Chinese Journal of Nature

Target observation and extreme weather forecasts

DUAN Wansuo, QIN Xiaohao, YANG Lichao

2024, 46(6): 395-405. doi:10.3969/j.issn.0253-9608.2024.06.001

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Target observation is a new observational strategy to improve forecast level of extreme weather events. Under the promotion of the Observing System Research and Predictability Experiment proposed by the World Meteorological Organization in 2003, a lot of scientific research and field campaigns for target observation have been worldwidely conducted and effectively upgraded the forecast level of relevant extreme weather events. Chinese scientists started late in target observations; however, they have achieved breakthroughs in the past decade or so. In this article, we introduce the idea of target observation and elucidate the crucial issues for target observations. We also overview the field campaigns conducted for target observations in the world and review both the progresses in research and the efforts in implementing field campaigns for target observation associated with tropical cyclone forecasts in China.

A brief overview of polar chemical weathering

LI Chao, LAI Weibo, CHEN Jinniu, XIAO Wenshen, YANG Shouye

2024, 46(6): 406-414. doi:10.3969/j.issn.0253-9608.2024.06.002

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Continental chemical weathering has long served as a key negative feedback mechanism regulating climate, essential for maintaining Earth's habitability. However, during the Cenozoic cooling, chemical weathering paradoxically increased, challenging this understanding. Resolving the relationship between weathering and temperature is crucial for addressing this discrepancy, which is a key focus on Earth system science. Recent studies indicate that despite low temperatures, high-latitude Polar Regions exhibit moderate levels of weathering, as reflected in the chemical index of alteration (CIA) of river sediments. Thus, polar chemical weathering may offer insights into the complex relationship between weathering and temperature. This review summarizes the key findings on chemical weathering in the polar regions, highlighting differences between the Arctic and Antarctic due to their distinct geographical and geological settings. The Antarctic, dominated by ice cover and lacking major rivers, shows localized sediment transport and deposition, whereas the Arctic, with its extensive river systems, exhibits stronger weathering signals. Compared to tropical weathering zones, research on polar regions, particularly Antarctica, remains limited, and advanced geochemical analyses are scarce. Future studies should prioritize polar chemical weathering to enhance our understanding of low-temperature weathering processes. In the context of global warming and polar amplification, studying how polar weathering contributes to carbon sequestration can deepen our understanding of global climate dynamics.

Mysteries beneath the ice sheet: Path of deep exploration in Greenland

ZHANG Tong, XIAO Cunde

2024, 46(6): 415-420. doi:10.3969/j.issn.0253-9608.2024.06.003

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The base of the Greenland ice sheet holds crucial information on climate change, which is of scientific importance for understanding the future evolution of Earth's climate system. This paper reviews the involvement of the Chinese team in the Greenland deep ice core drilling project, discusses the connections between deep ice cores, ice sheets, and climate change, and explores future research directions in the field of ice sheet and climate instability

The discovery journey of miRNA: An interpretation of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

LIANG Ying, YU Wenqiang

2024, 46(6): 421-428. doi:10.3969/j.issn.0253-9608.2024.06.004

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In 2024, American scientists Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their outstanding contributions in the field of microRNA (miRNA). miRNAs, a class of non-coding RNAs approximately 22 nucleotides in length, regulate gene expression at the post-transcriptional level through specific mechanisms and are involved in various biological processes. The research conducted by these two scientists not only established the central role of miRNAs in gene regulation but also opened up new avenues for medical applications. The current work not only elaborates on the classic negative regulatory mechanisms and physiological functions of miRNAs but also delves into a novel category of miRNAs within the nucleus, termed NamiRNAs. These unique miRNAs exhibit distinct activating effects by specifically targeting enhancer regions. This innovative discovery not only significantly broadens the horizons of miRNA research but also ushers in a new era of exploration into the activation mechanisms of nuclear miRNAs. miRNAs have demonstrated great potential as diagnostic markers and therapeutic targets for cancers, albeit facing challenges. As research progresses, miRNAs hold promise for achieving more breakthroughs in the medical field and offering new strategies for disease treatment.

Computational protein design and structure prediction

BIAN Yuemin

2024, 46(6): 429-434. doi:10.3969/j.issn.0253-9608.2024.06.005

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The 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to three scientists — David Baker, Demis Hassabis, and John M. Jumper — for their groundbreaking contributions to the design and prediction of protein structures. This article highlights their work, offering an overview of the scientific background behind protein design and prediction in computational structural biology, the key historical challenges in the field, and how this breakthrough evolved. It also explores the far-reaching implications of their achievements for the future.

From circuit calculation to artificial intelligence——A computer science perspective on Nobel Prize in Physics awarded to AI scholars

LI Xiaoqiang

2024, 46(6): 435-443. doi:10.3969/j.issn.0253-9608.2024.06.006

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Literally speaking, artificial intelligence and physics are two completely different disciplines. In fact, another name for artificial intelligence is “machine intelligence”, where “machine” refers to electronic computers. In 1946, the electronic computer successfully evolved from a circuit system capable of expressing logical algebra (physics), acquiring computing and storage capabilities that rivaled or even surpassed those of humans, and gradually developed into a new field—computer science. This paper interprets the reasons behind the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics being awarded to AI scholars from the perspective of computer science, by outlining the nearly 80-year history of the birth of computers.

A brief perspective of fourth-generation semiconductors

ZHU Hongwei

2024, 46(6): 444-447. doi:10.3969/j.issn.0253-9608.2024.05.015

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Compared with the first three generations of semiconductors, the fourth-generation semiconductors have not only achieved breakthroughs in material types but also made a qualitative leap in performance, showing great application potential in multiple fields. This article outlines the definition, classification, core advantages, application fields, and prospects of fourth-generation semiconductors, and points out the challenges they face.

Experimental investigation and numerical models of RBC SDE transformations

WEN Haizhou, HU Guohui, LIU Xinyue

2024, 46(6): 448-460. doi:10.3969/j.issn.0253-9608.2024.05.012

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Research of immune damage mechanism in Parkinson’s disease

YANG Hongxia, ZHAO Linlin, SHI Shuxian, WANG Yunan, ZHANG Jingyu

2024, 46(6): 461-465. doi:10.3969/j.issn.0253-9608.2024.03.014

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Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disorder characterised by loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra and abnormal aggregation of α-synuclein as the main pathological features of the disease. Recent studies have shown that innate immune responses triggered by microglia and astrocytes, and adaptive immune responses induced by the activation and infiltration of NK cells, B cells, and T cells into the brains of patients with Parkinson’s disease play a key role in dopaminergic neuronal damage and disease progression in Parkinson’s disease, suggesting that immune damage may be the key to therapeutic research in Parkinson’s disease may be the key to Parkinson’s disease. Therefore, this review summarises the research progress on the mechanism of immune injury in Parkinson’s disease, with a view to providing possible new ideas for the prevention and treatment of Parkinson’s disease.

Brill’s mathematical life

ZHANG Pingping, WANG Shuhong

2024, 46(6): 466-470. doi:10.3969/j.issn.0253-9608.2024.02.010

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Alexander von Brill was an outstanding German mathematician with profound knowledge in mathematics, theoretical mechanics and so on. Through analysing the literatures, Brill’s legendary life is sorted out and summarised by taking his life experience, mathematical achievements and influence as clues. Brill made outstanding contributions to the development of algebraic geometry by mainly using geometric algebraic methods for the study of algebraic functions, and by making the linear system as a tool to classify the algebraic curves. At the same time, he had teached a large number of talents for the scientific community with the spirit of research and innovation, and his character of teaching by making learning fun.

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