台湾的“化妆间”与“垃圾不落地”

正趁着春节假期,我到台北和高雄看望久别的姐妹们。虽是第一次来到宝岛,不过吃住都是在姐妹家中,这趟旅行倒像是回家一样,没什么违和感与陌生感,然而小新鲜却总是不断。刚下飞机时,看到几乎人人戴口罩,这吓了我一跳,其实那里空气真不错,没遇到过雾霾天。这是怎么回事呢?     

世界杯里的“中国制造”

正尽管中国足球无缘本届俄罗斯世界杯,但"中国制造"和"中国品牌"已令人侧目、笑傲全球。中国企业为本届世界杯的赛事经济贡献巨大,这对谋求重塑声誉的国际足联(FIFA)来说,无异于雪中送炭;对中国企业而言,期望通过世界杯的聚集效应放大自身的品牌价值,借势在商业征途上纵横四海,并将"足球梦""复兴梦"与"中国梦""实业梦"的雄心壮志结合得更为实际。2010年,"瓦瓦祖拉"的塑料喇叭响彻南非,"普天同庆"的官方用球和国旗、假发、墨镜、望远     

Antioxidant potential of extracts from peels and stems of yellow-fleshed and white cassava varieties

This study focused on the exploration of the potentials of extracting antioxidants from peels and stems of yellow-fleshed and white cassava varieties. The effect of particle size (0.2 and 0.5 mm) and variety on the phenolic content and antioxidant activity was assessed. The peels of the yellow-fleshed cassava variety with a particle size of 0.2 mm showed the highest phenolic content with 681.5 GAE mg 100 g⁻¹ and antioxidant activity of 19% and 425 μM TE g⁻¹ dry matter using DPPH and FRAP assays respectively. The stems of the white cassava with a particle size of 0.2 mm exhibited high phenolic content (442.4 GAE mg 100 g⁻¹) and antioxidant activity of 12.8% and 234 μM TE g⁻¹, better than the stem of the yellow-fleshed cassava. These results indicate that phenolic and antioxidant extractions were influenced by variety, the plant parts and particle size for the antioxidant assays.     

Reversible,repeatable and low phase transition behaviour of spin coated nanostructured vanadium oxide thin films with superior mechanical properties

Smooth, uniform and crystalline vanadium oxide thin films were deposited on quartz by spin coating technique with four different rpm i.e., 1000, 2000, 3000 and 4000 and subsequently post annealed at 350, 450 and 550?°C in vacuum. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques were utilized for microstructural characterizations and phase analysis, respectively, for vanadium oxide powder and deposited film. Nanorods were observed to be grown after vacuum annealing. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) technique was utilized to study the elemental oxidation state of deposited vanadium oxide films. Thermo-optical and electrical properties such as solar transmittance (τ_s), reflectance (ρ_s), absorptance (α_s), infrared (IR) emittance (ε_ir) and sheet resistance (R_s) of different thin films were evaluated. Based on the optical characteristics the optimized condition of the film processing was identified to be spin coated at 3000?rpm. Subsequently, the nanoindentation technique was utilized to measure hardness and Young's modulus of the optimized film. The measured nanomechanical properties were found to be superior to those reported for sputtered vanadium oxide films. Finally, temperature dependent phase transition characteristics of optimized vanadium oxide films were studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) technique. Reversible and repeatable phase transition was found to occur in the range of 44–48?°C which was significantly lower than the phase transition temperature (i.e., 68?°C) of bulk VO₂.     

Calcium phosphate substrates with emulsion-derived roughness: Processing,characterisation and interaction with human mesenchymal stem cells

Calcium phosphates (CaP) have been the subject of several studies that often lack a systematic approach to understanding how their properties affect biological response. CaP particles functionalised with a pH-responsive polymer (BCS) were used to prepare microporous substrates (porosity between 70 and 75% and pore sizes of 5–20 μm) through the aggregation of oil-in-water emulsions by controlling solid loading, emulsification energy, pH, drying and sintering conditions. The combined effect of surface roughness (roughness amplitude, R_a between 0.9–1.7 μm) and chemistry (varying Hydroxyapatite/β-Tricalcium phosphate ratio) on human mesenchymal stem cells was evaluated. HA substrates stimulated higher cell adhesion and proliferation (especially with lower R_a), but cell area increased with β-TCP content. The effect of surface roughness depended of chemistry: HA promoted higher mineralising activity when R_a ～ 1.5 μm, whereas β-TCP substrates stimulated a more osteogenic profile when R_a ～ 1.7 μm. A novel templating method to fabricate microporous CaP substrates was developed, opening possibilities for bone substitutes with controlled features.     

Oxidative Stability of Chia (Salvia hispanica L.) and Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) Oil Blends

Chia and sesame oils are important sources of essential fatty acids; however, their ω-3:ω-6 proportions do not comply with nutritional recommendation. A feasible approach to improve the ratio is to blend different oils, but only after understanding physical and chemical changes of the new matrix. Objective of the investigation was to determine the physico-chemical characteristics and the oxidative stability index (OSI), using the Rancimat method, of chia-sesame oil blends. The four ω-3:ω-6 blends tested (1:4, 1:6, 1:8, and 1:10) were exposed to temperatures of 110, 120, and 130 °C. The OSI values of the mixtures varied between 6.24–8.08, 3.07–4.00, and 1.62–2.01 hours for each temperature, respectively. In addition, their mean activation energy, enthalpy, entropy, and Q₁₀ were 88.4 kJ/mol, 85.2 kJ/mol, −41.1 J/mol K, and 2.0. Finally, a shelf life prediction performed at 25 °C indicated stability times between 80 and 123 days. Therefore, combining chia and sesame oils produced blends with a good balance of essential fatty acids.