20 research outputs found
Reshaping the New Capital: Influence of The City Plan of Nanking on the Practice of Urban Planning in Modern China in 1930s
No full textThe City Plan of Nanking announced by the National Government of the Republic of China in 1929 was an epochal urban planning practice, whether in terms of planning content, structure or expression. It demonstrated a new goal-oriented, design-driven planning thought. The plan played an important role in the exploration of modern urban planning practice in China. The City Plan of Nanking as a construction standard was learnt and imitated by municipal governments all over the country, which greatly changed the direction of the preparation and development of urban planning in China. The provisions of relevant systems and laws in the planning content laid the foundation of the urban planning system and regime. The compilation and implementation of the capital plan in 1929 was the beginning of the road towards "scientific rationality" in modern Chinese urban planning practice. The concept of urban spatial planning, which combines nationalism, scientific rationality and the integration of China and the West, constructed in the plan, was the best expression of the spatial concept and planning technology of the times
An Interview with Deanna Fei, Author of A Thread of Sky
No full textDeanna Fei is author of A Thread of Sky (Penguin Press, 2010), a novel about three generations of women in a Chinese American family. Here, she talks with recent UC Irvine graduate Mengfei Chen.
Mengfei Chen: What were some of your inspirations in writing the book? How did it begin? What experiences informed your writing?
Deanna Fei: A Thread of Sky is the story of a family of Chinese American women who reunite for a tour of their ancestral home. It was inspired by a trip through China’s “must-sees” that I embarked on ten years ago with my mother, my sisters, my aunt and my grandmother — six strong-willed, complicated women herded together for two weeks on a package tour. I was struck by the dramatic possibilities of this set-up, as well as the questions it raised about home and identity, culture and authenticity, travel and migration, history and memory. The tour took place at the end of a year I’d spent studying Chinese at Beijing Normal University. I’d thought I was ready to move on to the next stage of my life: teaching in New York, studying creative writing. But a few years later, I hadn’t stopped thinking about that tour. I started scribbling notes, and the characters began taking on lives of their own, completely apart from their real-life counterparts, and soon I was writing a novel.
I knew that in order to write about my characters’ travels through China with the necessary depth and immediacy, I needed to return. This time, I went back on a Fulbright Grant, intending to stay for another year, researching contemporary Chinese history and soaking up modern life in Shanghai while making periodic trips to the cities on my characters’ itinerary. I became so immersed in my research and writing that my stay eventually stretched to three years, during which my understanding of China continually evolved — and I expect it always will
An Interview with Deanna Fei, Author of A Thread of Sky
No full textDeanna Fei is author of A Thread of Sky (Penguin Press, 2010), a novel about three generations of women in a Chinese American family. Here, she talks with recent UC Irvine graduate Mengfei Chen.
Mengfei Chen: What were some of your inspirations in writing the book? How did it begin? What experiences informed your writing?
Deanna Fei: A Thread of Sky is the story of a family of Chinese American women who reunite for a tour of their ancestral home. It was inspired by a trip through China’s “must-sees” that I embarked on ten years ago with my mother, my sisters, my aunt and my grandmother — six strong-willed, complicated women herded together for two weeks on a package tour. I was struck by the dramatic possibilities of this set-up, as well as the questions it raised about home and identity, culture and authenticity, travel and migration, history and memory. The tour took place at the end of a year I’d spent studying Chinese at Beijing Normal University. I’d thought I was ready to move on to the next stage of my life: teaching in New York, studying creative writing. But a few years later, I hadn’t stopped thinking about that tour. I started scribbling notes, and the characters began taking on lives of their own, completely apart from their real-life counterparts, and soon I was writing a novel.
I knew that in order to write about my characters’ travels through China with the necessary depth and immediacy, I needed to return. This time, I went back on a Fulbright Grant, intending to stay for another year, researching contemporary Chinese history and soaking up modern life in Shanghai while making periodic trips to the cities on my characters’ itinerary. I became so immersed in my research and writing that my stay eventually stretched to three years, during which my understanding of China continually evolved — and I expect it always will
Cell memory in tissue defect repair and regeneration
No full textAim or Purpose: To prove that cells have the ability to learn and memory, thus, “super-cells” can be fabricated for tissue engineering meeting different demands. Materials and Methods: The c2c12 myoblasts are trained by a combination of electrical and thermal stimulation by several cycles. For the experimental group, electrical stimulation is followed by thermal stimulation, while the opposite is true for the control group. After the training, electrical stimulation served as a reminder in later cell cultures. The ability of cells to memory is shown by differences in the nuclear localization of heat shock protein 70(hsp70). The myogenic and neural differentiation markers are detected. Then, the trained cells are made into cell sheets for directional culture, and the composite of multilayer cell sheets is prepared using GelMA hydrogel to repair tissue defects. Tissue regeneration was characterized by HE stains, Masson stains, immunofluorescence and functional detection. All data are presented as the mean ± standard deviation (SD). Significant differences between the groups were analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) and the Student's t test. Results: The cells in the experimental group have higher nuclear localization of hsp70, better myogenic differentiation, and achieve neurotization muscle repair in tissue regeneration. Conclusions: The c2c12 myoblasts have the ability to learn and memory, and the combination of thermal stimulation and electrical stimulation can realize the electrical stimulation to better promote the repair and regeneration of muscle defects
Data-driven optimization solutions for in-situ monitoring, prognostics, and optimization in production systems: addressing randomness from micro to macro levels
No full textEnsuring optimal production performance is crucial for achieving high-quality products, meeting customer demands, and maximizing profitability. However, unpredictable events and inherent randomness can lead to variations in the system, thereby affecting system performance. This randomness exists at each level of the system, from a single machine to a manufacturing system composed of machines and extending to the supply chain, resulting in performance fluctuations. Recently, advanced sensing technologies have provided opportunities to leverage rich sensing data for in-situ monitoring, leading to more accurate prediction and better decision-making. The applicability of data-driven optimization approaches in production systems, however, is limited by the lack of understanding from both engineering and data aspects due to the inherent randomness and complex nature. This dissertation proposes data-driven optimization solutions integrated with domain knowledge for in-situ monitoring, prognostics, and optimization, addressing randomness in production systems at each critical link, from the micro to the macro level of scope.
At the single-machine level, the quality of a part is one of the most concerned metrics. In order to achieve desired quality, it is necessary to develop methods that facilitate in-situ process monitoring and quality prediction. However, the deployment of data-driven approaches necessitates substantial datasets for training, posing challenges in real manufacturing scenarios with limited defect data, insufficient historical data, and frequently changing process settings. To mitigate the issue of imbalanced data, a novel data augmentation approach integrating deep convolutional generative adversarial networks (DCGAN) with physics-informed constraints is proposed. To address the issue of insufficient historical data due to process changes, a process-informed transfer learning method is proposed to leverage the strength of pre-trained deep learning models for quality prediction, allowing them to be reused on similar tasks with minimal additional training. To address the issue of changing process settings, a new quality prediction method based on continual learning is proposed so that the method can adapt to the dynamic nature of the production system without forgetting previous ones. The proposed methods are demonstrated in process monitoring and quality prediction in laser-based manufacturing.
The performance of an individual machine is critical to the throughput of an entire manufacturing system, which is one of the primary metrics at the system level. Therefore, it is essential to investigate the interdependence among machines and understand how they affect the system’s overall performance. Moreover, the randomness in machine status, such as machine breakdown, poses challenges to throughput prediction. To address this challenge, this research proposes a machine learning-based hierarchical model to characterize between-machine relationship, identify machine condition and analyze root cause. The effectiveness of this approach is demonstrated in the context of automotive manufacturing by leveraging rich sensor data from each machine on the production floor.
Manufacturing system is one of the fundamental components in delivering high-quality products to end customers. At the supply chain’s scope, traditional methods have focused on maximizing profit and minimizing the cost. Advances in data collection offer opportunities to access real-time data from different regions. This introduces new concerns about resource accessibility that linked with fairness, inclusion, and equity. These new concerns are further coupled with uncertainty in supply/demand. The presence of uncertainties such as stochastic supply/demand and system disruptions can make it challenge to ensure optimization model parameters. Therefore, it is essential to develop solutions for decision-making that prioritize system resilience. To address this challenge, this research proposes an approach that combines stochastic optimization and simulation. The effectiveness of this approach is demonstrated in the context of a food supply chain, where the approach initially solves for stochastic demand and supply and further explores solutions for system disruption under emergency scenarios.
This research aims to offer a comprehensive investigation to the analysis of complex systems, specifically, addressing randomness at each critical link in production systems. By incorporating advanced sensing technologies and domain knowledge, these solutions enable in-situ production performance monitoring, prognostics, and optimization. This research contributes to enhancing quality prediction, production performance, and supply chain resilience, ultimately ensuring the efficient delivery of high-quality products to customers. The methodology can be generalized to applications in production systems and other systems with sensing capabilities and prediction needs, but grapple with challenges of insufficient data, systems variation, and accessibility concerns.Ph.D.Includes bibliographical reference
Enzymatic Regio- and Enantioselective C–H Oxyfunctionalization of Fatty Acids
No full textDirected
evolution of a P450 hydroxylase (P450BSβ) achieves
an engineered enzyme that is able to catalyze C–H
oxyfunctionalization of fatty acids (FAs) in a highly regio- and enantioselective
fashion (>20:1 Cβ/Cα and > 99% ee in all cases).
The biocatalyst
displays high reactivity (TON up to 1540), takes inexpensive H2O2 as oxidant, and converts C11–C18 saturated
FAs as well as naturally derived unsaturated oleic and linoleic acids
to optically pure β-hydroxy FAs. Merging biocatalysis with chemical
transformation, we further offer a chemoenzymatic strategy to access
valuable FA derivatives bearing 1,3-diol, β-amino, β-lactone,
and β-lactam functionalities in either enantiomeric form. Molecular
docking studies provide a rationale for the regio- and enantioselectivity
of this reaction
Size-Control Synthesis and Luminescence Properties of Eu(III) Coordination Particles
No full textThe particle-size-controlled synthesis and photophysical properties of Eu(III) coordination polymers [Eu(hfa)(3)(m-dpb)](n) (hfa: hexafluoroacetylacetonato, m-dpb: 1,3-bis(diphenylphosphoryl)benzene) were reported. The Eu(III) coordination polymers were prepared by complexation of [Eu(hfa)(3)(H2O)(2)] and the linker m-dpb ligand in an aqueous micelle solution using cationic CTAB (cetyltrimethylammonium bromide) and anionic SDS (sodium dodecyl sulfate) surfactants. The size of Eu(III) coordination polymers was gradually decreased by increasing CTAB concentrations. The crystal structure formed in a micelle system was different from bulk coordination polymers. The Eu(III) coordination particles showed a smaller nonradiative rate constant than bulk coordination polymers. In this study, size control and luminescence properties of the Eu(III) coordination particles have been demonstrated
Chiral Tetrakis Eu(III) Complexes with Ammonium Cations for Improved Circularly Polarized Luminescence
No full textLarge dissymmetry factor of the circularly polarized luminescence (gCPL) was observed in ligand and coordination tuned chiral tetrakis europium (Eu(III)) complexes with ammonium cations. The gCPL value was estimated to be -1.54, which is the largest among chiral luminescent molecules. Through photophysical measurements, single crystal X-ray structural analyses and quantum chemical calculations, changes in the geometric and electronic structures were observed for a series of chiral tetrakis Eu(III) complexes which enhanced the gCPL value. The emission quantum yield and photosensitized energy transfer efficiencies of chiral Eu(III) complexes with ammonium cations were also larger than those of chiral Eu(III) complex with Cs+. Based on the systematic modifications and analyses for chiral tetrakis Eu(III) complex, effect of the ammonium cation on enhanced CPL brightness is reported. Chiral tetrakis Eu(III) complexes with ammonium cations exhibited large dissymmetry factor of the circularly polarized luminescence (gCPL=-1.54), which is the largest among chiral luminescent molecules. Based on the systematic modifications and analyses for chiral tetrakis Eu(III) complex, effect of the ammonium cation on enhanced CPL brightness is reported
The Willingness to Change Risky Health Behaviors among Chinese Rural Residents: What We Learned from a Population-Based Esophageal Cancer Cohort Study.
No full textBackgroundThe effectiveness of health interventions can be impaired by low socio-economic status and poor living conditions of the target population. However, the specifics of this problem in rural China are still unclear, and appropriate strategies should be explored.MethodsIn 2013, we conducted a questionnaire-based investigation among 410 participants from a population-based esophageal cancer cohort study in rural Anyang, China. Information regarding their demographic characteristics, levels of exposure to four health-risk behaviors, including smoking, alcohol consumption, risky dietary behaviors and poor hygiene, as well as willingness to change these behaviors, and data on potential predictors of willingness to change behaviors were collected.ResultsIn this study, 33.3% (23/69), 25.0% (13/52), 60.7% (68/112) and 62.2% (237/381) of respondents reported that they were willing to change smoking, alcohol consumption, risky dietary behaviors and poor hygiene, respectively. Older people had higher exposure levels and less willingness to change these four health-risk behaviors. The levels of these four health-risk behaviors were negatively associated with willingness to change, while faith in people and behavioral change in surrounding people increased willingness to change risky behaviors.ConclusionsIn behavior-intervention-based health-promotion programs in rural China, the elderly and highly exposed populations should be the most difficult part and community- or household-based intervention would be more efficient
Improved detection of human papillomavirus harbored in healthy skin with FAP6085/64 primers
No full textFAP59/64, FAP6085/6319, and CUT primer sets were designed for detecting cutaneous HPV and have been used in many clinical and epidemiology studies. The FAP6085/64 primer set was first evaluated in this study and the FAP6085/64 combination was found to be much more sensitive than all three original primer sets by using HPV plasmids as a template. To confirm further the effectiveness of the FAP6085/64 primer set in human DNA templates, 90 palmar exfoliated cell DNA samples were used to detect the cutaneous HPV by both the FAP59/64 and FAP6085/64 primer sets. The overall proportion of HPV detection in those skin samples was 77.8% (70/90) using FAP6085/64, as compared to 55.6% (50/90) using FAP59/64. The FAP6085/64 primer set was also applied in a population based study. The proportion of HPV detection was 73.96% (2076/2807) in skin samples collected from healthy individuals, and a total of 336 different PV types were found. Sixty (17.9%) of them were fully characterized HPV types, 127 (37.8%) were putative HPV types which had been described previously, 149 (44.3%) were novel putative HPV types, and two animal PVs were also detected. These results suggest that the FAP6085/64 primer set was sensitive and effective for detection of cutaneous HPV in healthy skin samples. (C) 2013 Published by Elsevier B.V.http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=PARTNER_APP&SrcAuth=LinksAMR&KeyUT=WOS:000325190400062&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=ALL_WOS&UsrCustomerID=8e1609b174ce4e31116a60747a720701Biochemical Research MethodsBiotechnology & Applied MicrobiologyVirologySCI(E)PubMed7ARTICLE2633-63819
