Responses of sap flow in to environment under different weather conditions.

This study was conducted in Liupanshan Forest Ecological Positioning Station of the National Forestry and Grassland Administration. We monitored sap flow of plantation in the Xiangshui River sub-basin throughout the 2019 growing season (from May 17 to October 12), as well as the meteorological conditions and soil environment (soil temperature and soil water content), to analyze the comprehensive environmental responses of sap flow in under different weather conditions. The results showed that sap flow rate increased and then decreased on the daily scale, with the highest rate on sunny days, followed by overcast days and then rainy days.

[Effects of canopy density on understory plant diversity in plantations on the Loess Plateau of China].

To solve the problems of understory plant shortage and biodiversity reduction caused by high tree density of plantations on the Loess Plateau in northwest China, we analyzed the data collected by field survey and from literatures. We used the upper boundary line method to examine the impacts of canopy density on understory plant diversity. Based on field survey at the Guanshan Forest Farm of Jingchuan County of Gansu Pro-vince, the species number of understory plants in plantations was higher than that in natural grassland (91 vs.

A PES framework coupling socioeconomic and ecosystem dynamics from a sustainable development perspective.

Payments for ecosystem services (PES) are becoming a global ecological protection strategy used to promote sustainable social and economic development. However, the current PES research and applications are often local and one-sided. The lack of a unified framework for PES results in a high policy cost and low ecological and social benefits.

Nature-based framework for sustainable afforestation in global drylands under changing climate.

Drylands cover more than 40% of Earth's land surface and occur at the margin of forest distributions due to the limited availability of water for tree growth. Recent elevated temperature and low precipitation have driven greater forest declines and pulses of tree mortality on dryland sites compared to humid sites, particularly in temperate Eurasia and North America. Afforestation of dryland areas has been widely implemented and is expected to increase in many drylands globally to enhance carbon sequestration and benefits to the human environment, but the interplay of sometimes conflicting afforestation outcomes has not been formally evaluated yet.

Differentiation of Multiple Mechanical Stimuli by a Flexible Sensor Using a Dual-Interdigital-Electrode Layout for Bodily Kinesthetic Identification.

Human bodily kinesthetic sensing is generally complicated and ever-changing due to the diversity of body deformation as well as the complexity of mechanical stimulus, which is different from the unidirectional mechanical motion. So, there exists a huge challenge for current flexible sensors to accurately differentiate and identify what kind of external mechanical stimulus is exerted via analyzing digital signals. Here, we report a flexible dual-interdigital-electrode sensor (FDES) that consists of two interdigital electrodes and a highly pressure-sensitive porous conductive sponge.

All-Fabric Ultrathin Capacitive Sensor with High Pressure Sensitivity and Broad Detection Range for Electronic Skin.

Flexible pressure sensors have emerged as an indispensable part of wearable devices due to their application in physiological activity monitoring. To realize long-term on-body service, they are increasingly required for properties of conformability, air permeability, and durability. However, the enhancement of sensitivity remains a challenge for ultrathin capacitive sensors, particularly in the low-pressure region.

Water yield variation with elevation, tree age and density of larch plantation in the Liupan Mountains of the Loess Plateau and its forest management implications.

Large scale afforestation mainly for erosion control or timber production and a very strict logging ban policy in recent decades led to many over-dense stands and remarkable water yield reduction in the dryland region of the Loess Plateau in northwest China. To guide the integrated forest-water management at stand level, a study on the response of water yield from larch (Larix principis-rupprechtii) plantations to key stand structure and site factors was carried out in the Liupan Mountains. Models of leaf area index (LAI) of forest canopy and stand evapotranspiration (ET) in the growing season were developed and fitted.

High-sensitivity plasmonic temperature sensor based on gold-coated D-shaped photonic crystal fiber.

A high-sensitivity temperature sensor based on gold-coated D-shaped photonic crystal fiber is proposed in this paper. To enhance the sensing performances, gold as the surface plasmon resonance material is coated on the polishing surface. The thermosensitive liquid consists of ethanol and chloroform, and it is placed on the outer layer of the photonic crystal fiber.

Response of the daily transpiration of a larch plantation to variation in potential evaporation, leaf area index and soil moisture.

Tree transpiration (T) is a major water budget component and varies widely due to the integrated effects of many environmental and vegetation factors. This study aimed to separate, quantify, and then integrate the effects of the main individual factors, to improve water use estimation and manage the hydrological impacts of forests. A field study was conducted at 3 plots of larch (Larix principis-rupprechtii) plantation in the semi-humid area of the Liupan Mountains, northwest China.

Influence of climatic and geographic factors on the spatial distribution of Qinghai spruce forests in the dryland Qilian Mountains of Northwest China.

The effect of climate variables (temperature and precipitation) on forest spatial distribution is more prominent in dryland high mountains, where forest distribution is inherently very sensitive to and strongly limited by the substantial spatial heterogeneity of site conditions. Thus, a more reliable prediction of forest distribution under changing environment depends upon an understanding of the joint influence of climatic and topographic factors and their thresholds. This study was conducted on Qinghai spruce forests as dominant tree species in the Qilian Mountains of northwest China.

Spatial distribution of Qinghai spruce forests and the thresholds of influencing factors in a small catchment, Qilian Mountains, northwest China.

Forest restoration in dryland mountainous areas is extremely difficult due to dry climate, complex topography and accelerating climate change. Thus, exact identification of suitable sites is required. This study at a small watershed of Qilian Mountains, Northwest China, aimed to determine the important factors and their thresholds limiting the spatial distribution of forests of Qinghai spruce (Picea crassifolia), a locally dominant tree species.

Simulation of Runoff Changes Caused by Cropland to Forest Conversion in the Upper Yangtze River Region, SW China.

The "Grain for Green Project" is a country-wide ecological program to converse marginal cropland to forest, which has been implemented in China since 2002. To quantify influence of this significant vegetation change, Guansihe Hydrological (GSH) Model, a validated physically-based distributed hydrological model, was applied to simulate runoff responses to land use change in the Guansihe watershed that is located in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River basin in Southwestern China with an area of only 21.1 km2.

Preemptive scalp infiltration with 0.5% ropivacaine and 1% lidocaine reduces postoperative pain after craniotomy.

Background: In order to reduce the consequences of narcotic-related side effects and provide effective analgesia after craniotomy, we conducted a randomized trial to compare the analgesic efficacy of preemptive scalp infiltrations with 1% lidocaine and 0.5% ropivacaine on the postoperative pain.

Methods: Sixty adult patients scheduled for craniotomy were enrolled.

Heterogeneity of competition at decameter scale: patches of high canopy leaf area in a shade-intolerant larch stand transpire less yet are more sensitive to drought.

Small differences in the sensitivity of stomatal conductance to light intensity on leaf surfaces may lead to large differences in total canopy transpiration (EC) with increasing canopy leaf area (L). Typically, the increase of L would more than compensate for the decrease of transpiration per unit of leaf area (EL), resulting in concurrent increase of EC. However, highly shade-intolerant species, such as Larix principis-rupprechtii Mayr.

[Evapotranspiration characteristics of artificial and natural forests in Liupan Mountains of Ningxia, China during growth season].

In order to understand the effects of the structure of forest ecosystem on the hydrological processes, a comparative study by using thermal dissipation technique and hydrological methodology was made on the evapotranspiration (ET) and its components of Larix principis-rupprechtii plantation and Pinus armandi natural forest in two adjacent stands in a small catchment Xiangshuihe of Liupan Mountains during the growth season (May-October) in 2009. Throughout the growth season, the total ET from the plantation was 518.2 mm, which accounted for 104.

[Relationships between soil moisture and needle-fall in Masson pine forests in acid rain region of Chongqing, Southwest China].

From March 2009 to November 2011, an investigation was conducted on the spatiotemporal variation of soil moisture and its effects on the needle-fall in Masson pine (Pinus massoniana) forests in acid rain region of Chongqing, Southeast China, with the corresponding soil moisture thresholds determined. No matter the annual precipitation was abundant, normal or less than average, the seasonal variation of soil moisture in the forests could be obviously divided into four periods, i.e.

[Canopy interception characteristics of main vegetation types in Liupan Mountains of China].

Based on field observation and modeling analysis, this paper studied the canopy interception, interception capacity, and some parameters for interception modeling of main forest types in Liupan Mountains of China. For the test main forest types, the ratio of their canopy interception to precipitation ranged from 8.59% to 17.

[Growth process of Larix principis-rupprechtii stands with different density on south slope of Liupan Mountains].

By the method of sample trees stem analysis, this paper studied the growth process and diameter structure of 21-year-old Larix principis-rupprechtii plantations with the densities of 1200, 1500, and 2000 stems x hm(-2) in the head-water area on the southern slope of Liupan Mountain in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. The results showed that there were no significant differences in the growth status of L. principis-rupprechtii stands among the three densities when the stand age was less than 10 years.

[Soil macropore characteristics under typical vegetations in Liupan Mountains].

The radius and density of soil macropores under eight typical vegetations in Liupan Mountains of Northwest China were studied by using water breakthrough curves and Poiseuille equation. The results indicated that the radii of soil macropores ranged from 0.4 mm to 2.

[Rainffall interception model of forest canopy: a preliminary study].

Canopy interception is an important hydrological process in forest ecosystem, and its modelling is of significance to understand and estimate the rainfall interception by the canopy. In this paper, a canopy rainfall interception model was established by dividing a rain incident into a set of short period, calculating the rainfall distribution intercepted by the canopy, and educing the process of the rain incident. This model considered the effects of the dryness of canopy and trunk on the evaporation from wet canopy and trunk during one rain incident, and introduced two factors, leaf area index (LAI) and surface area of trunk per unit area of ground (SAI), when computing the evaporation.

[Evapotranspiration of natural Quercus litaotungensis and Tilia paucicostata secondary stands in Liupan Mountains of Ningxia].

With heat dissipation probe technique and combined with microlysimeter and hydrological methods, this paper studied the evapotranspiration of secondary Quercus liaotungensis and Tilia paucicostata stands, and its relationship to forest structure from August to September 2004. The results indicated that the stem sap flux density (SFD) of Quercus liaotungensis and Tilia paucicostata changed regularly from day to night in later growth season. In relatively still period (nighttime), the SFD kept low values continuously, usually below 0.

[Vegetation and its relation with climate conditions near the timberline of Beitai, the Xiaowutai Mts., northern China].

On the basis of field investigations, the timberline range of Beitai, the Xiaowutai Mountains was carved up, and the changes in the makeup and diversity of plants with the altitude were discussed. The results showed that the timberline with gradual changes in the northern slope of Beitai ranged from 2620-2800 m. In timberline, herbaceous plants were rich, and the diversity was higher than that in coniferous forest and sub-alpine meadow zones.