Information Entropy of Liquid Metals.

Correlations reduce the configurational entropies of liquids below their ideal gas limits. By means of first-principles molecular dynamics simulations, we obtain accurate pair correlation functions of liquid metals, then subtract the mutual information content of these correlations from the ideal gas entropies to predict the absolute entropies over a broad range of temperatures. We apply this method to liquid aluminum and copper and demonstrate good agreement with experimental measurements; then, we apply it to predict the entropy of a liquid aluminum-copper alloy. Corrections due to electronic entropy and many-body correlations are discussed.

Supporting data for senary refractory high-entropy alloy Cr x MoNbTaVW.

This data article is related to the research paper entitled "senary refractory high-entropy alloy Cr x MoNbTaVW [1]". In this data article, the pseudo-binary Cr-MoNbTaVW phase diagram is presented to show the impact of Cr content to the senary Cr-MoNbTaVW alloy system; the sub-lattice site fractions are presented to show the disordered property of the Cr-MoNbTaVW BCC structures; the equilibrium and Scheil solidification results with the actual sample elemental compositions are presented to show the thermodynamic information of the melted/solidified Cr x MoNbTaVW samples; and the raw EDS scan data of the arc-melted Cr x MoNbTaVW samples are also provided.

Comparative study between Ephedra sinica Stapf and Fructus Schisandrae Chinensis on ET-1 and 6-keto-prostaglandin F1α in rats with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

The aim of this study was to evaluate differences in the effects of Ephedra sinica Stapf and Fructus Schisandrae Chinensis on angiogenesis in the treatment of bleomycin-induced rat idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. The rat models were created using bleomycin. The animals were divided into six groups: model, control, Ephedra alone, Schisandrae alone, combination of Ephedra and Schisandrae, and hydrocortisone alone. The treatments were administered for 28 days. After 7 and 28 days, the rats were sacrificed for pathological morphology examination, microvascular density determination, and angiogenesis-related cytokine examination. The Ephedra and hydrocortisone groups demonstrated significantly reduced alveolitis and pulmonary fibrosis grades compared with the model group (P < 0.05). The number of blood vessels in the Ephedra group was higher than that in the Schisandrae and combination therapy groups. At 7 days, the expression level of endothelin (ET)-1 in the model group was significantly higher than that in the normal group (P < 0.01). The level of 6-keto-prostaglandin F1α (6-keto-PGF1α) in the treatment group increased, and there were significant differences between the Ephedra group and the combination therapy and normal groups (P < 0.05). Ephedra inhibited the increase in the lung coefficient. The combination therapy prevented pulmonary artery injury and angiogenesis of the arteries by reducing the level of ET-1 and promoting the level of 6-keto-PGF1α in the blood. Ephedra and Schisandrae prevented alveolitis and the development of pulmonary fibrosis.

Phase stability and elastic properties of Cr-V alloys.

V is the only element in the periodic table that forms a complete solid solution with Cr and thus is particularly important in alloying strategy to ductilize Cr. This study combines first-principles density functional theory calculations and experiments to investigate the phase stability and elastic properties of Cr-V binary alloys. The cluster expansion study reveals the formation of various ordered compounds at low temperatures that were not previously known. These compounds become unstable due to the configurational entropy of bcc solid solution as the temperature is increased. The elastic constants of ordered and disordered compounds are calculated at both T = 0 K and finite temperatures. The overall trends in elastic properties are in agreement with measurements using the resonant ultrasound spectroscopy method. The calculations predict that addition of V to Cr decreases both the bulk modulus and the shear modulus, and enhances the Poisson's ratio, in agreement with experiments. Decrease in the bulk modulus is correlated to decrease in the valence electron density and increase in the lattice constant. An enhanced Poisson's ratio for bcc Cr-V alloys (compared to pure Cr) is associated with an increased density of states at the Fermi level. Furthermore, the difference charge density in the bonding region in the (110) slip plane is highest for pure Cr and decreases gradually as V is added. The present calculation also predicts a negative Cauchy pressure for pure Cr, and it becomes positive upon alloying with V. The intrinsic ductilizing effect from V may contribute, at least partially, to the experimentally observed ductilizing phenomenon in the literature.

From student to citizen: a survey of students from the People's Republic of China (PRC) in Australia.

PIP: "This article is a survey of students from the People's Republic of China (PRC) who arrived in Australia after 1986 and were still there in 1992.... The article provides statistics and analysis on the motivation of these students, their education and family backgrounds and their present conditions and aspirations. The article also addresses issues such as Australia's education export and immigration policies, the dilemma between political and economic refugees in terms of human rights and the impact of the 1989 Tiananmem Square massacre on PRC students in Australia at the time." (EXCERPT)^ieng