One of the goals of China’s supply-side structural reform is to improve total factor productivity (TFP). Considering the problems of environmental deterioration and income disparity faced by China, this paper first incorporates environmental pollution and income disparity as undesirable outputs into the TFP analysis framework, and extends the concept of inclusive green TFP (henceforth IGTFP).We measure and analyze the IGTFP in China’s provinces from 1995 to 2017 using the Malmquist–Luenberger index, and then examine, for the first time, the impacts of economic structural optimization in the supply-side structural reform on the IGTFP. The results are shown as follows. First, China’s national IGTFP index is significantly smaller than the traditional TFP index. That is, the traditional TFP without the constraints of environmental pollution and income disparity overestimates China’s real TFP. Second, there are significant regional differences in China’s IGTFP, the average annual growth rate of IGTFP shows a gradual downward trend from east to west. This would further exacerbate the regional imbalance in China’s economic development. Third, among the structural factors in economic structure optimization, industrial structure and energy structure are negatively correlated with the IGTFP, while factor structure, labor structure and urban–rural structure are all positively correlated with the IGTFP. These results imply that the economic structure optimization driven by supply-side structural reform will improve China’s IGTFP.
Based on data from 121 countries, the study assesses the dynamic effect and causality path of the government epidemic prevention policies and human mobility behaviors on the growth rates of COVID-19 new cases and deaths. Our results find that both policies and behaviors influenced COVID-19 cases and deaths. The direct effect of policies on COVID-19 was more than the indirect effect. Policies influence behaviors, and behaviors react spontaneously to information. Further, masks give people a false sense of security and increase mobility. The close public transport policy increased COVID-19 new cases. We also conducted sensitivity analysis and found that some policies hold robustly, such as the policies of school closing, restrictions on gatherings, stay-at-home requirements, international travel controls, facial coverings, and vaccination. The counterfactual tests suggest that, as of early March 2021, if governments had mandated masking policies early in the epidemic, the cases and deaths would have been reduced by 18% and 14% separately. If governments had implemented vaccination policies early in the pandemic, the cases and deaths would have been reduced by 93% and 62%, respectively. Without public transportation closures, cases and deaths would have been reduced by 40% and 10%, respectively.
The venom of the Egyptian wasp Philanthus triangulum is philanthotoxin-433 (PhTX-433) is a polyamine amide with butyryl / tyrosyl / spermine moieties. It is a noncompetitive inhibitor of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR) and various glutamate receptors (GluR). Over 100 analogs have been synthesized for structure / activity relations (SAR) and various other purposes. Preliminary photo-crosslinking results, coupled with SAR, have led to a putative model representing the binding of philanthotoxins in channels gated by nAChR. Exciton coupled circular dichroic studies with amphiphilic analogs designed to elucidate their mode of entry into the receptor show that the philanthotoxins are capable of forming micelles in aqueous solutions. It has also been found that PhTX can apparently form sodium transporting transmembrane channels when added to phosphatidylcholine vesicles. The sodium transporting capability of the PhTX vesicles are comparable to those of other efficient channel forming compounds such as gramicidin and amphotericin B; furthermore, the PhTX molecules in the vesicle can undergo intervesicular transfer. These findings suggest a possible mode of action of the PhTXs. Namely, PhTX may first enter the lipid bilayer and then enter the nAChR from the cytoplasmic side rather than the extracellular side. Preliminary results on solid state 19F-NMR of fluorinated PhTXs and nAChR complexes are also mentioned briefly.
The setting of a CO2 emission peak target (CEPT) will have a profound impact on Chinese industry. An objective assessment of this impact is of great significance, both for understanding/applying the forcing mechanism of CEPT, and for promoting the optimization of China’s industrial structure and the low-carbon transformation of Chinese industry at a lower cost. Based on analysis of the internal logic and operation of the forcing mechanism of CEPT, we employed the STIRPAT model. This enabled us to predict the peak path of China’s CO2 emissions, select the path values that would achieve the CEPT with the year 2030 as the constraint condition, construct a multi-objective and multi-constraint input/output optimization model, employ the genetic algorithm to solve the model, and explore the industrial structure optimization and low-carbon transformation of Chinese industry. The results showed that the setting of CEPT will have a significant suppression effect on high-carbon emission industries and a strong boosting effect on low-carbon emission industries. The intensity of the effect is positively correlated with the target intensity of the CO2 emissions peak. Under the effect of the forcing mechanism of CEPT, Chinese industry can realize a low-carbon transition and the industrial structure can realize optimization. The CEPT is in line with sustainable development goals, but the setting of CEPT may risk causing excessive shrinkage of basic industries—which should be prevented.
Philanthotoxins are noncompetitive inhibitors of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor and the various glutamate receptors. Analogues carrying photoaffinity labels, fluorine atoms for solid-state NMR studies of ligand/receptor interaction, and large head groups such as porphyrins and planar bulky aromatic rings (BIG analogues) for clarifying mode of entry and orientation of analogues in receptors have been synthesized, assayed against the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor, and brief comments are given for the assay results.
The synthesis of two classes of Philanthotoxin-343 analogs is deseribed. Quantitative information on the antagonism of quisqualate-sensitive ionotropic glutamate receptors of insect muscle by these compounds is presented.
The challenge of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) management has become a critical barrier to the harmonious development of society. China has implemented MSW classification as a pivotal strategy for fostering ecological civilization. Despite extensive research on waste management, there is a lack of comprehensive evaluations that integrate both socio-economic and environmental impacts of MSW, particularly in the context of urban ecological systems. In response, this paper developed an integrated system dynamics (SD) model to evaluate the impacts of MSW classification on urban ecology and economy in Beijing, China. This model comprises three subsystems: waste generation, socio-economic benefit, and environment-resource benefit subsystem. It incorporates feedback loops, sensitivity tests, and extreme scenario testing, all of which have validated the robustness and consistency of the model. Scenario analysis was conducted to examine benefits and loss of MSW classification under different conditions. Using the MSW classification in Beijing from 2010 to 2019 as a case, the model assesses the socio-economic, environmental, and resource effects of waste classification. The assessment of results indicate a correlation between increasing separation rates of MSW and socio-economic gains. Specifically, as the separation rate rises, the socio-economic benefits shift from negative to positive. At optimal MSW separation rates, these benefits could represent up to 0.78% of Beijing's GDP. Environmentally, the model suggests that greenhouse gas emission reductions (in CO2 equivalent) over the 2010–2019 period could have varied from 2.4–3.62 million tons annually. Additionally, our findings reveal that for every 1% increase in MSW separation rate, the yearly potential land savings might range from 1,069.92 m² to 1,276.98 m². These insights from the SD model underscore the importance of waste classification. They serve as a valuable resource for policymakers, and motivate resident participation in waste classification, highlighting the significant role of waste classification in sustainable development.
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