We examine the effect of attraction and destination agglomerations on tourism revenues and tourist flows. Using data from 184 national scenic areas in China for the 2012 to 2017 period as the case study for our two-level agglomeration model, we find that the attraction agglomeration yields cooperative competition at the micro level of tourist districts. This co-existence of compatible and competitive effects determines not only individual national scenic areas’ tourism revenues and tourist flows but also the attractiveness of tourist districts where these national scenic areas are located. At the macro level of tourism destinations, we find that the destination agglomeration only yields a competitive effect, adversely affecting the tourism revenues and tourist flows of individual national scenic areas inside these tourism destinations. Our results suggest that policymakers must consider cooperative competition when managing existing tourist attractions and planning for future ones.

Volatile organic compound (VOC) sensors have a broad range of applications including healthcare monitoring, product quality control, and air quality management. However, many such applications are demanding, requiring sensors with high sensitivity and selectivity. 2D materials are extensively used in many VOC sensing devices due to their large surface-to-volume ratio and fascinating electronic properties. These properties, along with their exceptional flexibility, low power consumption, room-temperature operation, chemical functionalization potential, and defect engineering capabilities, make 2D materials ideal for highperformance VOC sensing. Here, a 2D MoS₂/Te heterojunction is reported that significantly improves the VOC detection compared to MoS₂ and Te sensors on their own. Density functional theory (DFT) analysis shows that the MoS₂/Te heterojunction significantly enhances the adsorption energy and therefore sensing sensitivity of the sensor. The sensor response, which denotes the percentage change in the sensor’s conductance upon VOC exposure, is further enhanced under photo-illumination and zero-bias conditions to values up to ≈7000% when exposed to butanone. The MoS₂/Te heterojunction is therefore a promising device architecture for portable and wearable sensing applications.

Background

Exercise is an important component of rehabilitation care for people with coronary heart disease (CHD).

Objectives

The aim of this study was to critically analyze and summarize the existing evidence from published systematic reviews (SRs) and meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that have evaluated the effects of different types of exercise interventions on cardiorespiratory fitness, as measured by peak oxygen consumption in people with CHD.

Methods

Electronic databases (Cochrane Library, Medline/PubMed, EMBASE, and PEDro) were searched for SRs of exercise interventions of people with CHD. Two reviewers assessed the quality of SRs using the AMSTAR-2 tool and evaluated the strength of evidence quality with the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) system for relevant outcome measures. Mean difference (MD) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated.

Results

Thirty-one SRs (with 125 RCTs) met the study criteria, including 33,608 patients. Compared with usual care, continuous aerobic exercise produced an improvement in peak oxygen consumption, MD of 3.8 mL kg⁻¹ min⁻¹ (95% CI: 3.204.4, I² = 67%); high-intensity interval training, MD 6.1 mL kg⁻¹ min⁻¹ (95% CI: 0.4–11.8, I² = 97%); resistance training, MD of 2.1 mL kg⁻¹ min⁻¹ (95% CI: 0.98–3.2, I² = 60%); combined aerobic and resistance training, MD of 3.0 mL kg⁻¹ min⁻¹ (95% CI: 2.5–3.4, I² = 0%); and water-based exercise, MD of 4.4 mL kg⁻¹ min⁻¹ (95% CI, 2.1–6.7; I² = 2%).

Conclusion

Exercise interventions improve peak oxygen consumption in people with CHD. However, there was moderate to very-low certainty for the evidence found.

Vertebrate ichnofossil research, when compared with invertebrate ichnological analyses, tends to put greater emphasis on identifying the trace makers rather than associating the trace fossils with animal behaviors to interpret local paleoenvironmental conditions. In 2011, several sandstone blocks bearing unusual deformational structures were collected from the Wapiti Formation exposed near Red Willow Falls, Alberta, Canada. The sandstone blocks were analyzed for their sedimentary characteristics and the morphology of the enigmatic structures in order to identify their origins and their significance for paleoenvironmental interpretation. The deformational features are interpreted to be the swim tracks of small vertebrates attempting to escape a flash flood event. The sedimentology of the sandstone suggests a rapid increase in water flow in an overbank setting, and the orientation of the traces indicate that the trace maker was initially moving against, and then moving perpendicular to, the current. This is likely the first case of a trace fossil exhibiting clear association between vertebrates and flash flood events. As such, these traces provide an excellent example of the utility of vertebrate trace fossils for assessing organism response to changing environmental conditions, thus facilitating interpretation of local geological events.