close to B. luminifera . Conclusions : These observations and chloroplast genome sequence results provide more information about B. fujianensis . The comparative analysis with B. luminifera will provide some clues to different environmental adaptation. The cultivation method make further scientific researches possible, contribute to its good conservation and promote its utilization in afforestation and industrial application in the future.

Casuarina equisetifolia (C. equisetifolia), a conifer-like angiosperm with resistance to typhoon and stress tolerance, is mainly cultivated in the coastal areas of Australasia. C. equisetifolia, making it a valuable model to study secondary growth associated genes and stress-tolerance traits. However, the genome sequence is unavailable and therefore wood-associated growth rate and stress resistance at the molecular level is largely unexplored. We therefore constructed a high-quality draft genome sequence of C. equisetifolia by a combination of Illumina second-generation sequencing reads and Pacific Biosciences single-molecule real-time (SMRT) long reads to advance the investigation of this species. Here, we report the genome assembly, which contains approximately 300 megabases (Mb) and scaffold size of N50 is 1.06 Mb. Additionally, gene annotation, assisted by a combination of prediction and RNA-seq data, generated 29 827 annotated protein-coding genes and 1983 non-coding genes, respectively. Furthermore, we found that the total number of repetitive sequences account for one-third of the genome assembly. Here we also construct the genome-wide map of DNA modification, such as two novel forms N6 -adenine (6mA) and N4-methylcytosine (4mC) at the level of single-nucleotide resolution using single-molecule real-time (SMRT) sequencing. Interestingly, we found that 17% of 6mA modification genes and 15% of 4mC modification genes also included alternative splicing events. Finally, we investigated cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin-related genes, which were associated with secondary growth and contained different DNA modifications. The high-quality genome sequence and annotation of C. equisetifolia in this study provide a valuable resource to strengthen our understanding of the diverse traits of trees.

To determine the normal range of the inner diameters of the anatomical structures in the fetal cardiovascular system during the second trimester in Ningxia and to investigate their variation with gestational age. Routine echocardiography was performed for 1247 normal fetuses during the second trimester (22-28 weeks) to determine the inner diameters of the atrium, ventricle, foramen ovale, aorta, pulmonary artery, left/right pulmonary artery, aortic isthmus, descending aorta, and ductus arteriosus. Measurement data were grouped by gestational age, and the correlation between the measurement data and gestational age was investigated. The inner diameters of the fetal atria, ventricles, and great vessels increased with gestational age and were significantly associated with gestational age (P < 0.05). In Ningxia, determining the normal range of fetal cardiovascular diameters during the second trimester allows the evaluation of fetal cardiovascular system development and provides an important basis for the accurate identification of fetal congenital heart disease.

Based on the transfer network composed of urban rail line and bus routes, this paper studies an optimal design problem of feeder-bus network related to urban rail line under M-to-M passenger demand pattern between bus stops and railway stations, to minimize passenger travel cost and transit operating cost. More comprehensively considered passenger travel cost include bus waiting cost and accurate bus riding cost, transfer cost between buses and trains, rail riding cost. We present a new genetic algorithm which determines optimal feeder-bus operating frequency under strictly constraints condition. The numerical examples under passenger demand patterns of M-to-M are provided. It shows that the algorithm can provide reasonable results with satisfactory efficiency and passenger demand distributions have significant influence on feeder bus network construction.

This paper studied the classic feeder-bus network design problem (FBNDP), which can be described as follows: for the passenger travel demand between rail stations and bus stops on a given urban transit network, it designs the optimal feeder bus routes and frequencies so as to minimize the passengers' travel expense and the operator's cost. We extended the demand pattern of M-to-1 in most existing researches to M-to-M. We comprehensively considered the passenger travel cost, which includes the waiting and riding cost on the bus, riding cost on rail, and transfer cost between these two transportation modes, and presented a new genetic algorithm that determines the optimal feeder-bus operating frequencies under strict constraint conditions. The numerical examples under different demand patterns have been experienced and analysed, which showed the robustness and efficiency of the presented algorithm. We also found that the distribution pattern of the travel demand has a significant influence on the feeder-bus network construction.

The train plan of urban rail transit under multi-routing mode can be divided into three parts: train formation, train operation periods and corresponding train counts of each routing in each period. Based on the analysis of passenger's general travel expenses and operator's benefits, the constraints and objective functions are defined and the multi-objective optimization model for the train plan of urban rail transit is presented. Factors considered in the multi-objective optimization model include transport capacity, the requirements of traffic organization, corporation benefits, passenger demands, and passenger choice behavior under multi-train-routing mode. According to the characteristics of this model and practical planning experience, a three-phase solution was designed to gradually optimize the train formation, train counts as well as operation periods. The instance of Changsha Metro Line 2 validates the feasibility and efficiency of this approach.

Train plan of urban railway transportation normally consists of the train formation length, train operational period and its train frequency. Because correlative influence factors are numerous and data size needs to handle is very large, the optimization software design is a most urgent problem. In this paper, on the basis of analyzing the train plan optimization method, the system demand, system framework and data design, function demand and module design are discussed.

Train formation was brought into the train plan of urban rail transit, then the train formation length, train operational period, and its train count can be optimized together. On the basis of analyzing the passenger flow general travel cost and considering the transport capacity, the requirements of traffic organization, corporation benefits, and passenger traffic demand reasonably, the constraint conditions and objective functions were given. The multi-objective optimization model for train plan of urban rail transit was presented. According to the characteristics of the model and practical experience about train plan, the three-phase solution method was designed. The instance of Changsha metro line 2 shows that the method can solve a good result with high efficiency.