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Two dimensional strip packing problem implies a sort of NP-hard combinational optimization, where a set of rectangles are defined all for filling a strip with finite width and infinite height being minimized. Optimization taking no account of rotation and guillotine constraints remains problematic in solving the problem. This paper proposes a new variant of a hybrid heuristic algorithm for optimizing solutions of the strip packing problem. This algorithm involves three key improvements: the building of δ scoring rules for selecting rectangles, the use of the red-black trees that stores rectangle indices for quickly locating the most suitable rectangles, and the embedding of a hierarchical method into a random local search to implement an optimization solution. Comparative studies show that the proposed algorithm variant outperforms state-of-the-art algorithms on almost all benchmark datasets. INDEX TERMS Packing, heuristic, hierarchical search, red-black tree.

Myocardial dysfunction is well-recognized manifestations of organ dysfunction in sepsis, which is the leading cause of death in critically ill patients. The underlying mechanisms associated with sepsis-induced myocardial injury (SIMI) include cardiac contractility, inflammatory response, oxidative stress, and apoptosis. Kudzu celery decoction (KCD) is composed of a variety of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) such as kudzu and celery. The previous study found that the main ingredients in kudzu and celery have also been proved to have anti-inflammatory, antioxidative, and other biological activities. In this study, the therapeutic effects of KCD were evaluated in the cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) model of BALB/c mice. The effects of KCD on cardiac function, myocardium damage, inflammation, and fibrosis in CLP-injured mice were analyzed with echocardiography, histological staining, and quantitative real-time PCR. The results showed that KCD treatment improved the anal temperature, sepsis score, blood routine parameters, and blood biochemical parameters in CLP-injured mice. Then, we observed that KCD could remarkably alleviate cardiac dysfunction, myocardial fibrosis, oxidative stress, and inflammation in CLP-injured mice. In this study, we confirmed that KCD has a significant protective effect on SIMI, which may favor KCD a potential cardioprotective drug candidate to alleviate SIMI and further amplify the application of TCM prescription in clinic.