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This paper presents a new scheme to improve the performance of finger-vein identification systems. Firstly, a vein pattern extraction method to extract the finger-vein shape and orientation features is proposed. Secondly, to accommodate the potential local and global variations at the same time, a region-based matching scheme is investigated by employing the Scale Invariant Feature Transform (SIFT) matching method. Finally, the finger-vein shape, orientation and SIFT features are combined to further enhance the performance. The experimental results on databases of 426 and 170 fingers demonstrate the consistent superiority of the proposed approach.

Cultivated land protection is related to food security and sustainable development. As an important reserve resource, the protection and development of cultivated land in mountainous areas need attention from governments and academia. This paper analyses the long‐term evolution process cultivated land in mountainous areas of Southwest China by using large‐scale remote sensing, topographic relief amplitude model, and a modified binary logistic regression model, to understand internal reasons for evolution differentiation at the macro level. The results show that untransformed cultivated land is mainly distributed below the topographic relief amplitude of 770 m. The transformation direction and spatial characteristics of transformed cultivated land gradually shift to low relief amplitude (<631 m) areas with time. Construction land accounts for 51.11% of the cultivated land transformation, usually distributed in flatlands or basins below the relief amplitude of 498 m, and hilly cultivated land around it displays a fluctuating recovery process. Topography is the most important factor affecting the evolution of cultivated land in mountainous areas. However, there are still differences in the driving mechanism of cultivated land evolution types, and some key policies in China in the past directly affected the evolution paths of cultivated land in mountainous areas. The research results can provide ideas for the utilization and protection of cultivated land in similar mountainous areas.

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The deficiency of vitamin D has been reported to be relevant to cancer risk. DHCR7 and CYP2R1 are crucial components of vitamin D-metabolizing enzymes. Thus, accumulating researchers are concerned with the correlation between polymorphisms of DHCR7 and CYP2R1 genes and cancer susceptibility. Nevertheless, the conclusions of literatures are inconsistent. We conducted an integrated review for the correlation of DHCR7 and CYP2R1 SNPs with cancer susceptibility. In the meanwhile, a meta-analysis was performed using accessible data to clarify the association between DHCR7 and CYP2R1 SNPs and overall cancer risk. Literatures which meet the rigid inclusion and exclusion criteria were involved. The association of each SNP with cancer risk was calculated by odds ratios (ORs). 12 case-control designed studies covering 23780 cases and 27307 controls were ultimately evolved in the present meta-analysis of five SNPs (DHCR7 rs12785878 and rs1790349 SNP; CYP2R1 rs10741657, rs12794714, and rs2060793 SNP). We found that DHCR7 rs12785878 SNP was significantly related to cancer risk in the whole population, Caucasian subgroup, and hospital-based (HB) subgroup. DHCR7 rs1790349 SNP was analyzed to increase cancer risk in Caucasians. Moreover, CYP2R1 rs12794714-A allele had correlation with a lower risk of colorectal cancer. Our findings indicated that rs12785878, rs1790349, and rs12794714 SNPs might potentially be biomarkers for cancer susceptibility.

The Three Gorges Reservoir Area (TGRA) is typical of an ecologically vulnerable area, comprised of rural and mountainous areas, and with high immigration. Because of its economic and ecologic importance, studying the traditional agroecosystem changes in the TGRA is key to rural development and revitalization. In this study, we apply a framework of theoretical analysis, empirical study, and trend prediction to the Caotangxi River watershed within the TGRA. Using QuickBird high-resolution remote sensing images from 2012 to 2017 to evaluate natural resources and farmers' behavior, we analyze the transition and trends in the traditional agroecosystem in mountainous areas of the TGRA at spatial scale of the man-land relationship. We find that the agroecosystem in the TGRA can be divided into four modes using 100 m interval buffer rings: high-low-low, high-low-high, low-high-low and low-low-high mode where the different modes represent the agricultural development stages in the TGRA. Furthermore, the traditional agroecosystem in TGRA, represented by system elements such as farmers and sloping farmland, is transforming to accommodate the diversification of farmer livelihoods. For example, sloping farmland, which was dominated by a production function, now has equal emphasis on ecological and economic functions. Spatially, the range of the agroecosystem transition has migrated beyond high mountain areas to flat valley areas. Generally, this study provides an overview of land use in rural areas, controls on soil and water loss in mountainous areas, and better rural living environments in the TGRA.

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Discussions regarding the functional transformation of agricultural utilization and the mechanisms that underlie these changes within the Three Gorges Reservoir Area (TGRA) reflect variations in the relationship between people and their environment in China's central and westerns part, an area of mountains and reservoirs. A clear understanding of these changes also provides the scientific basis for the development of multi-functional agriculture in typical mountainous areas. Five counties were selected for analysis in this study from the hinterland of the TGRA; we analyzed changes in farmland scaling and corresponding underlying mechanisms by defining the concepts of "Scaling Farmland" (SF) and by using the software packages ArcGIS10.2, SPSS, and Geographical Detectors. The results of this analysis show that sources of increased SF have mainly comprised cultivated and shrub land. Indeed, with the exception of some alpine off-season vegetables, SF growth has mainly occurred in low altitude areas and in places where the slope is less than 30°. We also show that spatial changes in various SF types have also been substantially different, but in all cases are closely related to road and township administrative centers. Natural factors at the patch level, including elevation and slope, have contributed significantly to SF, while at the township level, underlying socioeconomic and humanistic factors have tended to include road traffic and agricultural population density. In contrast, at the regional level, underlying driving forces within each have tended to be more significant than overall study area scale. We show that while changes in, and the development of, SF have been driven by numerous factors, agricultural policies have always been amongst the most important. The results clearly elucidate general land use transformation patterns within the mountain regions of western China.