Mechanophysical Cues in Extracellular Matrix Regulation of Cell Behavior

The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a macromolecular network that can provide biochemical and structural support for cell adhesion and formation. It regulates cell behavior by influencing biochemical and physical cues. It is a dynamic structure whose components are modified, degraded, or deposited during connective tissue development, giving tissues strength and structural integrity. The physical properties of the natural ECM environment control the design of naturally or synthetically derived biomaterials to guide cell function in tissue engineering. Tissue engineering is an important field that explores physical cues of the ECM to produce new viable tissue for medical applications, such as in organ transplant and organ recovery. Understanding how the ECM exerts physical effects on cell behavior, when cells are seeded in synthetic ECM scaffolds, is of utmost importance. Herein we review recent findings in this area that report on cell behaviors in a variety of ECMs with different physical properties, i.e., topology, geometry, dimensionality, stiffness, and tension.     

Effects of SiC content on the densification,microstructure, and mechanical properties of HfB2–SiC composites

To investigate the effects of SiC on microstructure, hardness, and fracture toughness, 0, 10, 20, and 30 vol% SiC were added to HfB₂ and sintered by SPS. Upon adding SiC to 30 vol%, relative density increased about 4%; but HfB₂ grain growth had a minimum at 20 vol% SiC. This may be due to grain boundary silicate glass, responsible for surface oxide wash out, enriched in SiO₂ with higher fraction of SiC. By SiO₂ enrichment, the glass viscosity increased and higher HfO₂ remained unsolved which subsequently lead to higher grain growth. Hardness has increased from about 13 to 15 GPa by SiC introduction with no sensible variation with SiC increase. Residual stress measurements by Rietveld method indicated high levels of tensile residual stresses in the HfB₂ Matrix. Despite the peak residual stress value at 20 vol% SiC, fracture toughness of this sample was the highest (6.43 MPa m^0.5) which implied that fracture toughness is mainly a grain size function. Tracking crack trajectory showed a mainly trans-granular fracture, but grain boundaries imposed a partial deflection on the crack pathway. SiC had a higher percentage in fracture surface images than the cross-section which implied a weak crack deflection.     

叠合盆地凸起区多期复杂断裂特征及形成机制——以准噶尔盆地车排子凸起为例

以高精度三维地震资料为基础,结合构造演化恢复和区域构造背景,系统研究了准噶尔盆地车排子凸起断裂分布和形成机制。结果表明,车排子凸起发育深部和浅部2套断裂体系,深部断裂体系和浅部断裂体系分别发育3种断裂样式。车排子凸起共经历5个构造演化阶段,其中,晚二叠世挤压-逆冲控制了深部断裂体系的初始形成,晚侏罗世逆冲-走滑控制了深部断裂体系的最终定型,新近纪叠加掀斜、局部伸展控制了浅部断裂体系的形成。不同断裂体系在油气成藏过程中均起到了重要作用。其中:深部断裂体系的红车断裂是重要的油源断裂,低序级断层控制形成了石炭系火山岩优质储集体;浅部断裂体系使得油气向浅部层系运移调整,同时形成了断块圈闭、断鼻圈闭和断层-岩性圈闭等丰富的圈闭类型。     

Effects of structural characteristics on microwave dielectric properties of low-loss (Zn1-xNix)ZrNbTaO8 ceramics

Low-loss (Zn_1-xNi_x)ZrNbTaO₈ (0.02?≤?x?≤?0.10) ceramics possessing single wolframite structure are initiatively synthesized by solid-state route. Based on the results of Rietveld refinement, complex chemical bond theory is used to establish the correlation between structural characteristics and microwave performance in this ceramic system. A small amount of Ni²⁺ (x?=?0.06) in A-site with the fixed substitution of Ta⁵⁺ in B-site can effectually raise the Q?×?f value of ZnZrNb₂O₈ ceramic, embodying a dense microstructure and high lattice energy. The dielectric constant and τ_f are mainly affected by bond ionicity and the average octahedral distortion. The (Zn_0.94Ni_0.06)ZrNbTaO₈ ceramic sample sintered at 1150?°C for 3?h exhibits an outstanding combination of microwave dielectric properties: ε_r =?27.88, Q?×?f?=?128,951?GHz, τ_f =?–39.9?ppm/°C. Thus, it is considered to be a candidate material for the communication device applications at high frequency.     

Design structure matrix (DSM) method application to issue of modeling and analyzing the fault tree of a wind energy asset

The perpetual energy production of a wind farm could be accomplished (under proper weather conditions) if no failures occurred. But even the best possible design, manufacturing, and maintenance of a system cannot eliminate the failure possibility. In order to understand and minimize the system failures, the most crucial components of the wind turbines, which are prone to failures, should be identified. Moreover, it is essential to determine and classify the criticality of the system failures according to the impact of these failure events on wind turbine safety. The present study is processing the failure data from a wind farm and uses the Fault Tree Analysis as a baseline for applying the Design Structure Matrix technique to reveal the failure and risk interactions between wind turbine subsystems. Based on the analysis performed and by introducing new importance measures, the “readiness to fail” of a subsystem in conjunction with the “failure riskiness” can determine the “failure criticality.” The value of the failure criticality can define the frame within which interventions could be done. The arising interventions could be applied either to the whole system or could be focused in specified pairs of wind turbine subsystems. In conclusion, the method analyzed in the present research can be effectively applied by the wind turbine manufacturers and the wind farm operators as an operation framework, which can lead to a limited (as possible) design‐out maintenance cost, failures' minimization, and safety maximization for the whole wind turbine system.     

全媒体时代综艺晚会的发展策略探析

全媒体技术的发展推动我们进入全媒体时代,在全媒体时代下,综艺晚会要以引领大众的审美潮流以及与观众保持较强的互动作为发展方向。总结了全媒体时代下综艺晚会的有效发展策略,包括精心策划、利用高科技等。     

The organization of biological sequences into constrained and unconstrained parts determines fundamental properties of genotype–phenotype maps

Biological information is stored in DNA, RNA and protein sequences, which can be understood as genotypes that are translated into phenotypes. The properties of genotype–phenotype (GP) maps have been studied in great detail for RNA secondary structure. These include a highly biased distribution of genotypes per phenotype, negative correlation of genotypic robustness and evolvability, positive correlation of phenotypic robustness and evolvability, shape-space covering, and a roughly logarithmic scaling of phenotypic robustness with phenotypic frequency. More recently similar properties have been discovered in other GP maps, suggesting that they may be fundamental to biological GP maps, in general, rather than specific to the RNA secondary structure map. Here we propose that the above properties arise from the fundamental organization of biological information into ‘constrained'' and ‘unconstrained'' sequences, in the broadest possible sense. As ‘constrained'' we describe sequences that affect the phenotype more immediately, and are therefore more sensitive to mutations, such as, e.g. protein-coding DNA or the stems in RNA secondary structure. ‘Unconstrained'' sequences, on the other hand, can mutate more freely without affecting the phenotype, such as, e.g. intronic or intergenic DNA or the loops in RNA secondary structure. To test our hypothesis we consider a highly simplified GP map that has genotypes with ‘coding'' and ‘non-coding'' parts. We term this the Fibonacci GP map, as it is equivalent to the Fibonacci code in information theory. Despite its simplicity the Fibonacci GP map exhibits all the above properties of much more complex and biologically realistic GP maps. These properties are therefore likely to be fundamental to many biological GP maps.     

Emerging strategy recognition in agile portfolios

Agile practices become increasingly popular for projects and project portfolios offering firms a higher flexibility to adapt to dynamic environments. This study investigates the antecedents and consequences of agile practices' relevance for strategy formulation in project portfolio management processes. Building on complex adaptive systems theory, we hypothesize a positive relationship between agile capabilities and emerging strategy initiatives and eventually portfolio success. Agile capabilities refer to both the project portfolio organization's intensity of and competence in applying agile practices. Using a sample of 135 portfolios and multiple informants for each portfolio, the results support entrepreneurial orientation and voice behavior as antecedents for agile capabilities. Furthermore, the findings support an agile portfolio's positive relationship with emergence recognition and overall portfolio success. The findings contribute to the literature by identifying two significant antecedents of agile capabilities as well as empirically demonstrating the positive relationship between agile portfolios and emerging strategy recognition. For practitioners, the study encourages the application of agile practices by stressing the general positive influence of agile capabilities and underlines entrepreneurial orientation and voice behavior as important methods of empowerment for agile portfolio processes.     

A multi-start central force optimization for global optimization

Central force optimization (CFO) is an efficient and powerful population-based intelligence algorithm for optimization problems. CFO is deterministic in nature, unlike the most widely used metaheuristics. CFO, however, is not completely free from the problems of premature convergence. One way to overcome local optimality is to utilize the multi-start strategy. By combining the respective advantages of CFO and the multi-start strategy, a multi-start central force optimization (MCFO) algorithm is proposed in this paper. The performance of the MCFO approach is evaluated on a comprehensive set of benchmark functions. The experimental results demonstrate that MCFO not only saves the computational cost, but also performs better than some state-of-the-art CFO algorithms. MCFO is also compared with representative evolutionary algorithms. The results show that MCFO is highly competitive, achieving promising performance.     

如何实施社会转型期的民办高校品牌战略

在社会转型期，面对日益激烈的市场竞争环境，如何制定民办高效发战战略，引导民办高效的可持续发展，是关系到民办高校兴衰的关键。本文主要从民办高校品牌战略入手，对社会转型及高等教育转型进行论述，并对如何加强民办高校品牌建设进行探讨。