Diabetes mellitus is a cluster of metabolic diseases characterized by hyperglycemia. Since this epidemic growing worldwide, the usage of phototherapeutics to manage diabetes is vital. Coccinia grandis (Aka ivy gourd) belongs to cucumber family is identified as a most effective herb, especially for diabetes and many other disease conditions. Hence, an instant herbal porridge cube incorporating Coccinia grandis leaf powder was produced and sensory acceptability of the porridge was evaluated using trained panelists. The bioactive activity of Coccinia grandis leaf powder showed that 66.77±0.74 mg/g GAE of Total Phenolic Content, 27.65±6.79% of DPPH radical scavenging activity, 5.72% of alpha-amylase inhibition activity and 59.64% of alpha-glucosidase inhibition activity. The effect on postprandial blood sugar levels after consuming the developed porridge was measured using healthy adults and it was observed there was no blood sugar elevation during the 2 hours of time. As a further development, Coccinia grandis leaf extract was nano-encapsulated with food grade Sodium alginate and it was incorporated into the same porridge as a safe delivery method of bioactive compounds. In-vitro digestion assay was conducted and the results show that alpha-amylase inhibition activity for the gastric phase and alpha-glucosidase inhibition activity for the intestinal phase was higher in nano-encapsulated porridge. The study concludes that, consuming nano-encapsulated Coccinia grandis leaf extract with porridge is more beneficial for diabetic patients.

Organophilic nano clay is the composition of mostly clay and organic molecules designed to improve various materials' physical and chemical properties. Permanent deformation in asphalt pavements is primarily the result of inadequate compaction, excessive loading, and high temperatures. Rutting can result in aquaplaning, leading to accidents and costly maintenance and rehabilitation works that drain the economy. Such behavior of asphalt pavements may be attributable to poor selection of aggregate, asphalt binder, or substandard asphalt binders. This study used different percentages of organophilic nano clay ranging from 3.0% - 5.0% with two penetration grade bitumen, i.e., N.R.L 60-70 & N.R.L 80-100. Adding organophilic nano clay to asphalt binder significantly reduced the rutting potential under cyclic loading at high temperatures (55 °C). Ten modified formulations and two virgin bitumen specimens were prepared. The modified binders' viscosity and rutting were tested using the Rotational Viscometer and Wheel Tracker Test (W.T.T.), respectively. The results were analyzed using software for Statistical Analysis. It was recorded that organophilic nano clay-modified bitumen significantly affected rutting to interpret the results. The results indicated that rutting decreased and viscosity increased in all nano clay-modified bitumen samples, with a 4.5% O.N.C modified binder showing the most significant improvement.

The present work is focused on functionalizing Montmorillonite (Mt) with poly dimethyl siloxane (PDMS) to develop a hybrid membrane reactor for the removal of Co (II) and Ni (II) ions from model wastewater samples. The specific surface area of the novel material was found to be 444 m2 /g. X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Fourier Transform Infra-Red (FTIR) spectra reveal the formation of exfoliated composite material. The efficiency of this membrane material was determined by subjecting it to continuous filtration experiments. It was able to remove 50% of Co (II) and 75% of Ni (II) ions, respectively, in one cycle of filtration in less than three minutes of operation with a permeate flux rate of 675 L/m2/H and 975 L/m2/H respectively, for both the ions.

This work presents the production and incorporation of calcium hydrolyzed nano-solutions at three concentrations (1, 2, and 3 wt.%) in alkali-activated gold mine tailings (MTs) from Arequipa, Perú. A first activator solution of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) at 10M was used. The calcium hy-drolyzed nano-solutions acted as a secondary activator and as additional calcium resource for the alkali-activated materials (AAMs) based on the low-calcium gold MTs. High-resolution trans-mission electron microscopy/energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (HR-TEM/EDS) analyses were carried out to characterize the morphology, size, and structures of the calcium hydrolyzed na-noparticles. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analyses then were used to understand the chemical bonding interactions in the calcium hydrolyzed nanoparticles and in the AAMs. Scanning electron microscopy/energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM/EDS) and Quantitative X-ray diffraction (QXRD) were performed to study the structural, chemical, and phase compositions of the AAMs; uniaxial compressive tests evaluated the compressive strength of the reacted AAMs; and Nitrogen adsorption-desorption analyses measured the porosity changes at nanostructure level in the AAMs. The results indicate that each increase in the concentration of the calcium hydrolyzed nano-solution had a direct/proportional effect on the mechanical properties of the AAMs samples. The AAMs with 3 wt.% calcium-hydrolyzed nano-solution had the highest compressive strength value of 15.16 MPa, which represented an increase of 62% compared to the original system without nanoparticles and aged under the same conditions of 70°C for seven days. These results provide useful information about the positive effect of calcium-hydrolyzed nanoparticles on gold MTs and their conversion into sustainable building materials through alkali activation.

Of course, now we know that quantum mechanics has been a fundamental structure of our world since our universe came into being. However, it has been only a century since the experimental and theoretical discovery of quantum mechanics and its extensions into many implications and applications. In particular, there are implications across many disciplines that most likely will affect education, health, security, etc. Examples are given of the need for starting education as early as possible in schools, the use of nano-robots to deliver drugs targeted to specific molecular sites, to developing new cryptographic systems to safeguard our privacy.

The size of TiO2 (either nanometric or micrometric) can significantly affect both its photocatalytic and photoelectrochemical properties, thus altering the photooxidation of organic pollutants in air or water. The purpose of this work is to give an account of the photoelectrochemical and photocatalytic features of some nano- and micro-sized TiO2 commercial powders towards a model reaction, the photooxidation of acetone. Cyclic voltammograms (CV) of TiO2 particulated electrodes under UV illumination experiments were carried out in either saturated O2 or N2 solutions for a direct correlation with the photocatalytic process. In addition, the effect of different reaction conditions on the photocatalytic efficiency under UV light in both aqueous and gaseous phases was also investigated. CV curves with the addition of acetone under UV light showed a negative shift of the photocurrent onset, confirming the efficient transfer of photoproduced reactive oxygen species (ROSs), e.g., hydroxyl radicals, or holes to acetone molecules. The photocatalytic experiments showed that the two nano-sized samples exhibit the best photocatalytic performance. The different photoactivity of the micro-sized samples is probably attributed to their morphological differences, affecting both the amount and distribution of free ROSs involved in the photooxidation reaction.

Evaporation studies of water using classical molecular dynamics simulations are largely limited due to its high computational expense. We aim at addressing the computational issues by developing a coarse grain model for evaporation of water on solid surfaces by combining four water molecules into a single bead. Most commonly used mono atomic pair potentials like Lennard Jones, Morse, Mie and three body potential like Stillinger-Weber are optimized using a combination of Genetic algorithm and Nelder-Mead algorithm. Among them, Stillinger-Weber based model shows excellent agreement of density and Enthalpy of vaporization with experimental results for a wide range of temperatures. Further, the new water model is used to simulate contact angle of water and thin film evaporation from surfaces with different wettabilities.

Amorphous ferrite-type rare-earth (RE) substituted garnets and garnet-oxide nanocomposite layers are prepared on clear glass substrates by using RF magnetron sputter-deposition process. By using a combination approach employing custom-built spectrum-fitting software in conjunction with Swanepoel’s envelope method, the spectral dispersion function of optical constants and the layer thicknesses are derived accurately from the transmission spectra of the as-deposited samples. The effects of excess metal-oxides added to the base material systems during the co-deposition process are found to affect the refractive index and the optical absorption coefficients of garnet-oxide composites. A number of optical constant datasets are presented, enabling the experimentalists to design nanophotonic or integrated-optics devices employing these functional materials.

Aiming at the damage detection and continuous monitoring of high efficiency composite structure, the method of carbon nano sensor embeded in the 3-D braided composite material specimen was put forward and the method of damage location for 3-D braided composite material was described. In this paper, the mechanical and electrical characteristics of carbon nano-fiber were analyzed. Considering the massive data of the health monitoring of composite processing, to ensure that the system has good real-time performance, quaternary matrix Singular Value Decomposition algorithm is proposed to simplify data and improve the efficiency of the algorithm. The existence of injury is determined and the damage location is calculated by comparing with key features of healthy specimen. Experimental results prove the method is feasible and effective.

A new class of nano-cube core-shell heterostructures containing Ag coating on the top of WO₃ was fabricated. Physical vapor deposition was used to produce WO₃ based nano-heterostructures. All kind of wet toxic chemical process was avoided to make the process simple and contaminant free. Sputtering of WO₃ and a subsequent thermal annealing process was done to create nano-cubes of WO₃. After that, sputtering of Ag was performed to form the Ag-WO₃ core-shell nano-heterostructures (CSNH). The CSNHs were characterized using field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and UV-vis spectroscopy. The morphologies, elemental analysis, interfaces, crystallinity, phases, and chemical compositions were analyzed. The bottom-up growth of WO₃ nanocubes was studied using different time periods at 900°C. Ag coating was also studied before and after annealing. Finally, an optical property (band gap) was also analyzed using Tauc plot derive from absorption spectra. The tailoring the band gap of WO₃ from ~2.9eV to ~ 2.45 eV was observed while Ag-WO₃ CSNH formed.

Women's empowerment represents a process in which they are recognized as subjects of rights. Despite advances in women's rights, inequalities persist in various areas. This study aims to validate a psychometric scale of 31 items in seven factors: Participatory Empowerment, Temerity, External Influences, Independence, Social Satisfaction and Equality. The objective is to measure the empowerment of women in the university context. The research was carried out in a transversal and non-experimental manner, with the participants' voluntary collaboration, including the participation of 1,478 university students from four Higher Education Institutions in Zone 4 of Ecuador. The data was analyzed through inferential statistics, including exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. The results indicated that the instrument for measuring empowerment can be made up of 24 items grouped into six factors, and this model showed a good fit.

The coastal zone, situated at the sensitive interface between land and sea, serves as a pivotal area of extensive human economic activities. As one of China's economic special zones, Xiamen exemplifies the comprehensive trajectory of coastal governance in China. This research adopts an interdisciplinary approach grounded in historical geography and political ecology, employing data collection methods encompassing historical literature, field surveys, and interviews. The research findings indicate that:(1) The year 1994 witnessed the pivotal role played by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in connecting Jimei Peninsula from a local context to the international arena, thus signifying a momentous turning point in the process of scale reconstruction. However, the subsequent implementation of the Coastal Exclusion Policy in 2002 had detrimental consequences, leading to the disintegration of the local scale, the erosion of maritime culture, and the disregard for the livelihood security of displaced coastal populations.(2)The Coastal Exclusion Policy serves as an instrumental tool for implementing scale politics, while its functional realignment has had profound implications for the coastal zone, encompassing economic transformation, ecological degradation, and the marginalization of the socio-cultural fabric that intertwines humans and the coastal environment.

The Principle of Indifference (“PI”: the simplest non-informative prior in Bayesian probability) has been shown to lead to paradoxes since Bertrand (1889). Von Mises (1928) introduced the “Wine/Water Paradox” as a resonant example of a “Bertrand paradox”, and which has been presented as demonstrating that the PI must be rejected. We now resolve these paradoxes by a Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt) treatment of the PI that also includes information provided by Benford’s “Law of Anomalous Numbers” (1938). We show that the PI should be understood to represent a family of informationally-identical MaxEnt solutions; each solution being identified with its own explicitly justified boundary condition. In particular, our solution of the Wine/Water Paradox exploits Benford’s Law to construct a non-uniform distribution representing the universal constraint of scale invariance, which is a physical consequence of the Second Law of Thermodynamics.

Land cover data are important basic data for earth system science and other fields. Multi-source remote sensing images have become the main data source for land cover classification. There are still many uncertainties in the scale effect of image spatial resolution on land cover classification. Since it is difficult to obtain multiple spatial resolution remote sensing images of the same area at the same time, the main current method to study the scale effect of land cover classification is to use the same image resampled to different resolutions, however errors in the resampling process lead to uncertainty in the accuracy of land cover classification. To study the land cover classification scale effect of different spatial resolutions of multi-source remote sensing data, we selected 1 m and 4 m of GF-2, 6 m of SPOT-6, 10 m of Sentinel-2 and 30 m of Landsat-8 multi-sensor data, and explored the scale effect of image spatial resolution on land cover classification from two aspects of mixed image element decomposition and spatial heterogeneity. For the study area, we compared the classification obtained from GF-2, SPOT-6, Sentinel-2, and Landsat-8 images at different spatial resolutions based on GBDT and RF. The results show that (1) GF-2 and SPOT-6 had the best classification results, and the optimal scale based on this classification accuracy was 4–6 m; (2) the optimal scale based on linear decomposition depended on the study area; (3) the optimal scale of land cover was related to spatial heterogeneity, i.e., the more fragmented and complex was the space, the smaller the scale needed; and (4) the resampled images were not sensitive to scale and increase the uncertainty of the classification. These findings have implications for land cover classification and optimal scale selection, scale effects and landscape ecology uncertainty studies.

BACKGROUND. The aims of this study was to compare differences in daytime sleepiness between genders and qualification levels in a cohort university Chinese soccer player under 0 Covid policy restrictions in the urban area of Shanghai. METHODS. 491 questionnaires of Epworth Sleepiness Scales (ESS) were compiled online by males and females Soccer Students (SS), Semi-professional players (SP) and professional players (PP) during the ongoing measures of Shanghai lockdown. ANOVA was performed for players levels and gender. RESULTS. Significant differences were found between the 3 levels and between males and females. PP showed a very low score in the ESS (5,97) well below the threshold of 8, while SS and SP showed an ESS score above the threshold. Female showed higher scores than males. CONCLUSIONS. This study present the first data on sleepiness in Chinese soccer players of different level of qualification in a lockdown condition. Professional players has been less affected by lockdown measures than SS and SP. We can hypothesize the reasons resides in the more ordered lifestyle of PP in comparison to SS and SP, which mitigated the effects of the lockdown. Measures to improve sleep in females’ soccer player should be adopted.

Mass transfer is often the rate determining step for solid-liquid chemical reactions. Decrease of the concentration boundary layer thickness is essential to intensify the chemical reaction. Because the concentration boundary layer exists in the velocity boundary layer, force imposition in the concentration boundary layer by superimposing an electrical current and a magnetic field was proposed. Through, flow can be directly excited in the concentration boundary layer. The previous result indicates that by superimposing a DC current and a gradient magnetic field, the development of the concentration boundary layer was suppressed, because of a macro-scale flow excitation in the whole vessel. And by superimposing the gradient magnetic field with a modulate current, the development of the concentration boundary layer was further suppressed. This is because of the macro-scale flow enhancement and the excitation of a micro-scale flow near the solid-liquid interface. However, the mechanism for the micro-scale flow excitation has not been clarified. To clarify this, a uniform magnetic field was superimposed with the DC current or the modulate current. By this means, only the micro-scale flow was excited near the anode surface. The results found that the non-unform electromagnetic force distribution is the main reason for the micro-scale flow excitation.

The level of technological development of any civilization can be gaged in large part by the amount of energy they produce for their use, but also encompasses that civilization’s stewardship of their home world. Following the Kardashev definition, a Type I civilization is able to store and use all the energy available on its planet. In this study, we develop a model based on Carl Sagan’s K formula and use this model to analyze the consumption and energy supply of the three most important energy sources: fossil fuels (e.g., coal, oil, natural gas, crude, NGL and feedstocks), nuclear energy and renewable energy. We also consider environmental limitations suggested by United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the International Energy Agency, and those specific to our calculations to predict when humanity will reach the level of a Kardashev scale Type I civilization.

Carton detection is an important technique in the automatic logistics system and can be applied to many applications such as the stacking and unstacking of cartons, the unloading of cartons in the containers. However, there is no public large-scale carton dataset for the research community to train and evaluate the carton detection models up to now, which hinders the development of carton detection. In this paper, we present a large-scale carton dataset named Stacked Carton Dataset (SCD) with the goal of advancing the state-of-the-art in carton detection. Images are collected from the Internet and several warehouses, and objects are labeled using per-instance segmentation for precise localization. There are total of 250,000 instance masks from 16,136 images. Naturelly, a suite of benchmarks are established with several popular detectors. In addition, we design a carton detector based on RetinaNet by embedding our proposed Offset Prediction between Classification and Localization module (OPCL) and Boundary Guided Supervision module (BGS). OPCL alleviates the imbalance problem between classification and localization quality which boosts AP by 3.1%∼4.7% on SCD at the model level while BGS guides the detector to pay more attention to boundary information of cartons and decouple repeated carton textures at the task level. To demonstrate the generalization of OPCL to other datasets, we conduct extensive experiments on MS COCO and PASCAL VOC. The improvements of AP on MS COCO and PASCAL VOC are 1.8%∼2.2% and 3.4%∼4.3% respectively. Source dataset is available here.

Scale inhibitors are deployed as preventive and rejuvenation operation in oil and gas industry when production operations are under threat or menace of scale blockage. The application of scale inhibitors is carried out through a method known as squeezing. In general, the squeeze process is governed by inhibitor-rock interaction which is described by adsorption/desorption isotherm. Most reservoirs produce loose sand grains or fine sand which float and flow within the pore spaces along with the squeezed scale inhibitors. Hypothetical reports have shown that not all scale inhibitors pumped into the formation adsorb onto the formation rock. A number of factors (irreversible adsorption, pH changes, competing ions, concentration and temperature) have been considered to affect the adsorption and return profile of these scale inhibitors. This review work examines the performances of most common scale inhibitors used in the oil and gas production activities, theoretical application in reservoirs and how loose fine sand grains affect the adsorption and desorption characteristics of squeezed scale inhibitors. Additionally, presented were overviews of previous reports on fine sand production and migration of fine sands through formation pores in reservoirs.

The Mouse Grimace Scale (MGS) was developed 10 years ago to assess pain through characterisation of changes in five facial features or action units. The strength of the technique is that it is proposed to be a measure of spontaneous or non-evoked pain. A comprehensive scoping review of the academic literature was performed. The MGS has been employed mainly in evaluation of acute pain, particularly in the pain and neuroscience research fields. There has however been use of the technique in a wide range of fields, and based on limited study it does appear to have utility for pain assessment across a spectrum of animal models. Use of the method does allow detection of pain of a longer duration, up to a month post-initial insult. There has been less use of the technique using real-time methods and this is an area in need of further research.

Small-scale fishers are considered as one of the most vulnerable communities in Bangladesh but very few studies focused on the livelihood sustainability and vulnerabilities of this professional group. A fieldwork in lower Padma and upper Meghna hilsa sanctuaries identifies different livelihood characters and associated vulnerabilities of the fishers. A conceptual framework known as Sustainable Livelihood Approaches (SLA) has been introduced to analyses the qualitative and quantitative data. The insights of the livelihood strategies provide on small-scale fishers and fisheries management have been explained and explored. Fishers are found solely dependent on fishing, economically insolvent and neglected. In addition, some socio-economic abstractions such as low income, credit insolvency, lack of substitute earning flexibility make them more vulnerable. A number of effective suggestions are elicited from fishers’ perceptions, the implementation of which is crucial to ensure livelihood sustainability of the small-scale fishers.

Friction is an important subject for sustainability due to problems associated with energy loss. Recent years, surface micro- and nanostructures have attracted much attention to reduce friction; however, suitable structures are still under consideration. Many functional surfaces are present in nature, such as the friction reduction surfaces of snake skins. In this study, we focused on firebrats, Thermobia domestica, living in narrow spaces such as under bark, so their surface frequently contacts with surrounding surfaces. We speculate that their body surface would be adapted to reduce friction. To investigate the firebrat surface functions, firebrat surfaces were observed by using a field-emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) and a colloidal probe atomic force microscope (AFM), respectively. Results of surface observations by the FE-SEM revealed that firebrats are entirely covered with scales, whose surfaces have micro groove structures. Scale groove periods around the firebrat's head are almost uniform within a scale but vary between scales. AFM friction force measurements revealed that firebrat scale reduces friction by decreasing contact area between scales and a colloidal probe. The heterogeneity of groove periods of the scales suggest that it is difficult to fix the whole body in particular rough surfaces and that lead to be "fail-safe".

Size-based fungal growth studies have limitations. For example, the growth in size stops in closed systems once it reaches the borders and poorly describes the metabolic status, especially in the stationary phase. This might lead mycotoxin studies to unrealistic results. Color change could be a viable alternative as pigments are results of the mold’s metabolic activity. This study aimed to verify the possibility of using gray values and the RGB system to analyze the growth of Fusarium graminearum. It consisted color and area measurement using the ImageJ software for specimens grown in yeast extract agar (YEA). The results suggest the usability of color and gray values as reliable tools to analyze the growth of F. graminearum.

A growing number of clinical data suggests that the use of antiplatelets and/or statins pre-stroke are associated with reduced severity and better functional outcomes for ischemic stroke. Studies have shown that the long-term use of ACEI/ARB pre-stroke is beneficial in reducing severity at onset and improving functional outcomes. We aimed to compare stroke severity and early functional outcome between patients taking ACEI/ARB and those who were not, and to identify any additional effects to taking ACEI/ARB with antiplatelets, statins, or both. In this retrospective case-control study, we assessed 218 patients who presented with ischemic stroke to the stroke unit in Padeh-Poriyah Hospital between 2019-2020. Of these patients, 119 took ACEI/ARB pre-stroke. A significantly higher percentage of ACEI/ARB-treated patients had a history of hypertension (HTN) and hyperlipidemia and were taking antiplatelets and/or statins, compared to the non-ACEI/ARB group. We observed that pre-stroke treatment with ACEI/ARB is associated with worsened stroke severity and reduced early functional outcomes. No significant benefit to taking ACEI/ARB with antiplatelets and/or statins pre-stroke was observed. Due to the nature of our study, the data should be interpreted as suggestive. Thus, prospective studies of these medications on ischemic stroke severity and early outcomes are warranted.

Micro nano bubbles (MNBs) can generate ·OH in situ, which provides a new idea for the safe and efficient removal of pollutants in water supply systems. However, the difficulty in obtaining stable MNBs causes the low efficiency of ·OH generation, which makes the inability to guarantee the removal efficiency of pollutants. This paper reviews the application research of MNBs technology in water security from three aspects: the generation process of MNBs in water, the generation rule of ·OH during MNBs collapse, and the control mechanism of MNBs on pollutants and biofilms. We found that MNBs generation methods are divided into chemical and mechanical (about 10 kinds) categories, and the instability of bubble size restricts the application of MNBs technology. The generation of ·OH by MNBs is affected by pH, gas source, bubble size, temperature, external stimulation. And pH and external stimulus have more influence on ·OH generation in situ than other factors. Adjusting pH to alkaline or acidic conditions and selecting ozone or oxygen as the gas source can promote the ·OH generation. MNBs’ collapse also releases a large amount of energy, which the temperature and pressure can reach 3000K and 5Gpa respectively, making it efficient to remove ≈90 % of pollutants (i.e., trichloroethylene, benzene, and chlorobenzene). The biofilm can also be removed by physical, chemical, and thermal effect. MNBs technology also has great application potential in drinking water, which can be applied to improve water quality, optimize household water purifiers, and enhance the taste of bottled water. Under the premise of safety, let people of different ages taste, finding that compared with ordinary drinking water, 85.7 % of people think MNBs water is softer, 73.3 % of people think MNBs water is sweeter. This further proves that MNBs water has a great prospect in the drinking water application. This review provides innovative theoretical support for solving the problem of drinking water safety.

Protein–nanoparticle hybridization can ideally lead to novel biological entities characterized by emerging properties, which can sensibly differ from those of the parent components. Herein, the effect of ionic strength on the biological functions of recombinant, His-tagged spermine oxidase (i.e., SMOX) was studied for the first time. Moreover, SMOX was integrated to colloidal surface active maghemite nanoparticles (SAMNs) by direct self-assembly, leading to a biologically active nano-enzyme (i.e., SAMN@SMOX). The hybrid was subjected to an in-depth chemical-physical characterization highlighting that protein structure was perfectly preserved. The catalytic activity of the nanostructured hybrid (SAMN@SMOX) was assessed by extracting kinetics parameters using spermine as substrate and compared to the soluble enzyme as a function of ionic strength. Results revealed that the catalytic function was dominated by electrostatic interactions and that they were drastically modified upon hybridization with colloidal ɣ-Fe2O3. Noteworthy, the affinity of SMOX toward spermine was significantly higher for the nanohybrid at low salinity. The present study supports the vision of using protein–nanoparticle conjugation as a mean for modulating biological functions.

Significant amount of oil remains in the reservoir after primary and secondary operations and to recover the remaining oil, enhanced oil recovery (EOR) can be applied as one of the feasible options remaining nowadays. In this study new nano polymeric materials have been prepared from purple yam and cassava starches. The yield of purple yam nanoparticles (PYNPs) was 85% and that of cassava nanoparticles (CSNPs) is 90.53%. Synthesized materials were characterized through particle size distribution (PSA), zeta potential distribution, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The performance of PYNPs in recovering oil was better than CSNPs as found from recovery experiments. Zeta potential distribution results confirmed the stability of PYNPs over CSNPs (-36.3 mV for PYNPs and -10.7 mV for CSNPs). The optimum concentration for these nanoparticles has been found from interfacial tension measurements and rheological properties and it was 0.60 wt.% for PYNPs and 0.80 wt.% for CSNPs. More incremental recovery (33.46%) has achieved for the polymer that contained PYNPs in comparison to the other nano-polymer (31.3%). This opens the inception for a new technology for polymer flooding that may replace the conventional method that depends on partially hydrolyzed polyacrylamide (HPAM).

We synthesized iron(II)-triazole spin crossover compounds of the type [Fe(atrz)3]X2 and incorporated and deposited them on electrospun polymer nanofibers. In view of possible applications, we chose iron(II)-triazole-complexes that are known to exhibit spin crossover close to ambient temperature. Therefore we used the complexes [Fe(atrz)3]Cl2 and [Fe(atrz)3](2ns)2 (2ns = 2Naphthalenesulfonate) and analyzed them with IR-, UV/Vis and Mossbauer spectroscopy and with a SQUID magnetometer. The synthesized complexes were then in one attempt deposited on fibers of polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) and in another attempt incorporated into core-shell like PMMA fiber structures. This was done via two different electrospinning methods. Deposition was performed by uniaxial electrospinning and incorporation was performed by coaxial electrospinning. The obtained polymer-complex-composites were then further investitgated by the same methods as the pure complexes as well as by SEM pictures and EDX measurements. The analysis by UV/Vis spectroscopy, Mössbauer spectroscopy and temperature-depended magnetic measurements with the SQUID magnetometer showed that the spin crossover properties were maintained and were not changed after the electrospinning processes and that the complexes were not harmed during the procedure.

The physicalchemistry properties and crystal structure of were nano-ZrO₂+3mol.%Y₂O₃ determined. The kinetics of the formation of H₂ as a result of the decomposition of H₂O on the surface of nano-ZrO₂+3mol.%Y₂O₃ was studied. Effects of adsorption and desorption process on ZrO₂+3 mol.%Y₂O₃ nanoparticles were studied at different (T=400÷1000⁰C) temperature. The study of H₂ in thermal processes at nano-ZrO₂+3 mol.%Y₂O₃ system increased. Such an increase in H₂ generation in comparison with a pure H₂O as thermal processes had formedactive centers for H₂O decomposition on the surface of the catalyst at the expense of δ-electrons emitted on the surface of nano-ZrO₂+3 mol.%Y₂O₃. This showed that the dimensions of the studied nanoscale particles systems are comparable to the free running distance of energy carriers generated by of nano-ZrO₂+3 mol.%Y₂O₃ as a result of thermal processes. These results are promising for hydrogen generation by waer spliting in near future.

This paper seeks to optimize the mechanical and durability properties of ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC). To meet this objective, concrete specimens were manufactured by using 1,100 kg/m3 of binder, water/binder ratio 0.20, silica sand and last generation of superplasticizer. Silica fume, metakaolin and two types of nano silica were used for improving the performances of the concrete. Additional mixtures included 13mm long OL steel fibers. Compressive strength, electrical resistivity, mercury intrusion porosimetry tests and differential and thermogravimetric thermal analysis were carried out. The binary combination of nano silica and metakaolin, and the ternary combination of nano silica with metakaolin and silica fume, led to the best performances of the UHPC, both mechanical and durable performances.

We fabricated the nano-aperture plasmonic platforms for single molecule detection and other various applications such as infrared thermal emission device. The nano-apertures including the nanopores on the pyramid, and the nano-slits on the Au flat membrane were fabricated using a Ga ion focused ion beam drilling technique, followed by high energy electron beam irradiations dependent upon the electron beam current density. The nanopores with a few nanometer size and the nanoslit array with order of ~ 100 nm width were fabricated. Optical characteristics for the various nanoslits were examined dependent upon the slit opening width and sample thickness. The broad emission spectra from the (7x 7) slit array are obtained from spp-mediated emission in the visible and infrared region. A sharp strong infrared emission peak is also obtained due to Au nanoparticle. The fabricated Au platform can be utilized as single molecule sensor and infrared thermal emission device.

The spanwise periodicity within the gap was observed in the literature, which should be systematically studied in order to ascertain its characteristics and its influences on flow field. By numerically simulating the flow around two tandem circular cylinders with a diameter ratio of d/D=0.6 and seventeen spacing ratios (L/D=1.00~6.00) at Re=3900, this study shows four flow regimes: Reattachment Flow (L/D=1.00~3.15), Bi-stable Flow (L/D=3.24), Intermittent Lock-in Co-shedding (L/D= 3.30~3.50) and Subharmonic Lock-in Co-shedding (L/D=4.00~6.00). Further, depending on the spanwise periodicity length of the time-averaged flow structures (i.e. Pz) within the gap, Reattachment Flow is, for the first time, subdivided into three new sub-flow regimes: Small-scale Periodic Reattachment (L/D=1.00~1.50, Pz/D=(0, 4]), Large-scale Periodic Reattachment (L/D=2.00~2.25, Pz/D>4) and Non-periodic Reattachment (L/D=2.50~3.15, no spanwise periodicity). The formation mechanisms are elaborated by analyzing the combined effect of both the L/D value and the spanwise-averaged time-averaged reattachment angle of the downstream cylinder. Moreover, this study proves that the newly-defined Small-scale Periodic Reattachment and Large-scale Periodic Reattachment are responsible for the pronounced asymmetry of the flow along the transverse direction within the gap. In addition, detailed flow properties and statistical parameters are provided for each flow regime, such as velocity, vorticity, force coefficient, separation/reattachment angle, Strouhal number and Q-criterion.

A Friedmann-Lemaitre-Robertson-Walker space-time model with all curvatures k=0,±1 is explored in f(R,T) gravity. The solutions are obtained via the parametrization of the scale factor that leads to a model transiting from a decelerated universe to an accelerating one. The physical features of the model are discussed and analysed.

Metabolites are at the end of the gene-transcript-protein-metabolism cascade. As such, metabo-lomics is the omic approach that offers the most direct correlation with phenotype. This allows that, where genomics, transcriptomics and proteomics fail to explain a trait, metabolomics might give an answer. Complex phenotypes, which are determined by the influence of multiple small effect alleles, are an example of these situations. Consequently, the interest in metabolomics has increased ex-ponentially in the last years. As a newer discipline, the metabolomics bioinformatics analysis pipe-lines are not as standardized as in the other omic approaches. In this review we synthesized the different steps that need to be carried out to obtain biological insight from the annotated metabolite abundance raw data. These steps were grouped in three different modules: preprocessing, statistical analyses and metabolic pathway enrichment. We included within each one of them the different state-of-the art procedures and tools that can be used depending on the characteristics of the study, providing details about the characteristics of each method has, as well as the issues the reader might encounter. Finally, we introduce genome scale metabolic modeling as a tool for obtaining pseu-do-metabolomic data in situations where its acquisition is difficult, being possible to analyze the resulting data with the modules of the described workflow.

Vulnerabilities in smart contracts may trigger serious security events, and the detection of smart contract vulnerabilities has become a significant problem. In this paper, by using the multi-scale cascade encoder architecture as the backbone, we propose a novel Multi-scale Encoder Vulnerability Detection (MEVD) approach to detect well-known high-risk vulnerabilities in smart contracts. Firstly, we use the gating mechanism to design a unique Surface Feature Encoder (SFE) to enrich the semantic information of code features. Then, by combining a Base Transformer Encoder (BTE) and a Detail CNN Encoder (DCE), we introduce a dual-branch encoder to capture the global structure and local detail features of the smart contract code, respectively. Finally, to focus the model's attention on vulnerability-related characteristics, we employ the Deep Residual Shrinkage Network (DRSN). Experimental results on three types of high-risk vulnerability datasets demonstrate performance compared to state-of-the-art methods, and our method achieves an average detection accuracy of 90%.

This paper deals with the analysis of the cognitive functions of the cerebral cortex or cortex in the evolutionary context. The triune brain model is presented given its notorious popularity in fields that are not strictly neuroscientific, and its limitations and inaccuracies are also shown. Although it is an outdated theory, this one represented the passage to a new era, because it really was the model of the movement towards understanding the brain in evolutionary terms. Next, the paper illustrates the different areas of the cortex and their functions, as well as the evolution of the brain and the cortex in vertebrates. To date, the expansion of the cortex with the amniotes was placed 300 million years ago, although recent studies place it in the lampreys more than 500 million years ago. Evolutionary changes in mammalian brain and cortex size are discussed, showing the evolution from three to six cell layers and trends in different groups of mammals. Finally, the most recent contributions in the field of research are illustrated, such as the role of neurogenesis and the evolution of the connectivity of the cortex.

Background: Patients with allergic rhinitis (AR) have bothersome symptoms that may assess using the visual analog scale (VAS). Asthma frequently is associated with AR. The present study investigated the role of VAS in children with newly-diagnosed AR. Methods: Parameters were VAS for nasal and asthma symptoms, and doctor’s perception of these diseases, medication use, and asthma comorbidity. Results: 67% of AR children had asthma. Severity of perceived nasal symptoms was associated with more intense asthma symptoms and doctor’s perception of disease severity (p<0.001 and p=0.02, re-spectively. Conclusions: Allergic rhinitis frequently is associated with asthma in child-hood. Symptom perception assessment using VAS is a simple tool for assessing their intensity. Moreover, the severity of nasal symptoms is associated with asthma symptom severity. Therefore, asthma should be carefully considered in AR children and require appropriate symptom perception assessment.

We carry out in a thin heterogeneous porous layer, the multiscale analysis of Smoluchowski's discrete diffusion-coagulation equations describing the evolution density of diffusing particles that are subject to coagulate in pairs. Assuming that the thin heterogeneous layer is made of microstructures that are uniformly distributed inside, we obtain in the limit an upscaled model in lower space dimension. We also prove a corrector-type result very useful in numerical computations. In view of the thin structure of the domain, we appeal to a concept of two-scale convergence adapted to thin heterogeneous media to achieve our goal.

Interspecific competition between herbivorous insects is a major selection pressure affecting the distribution, abundance, and structure of their populations. Facilitator-mediated interactions, such as mutualism, can influence competition. Furthermore, the temporal dynamics of competitive relationships affect the interaction’s outcome. Here, we re-evaluated the data on the competition for space between two herbivorous insects commonly known as scales (Toumeyella martinezae and Opuntiaspis philococcus) in either the presence or absence of Liometopum apiculatum (a mutualistic species of T. martinezae) and its variations over time. We selected 27 Myrtillocactus geometrizans plants on which the studied insects were present; the plants were classified into one of five different conditions: either of the scale species were present on the plant, without its competitor; T. martinezae with neither its mutualistic species nor the competitor; and both scale species competing in either presence or absence of the mutualistic species. We kept a photographic record of each condition, measured the size of (as an indicator of the development stage) and area occupied by the individual scales, estimated the total coverage of each scale species, and assessed their relative occupation of space and their competitive intensity. We found temporal variations in competitive intensity. T. martinezae occupied more space during the first months, whereas O. philococcus did so towards the end of the study period. The population structure changed over time and between species, affecting the competitive interactions. In conclusion, the dynamics of competition change over time, and the mutualistic species has a positive effect on T. martinezae when the scales are in competition. However, temporal variations resulting from changes in the life cycle of the scales allow the two competitors to coexist in the same place at the same time.

Background: The adoption of self-care behaviors among patients with arterial hypertension (AH) plays an important role in the management of their health condition. However, a lack of scales assessing self-care is observed. We aimed to develop and validate the Hippocratic hypertension self-care scale. Methods: From a pool of questions derived from a literature review, 18 items were included in the scale and reviewed by a committee of experts. Participants indicate the frequency at which they follow the self-behavior prescribed in each statement on a five-point Likert scale. Data were collected between April 2019 and December 2019. Re-sults: 202 consecutive adult patients with AH were enrolled in the study. The internal consistency of the scale was found to be 0.807, using Cronbach’s alpha coefficient. An exploratory factor analysis identified two do-mains that accounted for 92.94% of the variance of the scale items; however, each sub-scale could not be used as an independent scale. Finally, the test- retest of the scale showed a significant strong correlation (r=0.0095, p<0.001). Conclusion: Our data indicate that the scale is a reliable and valid tool for assessing self-behaviors in patients with AH. Health professionals can use it in their clinical practice to improve the management of patients’ health condition.

Introduction: Lack of certainty or knowledge in health professions generates uncertainty, affecting clinical practice in decision-making (diagnostic or therapeutic), intervention design and therapeutic communication. In nursing, the lack of information to predict prognosis and outcome of interventions generates uncertainty: recognizing and managing it is essential for individualized, safe, and effective care. Objective: to assess uncertainty and the perception of a debriefing within the same shift ("intrathoracic pass") as a proposal for improvement. Method: ad-hoc survey of nursing professionals and Auxiliary Nursing Care Technicians (ANC). Variables: age, work experience, PRU scale (Physisicians' Reactions to Uncertainty) and additional question on intrathoracic pass. Results: Sample: 61 nurses and 10 TCAE (90.14 % female, 9.86 % male; mean age 35.18, standard deviation SD=13.04). Mean professional experience 11.74 years (SD=12.21); 56.33% had ≤4 years of experience. Origin: 49.30% Intensive Care Units (ICU), 11.27% Hospitalization, 7.04% Emergency, 1.41% Primary Care and 30.99% Other Services. The mean level of uncertainty was 27.99 points (max. possible 75; SD=7.50), with stress (mean=25.55, max. possible: 40; SD=5.24) and anxiety (mean=15.80, max. possible: 25; SD=3.05) as major manifestations. The association uncertainty-age (r=0.339; p=0.004) and uncertainty-experience (r=0.391; p=0.001) correlated negatively (the older and more experienced, the less uncertainty), with no significant differences between degrees or services. 91.55% stated that the intra-day pass was useful to reduce uncertainty during the working day. Conclusion: Uncertainty is frequent in nursing, and implementing the intrashift pass is perceived as a competent strategy.

AbstractPurpose: This study aimed to perform a psychometric evaluation of the preliminary preterm birth risk assessment scale (PBRAS-K) of 32-item. Method(s): There were 299 subjects, 167 in the exploratory factor analysis (EFA) group and 132 in the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) group, who delivered before 37⁺⁰ weeks after having preterm symptoms and were admitted to high-risk pregnancy maternal-fetal intensive care units (MFICU). After an item reduction process in EFA, the psychometric property scales were assessed using SPSS 26, and CFA was accomplished using AMOS 27. Results: The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure (KMO) and Bartlett’s χ² test of sphericity confirmed the adequacy of the sample for factor analysis (KMO = .81 (> .80), χ² = 1841.38, p < .001). The final version of the PBRAS-K was comprised of 23 items within seven dimensions. Factor analysis identified items explaining 65.9% of the total variance. The PBRAS-K had a mean score of 35.58 (±10.35) and showed a high internal consistency and satisfactory reliability with a Cronbach’s alpha of .85. The PBRAS-K had a low correlation with risk scoring of preterm delivery (RPD) for discriminant validity (r = .45, p < .001), a positive, high correlation with the Somatic Awareness Scale with Spontaneous Preterm Labor (SPL-SAS) for criterion validity (r = .65, p < .001), and with pregnant stress for convergent validity (r = .57, p < .001). RPD and SPL-SAS were moderately correlated (r = .53, p < .001). Conclusion(s): The PBRAS-23-K is a valid and reliable instrument for assessing pregnant women’s risk of preterm birth. Clinical nurses are encouraged to apply and obtain information for effective interventions in MFICU. This scale has meaningful results and reflects the voices of women who had a preterm birth. The scale should be evaluated for standardization and cut-off scores using larger subject sizes in the future.

The paper shows an analysis of the large-scale distribution of galaxy spin directions of 739,286 galaxies imaged by DES. The distribution of the spin directions of the galaxies exhibits a large-scale dipole axis. Comparison of the location of the dipole axis to a similar analysis with data from SDSS, Pan-STARRS, and DESI Legacy Survey shows that all sky surveys exhibit dipole axes well within 1$\sigma$ error from each other. While non-random distribution is unexpected, the findings are consistent across all sky surveys, regardless of the telescope or whether the data were annotated manually or automatically. Possible errors that can lead to the observation are discussed. The paper also discusses previous studies showing opposite conclusions, and analyzes the decisions that led to these results. Although the observation is provocative, and further research will be required, the existing evidence justifies to consider the contention that galaxy spin directions as observed from Earth are not necessarily randomly distributed. Possible explanations can be related to mature cosmological theories, but also to the internal structure of galaxies.

The present paper is concerned with the study of the quality of life index. Such an index has become an important index for measuring the well-being of individuals. However, the quality of life index is always a subjective, intangible, and often hard to quantify with precision due to the lack of quantitative models dealing with. The main goal of the present paper is thus to propose a mathematical, quantitative model for the measurement of a quality of life index. The main novelty is firstly the construction of a wavelet dynamic multiscale model to quantify and investigate the effect of time scale on the quality of life index measuring. The proposed procedure is acted empirically on a sample corresponding to Saudi Arabia as a case of study during the period from 2003 to 2020 as part of the 2030-vision plan. Saudi Arabia has implemented the so-called 2030-vision plan where the quality of life improvement is one of the main goals to be attempted. The findings show that wavelets are capable to localize the time-wise behavior of the index contrarily to classical studies which estimate a global view of the index. Moreover, the study shows the link between the quality of life behavior and many other indices.

A robust hydrological assessment is challenging in regions where human interference, within all aspects of the hydrological system, significantly alters the flow regime of rivers. The challenge was to extend a large-scale water resources model, GWAVA, to better represent water resources without increasing the model complexity. A groundwater and a regulated reservoir routine were incorporated into GWAVA using modifications of the existing AMBHAS-1D and Hanasaki methodologies, respectively. The groundwater routine can be varied in complexity when sufficient input data is available but fundamentally is driven by three input parameters. The reservoir routine was extended to account for the presence of large, regulated reservoirs using two calibratable parameters. The additional groundwater processes and reservoir regulation was tested in two highly anthropogenically influenced basins in India: the Cauvery and Narmada. The inclusion of the revised groundwater routine improved the simulation of streamflow in the headwater catchments and was successful in improving the representation of the baseflow component. In addition, the model was able to produce a time series of daily groundwater levels, recharge to groundwater and groundwater abstraction. The regulated reservoir routine improved the simulation of streamflow in catchments downstream of major reservoirs, where the streamflow was largely reflective of reservoir releases, when calibrated using downstream observed streamflow records. The model was able to provide a more robust representation of the annual volume and daily outflow released from the major reservoirs and simulate the major reservoir storages adequately. The addition of one-dimensional groundwater processes and a regulated reservoir routine proved successful in improving the model performance and traceability of water balance components, without excessively increasing the model complexity and input data requirements.

An accurate understanding of jointed rock mass behavior is important in many applications ranging from deep geological disposal of nuclear waste to deep mining to urban geoengineering projects. The roughness of rock fractures and the matching of the fracture surfaces are the key contributors to the shear strength of rock fractures. In this research, push shear tests with three normal stress levels of 3.6, 6.0, and 8.5 kPa were conducted with two granite samples with artificially induced well-matching tensile fractures with sizes of 500 mm × 250 mm and 1000 mm × 500 mm. The large sample reached on average a -60 % weaker peak shear stress than the medium-sized sample, and a strong negative scale effect was observed in the peak shear strength. The roughness of the surfaces was measured using a profilometer and photogrammetry. The scale-corrected profilometer-based method (JRC) underestimates the peak friction angle for the medium-sized slabs by -27 % for the medium sample and -9 % for the large sample. The photogrammetry-based (Z’2) method produces an estimate with -7% (medium) and +12 % (large) errors. The photogrammetry-based Z’2 is an objective method that consistently produces usable estimates for the JRC and peak friction angle.

The present paper investigates numerically the resistance at full-scale of a zero-emission, high-speed catamaran in both deep and shallow water, with the Froude number ranging from 0.2 to 0.8. The numerical methods are validated by two means: a) comparison with available model tests; b) a blind validation using two different flow solvers. The resistance, sinkage and trim of the catamaran, as well as the wave pattern, longitudinal wave cuts and cross-flow fields, are examined. The total resistance curve in deep water shows a continuous increase with the Froude number while in shallow water, a hump is witnessed near the critical speed. This difference is mainly caused by the pressure component of total resistance, which is significantly affected by the interaction between the wave systems created by the demihulls. The pressure resistance in deep water is maximised at a Froude number around 0.58, whereas the peak in shallow water is achieved near the critical speed (Froude number ≈ 0.3). Insight into the underlying physics is obtained by analysing the wave creation between the demihulls. Profoundly different wave patterns within the inner region are observed in deep and shallow water. Specifically, in deep water, both crests and troughs are generated and moved astern as the increase of the Froude number. The maximum pressure resistance is accomplished when the secondary trough is created at the stern, leading to the largest trim angle. In contrast, the catamaran generates a critical wave normal to the advance direction in shallow water, which significantly elevates the bow and creates the highest trim angle as well as pressure resistance. Moreover, significant wave elevations are observed between the demihulls at supercritical speeds in shallow water which may affect the decision for the location of the wet deck.

Shrinking farm size and fragile farm resources pose a significant challenge to the sustainability of small-scale farms. Efficient resource utilization in small-scale farms is crucial to achieving farm sustainability through endogenous mechanisms. However, the precise mechanisms to integrate physical resources to achieve farm sustainability are not very clear yet. By capturing the interaction among farm resources as a network phenomenon, we identify the discrete resource interactions (RIs) in different types of small-scale farms of Indian Sundarbans, which are associated with higher farm sustainability. Thirty-two linkages, 11 reciprocal linkages, 22 triads, and three ‘core elements’ that occurred and cooccurred on highly sustainable farms are found to be critical in achieving farm sustainability. Using the properties of resource interaction networks as explanators of farm sustainability, we anticipate that sustainability in small-scale farms can be achieved by strategically creating new RIs on the farm. However, there may be limitations to such achievement depending on the nature of RI and type of farm. The analytical approach helps to understand the structural basis of sustainability in small-scale farms, and this approach can be used to achieve farm sustainability through the strategic integration of existing farm resources in the smallholder systems.

Perovskite based solar cells have achieved tremendous progress reaching record efficiency in the past 5 years. Numerous new processes and chemistry have been reported and contribute to the perovskite rapid progress. Continuous efficiency improvements are still necessary for perovskite solar cells, and an exploratory data analysis on devices performance over multiple studies could boost the technology development. Such analysis could identify patterns or provide insights that are not obvious in a single study. Here we present a high quality dataset containing only independently certified Pb-based perovskite solar cells summarizing their efficiency, relevant I-V metrics, manufacturing processes and materials used. Analysis over the dataset provides insights on how aperture size, perovskite deposition methods and materials used in each functional layer affect the final solar cell efficiency and I-V metrics. Future directions are also suggested for efficiency improvements.

From physics to the social sciences, information is now seen as a fundamental component of reality. However, a form of information seems still underestimated, perhaps precisely because it is so pervasive that we take it for granted: the information encoded in the very environment we live in. We still do not fully understand how information takes the form of cities, and how our minds deal with it in order to learn about the world, make daily decisions, and take part in the complex system of interactions we create as we live together. This paper addresses three related problems that need to be solved if we are to understand the role of environmental information: (1) the physical problem: how can we preserve information in the built environment? (2) The semantic problem: how do we make environmental information meaningful? And (3) the pragmatic problem: how do we enact environmental information in our daily lives? Attempting to devise a solution to these problems, we introduce a three-layered model of information in cities, namely environmental information in physical space, environmental information in semantic space, and the information enacted by interacting agents. We propose forms of calculating entropy in these different layers, and apply these measures to archetypal urban cases and simulated scenarios. Our results suggest that ordered spatial structures and diverse land use patterns encode information, and that aspects of physical and semantic information affect coordination in interaction systems.

Abstract: Comparing outcrop data to laboratory results is important to verify and validate experiments of analogue and reservoir materials especially regarding conditions for deformation experiments. This is important better understand highly complex carbonate reservoir strata and their response to changes in subsurface conditions, reducing subsurface uncertainty. This study develops methods to allow for a more straightforward comparison of outcrop data (m-scale) with experimentally created fracture arrays developed in cylindrical samples (cm-scale). The main objective is to assess usefulness of experimentally-produced fracture networks as analogues for subsurface structures, typically at the meter and above scale by developing new techniques to use the lab deformation. It analyses key characteristics of laboratory-induced fracture networks by adapting scanline methods to use with x-ray tomography (XRT) images to allow for comparison with outcrop and field data. To test and verify these new methods two low permeability carbonate samples were used for deformation testing and analysis. Applying the different scanline methods we show that they can be used to analyse lab induced fractures (mm to cm-scale) identified in XRT images for comparison with outcrop data (m-scale). In addition, these methods also allow for quantification of fracture network attributes e.g. fracture spacing, fracture apertures, orientation. This new data bridges the gap between micro-scanlines using thin sections and outcrop scanlines.

Auricular keloids pose significant aesthetic and functional challenges, and traditional treatments often fall short in ad-dressing these. Our study presents an innovative combined approach of ablative CO2 and dye laser therapy for improved keloid management. This treatment protocol was applied to 15 patients with auricular keloids after an initial multispec-tral analysis to assess keloid composition. The laser sequence was tailored per patient based on this analysis. Evalua-tions using the Vancouver Scar Scale and Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale were carried out at baseline and at 3-week intervals post-treatment. The results showed a significant reduction in these scores at the final follow-up (p<0.05), suggesting improvements in keloid color, texture, and pliability, with minimal adverse events. Additionally, no recur-rence of keloids was observed. Our findings indicate that this novel methodology of multispectral analysis followed by tailored laser therapy may offer a safe and effective solution for auricular keloids, promising enhanced keloid treatment and prevention of recurrence. However, further investigations, including randomized controlled trials, are needed to confirm and optimize this treatment protocol.

The awareness of the existence in plants of bioactive compounds namely phytochemicals (PHYs), having health properties is progressively expanding. Therefore, their massive introduction in the normal diet, in food supplements, and their use as natural therapeutics to treat several diseases are increasingly emphasized by several sectors. Particularly, most PHYs possessing antifungal, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antiulcer, anti-cholesterol, hypoglycemic, immunomodulatory, and antioxidant properties have been isolated from plants. Additionally, their secondary modification with new functionalities, to further improve their intrinsic beneficial effects, is extensively investigated. Unfortunately, although the idea of exploiting PHYs as therapeutics is amazing, its realization is far from simple, and the possibility of exploiting them as effective orally administrable drugs is almost utopic. Most PHYs are insoluble in water and, when introduced orally, they scarcely reach the site of action in therapeutic concentrations. Degradation by enzymatic and microbial digestion, occurring in the mouth, stomach, and intestine, as well as fast metabolism and rapid excretion via the kidney, biliary, or lung, strongly limit their in vivo activity. To overcome these drawbacks, several nanotechnological approaches have been used and many PHYs-loaded delivery systems with dimensions of nanometers have been developed. This paper, also by reporting various recent case studies, reviews the foremost nano-suspension and nano-emulsion-based techniques developed for formulating the most relevant PHYs in more bioavailable nanoparticles (NPs), suitable or promising for clinical application. Also, the acute and chronic toxic effects due to the exposure to NPs reported so far, the possible nanotoxicity which could derive by their massive employment, as well as the ongoing actions to improve the knowledge in the field were discussed. The state of the art concerning the actual clinical application of both PHYs and the nanotechnologically engineered PHYs was also reviewed.

Recently perovskite solar cells have been paying attention of researchers. This comes from their high efficiency and stability. In this work, the change of some Optical and Electrical Properties of BaxFe(1-x)TiO4 thin films due to the change of the nanocrystal spacing and size were studied. A simple theoretical model based on the string theory was utilized to explain some of these empirical relations. The empirical results obtained indicated that an increase in the efficiency of the nano solar cell requires the energy gap to be narrow. Decreasing the nanocrystal size and spacing caused the energy gap to become narrower. The energy gap decreases also upon increasing the absorption coefficient and decreasing the transmission. This also requires increasing the conductivity and the magnetic permeability. The increase of the nanocrystal spacing decreases the absorption coefficient, electrical conductivity, and magnetic permeability, while it causes the transmission to increase. All these changes are explained using a simple string model beside Newton's laws. The capability of the string theory to explain this Nano quantum behavior comes from the fact that the string theory, like quantum theory, recognizes both the particle and the wave nature of the Nano system.

Oral bone defects occur as a result of trauma, cancer, infections, periodontal diseases, and caries. Autogenic and allogenic grafts are the gold standard used to treat and regenerate damaged or defective bone segments. However, these materials do not possess the antimicrobial properties necessary to inhibit the invasion of the numerous deleterious pathogens present in the oral microbiota. In the present study poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL), nano-hydroxyapatite (nHAp), and a commercial extract of Humulus lupulus L. (hops) were electrospun into polymeric matrices to assess their po-tential for drug delivery and bone regeneration. The fabricated matrices were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), tensile analysis, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), FT-IR assay, and in vitro hydrolytic degradation. The antimi-crobial properties were evaluated against the oral pathogens Streptococcus mutans, Porphyromonas gingivalis, and Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans. The cytocompatibility was proved by the MTT assay. SEM analysis proved the nanostructured matrices have suitable fiber size. The present research provides new information about the interaction of natural compounds with ceramic and polymeric biomaterials. The hop extract and other natural or synthetic medicinal agents can be effectively loaded into PCL fibers and has the potential to be used in biomedical applications.

In this study, sodium alginate (SA) was oxidized with potassium periodate to produce an alginate-based tanning agent. Using OSA as a biodegradable tanning agent and a nano-hydroxyapatite (nano-HAp) low concentration suspension to give flame retardancy to leather, eco-design concepts were applied to establish a chrome-, aldehyde-, and phenol-free tanning process. Micro-DSC, 1H NMR, attenuated total reflection mode Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR-ATR), and scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) were used to investigate the complex matrix collagen-OSA-nano-HAp. Micro-differential scanning calorimetry (micro-DSC) was used to assess OSA's ability to interact with collagen and stabilize the collagen-OSA matrix, while 1H unilateral nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) was used to investigate the aqueous environment and limitations around collagen molecules caused by their association with OSA and nano-HAp. Industrial standard tests were used to assess mechanical properties and fire resistance of the new leather prototype. The findings reported here indicate that both OSA and nano-HAp are suitable alternatives for cleaner tanning technologies and more sustainable leather.

The creation of nano-zero-valent iron (nZVI) by implementing plant extracts is an environmentally friendly process. High antioxidant capacity and phenol content indicated the possibility of oak-nZVI synthesis using oak leaf extract as a stable material with minimal agglomeration. Simultaneously removal of Cd and phosphates and Ni and phosphates was optimized by a statistically designed experiment with a definitive screening design. In terms of significance, 4 input parameters on process productivity were monitored: initial metal concentration (1 - 9 mgL-1), initial ion concentration (1- 9 mgL-1), pH value (2 - 10) and oak-nZVI dosage (2 - 16 ml). Phosphate removal efficiency, in the presence of cadmium, was the most influenced by oak-nZVI dose and cadmium concentration, while pH gave three statistically significant interactions with oak-nZVI dosage, cadmium concentration, and phosphate concentration. Phosphate removal efficiency, in the presence of Ni, is the most influenced by nickel concentration, phosphate concentration, pH, two-factor interaction between nZVI dose and Ni concentration, and quadratic phosphate interaction. The process optimization yielded the highest simultaneous removal efficiency of 98.99% and 87.30% for cadmium and phosphate ions, respectively. Also, the highest simultaneous removal efficiency of nickel and phosphates ion was 93.44% for 96.75%, respectively. The optimization process fits into the confidence intervals, confirming the assumption that the adopted regression model describes the process well. This work demonstrated an enormous potential and prosperous application for the Cd(II), Ni(II), and phosphate removal from water matrices.

Using analysis methods such as Rutherford backscattering Spectrometry, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and Raman spectroscopy, the diffusion behavior of iodine in micro/nano-porous graphite under high-temperature conditions was studied. The results indicate that iodine diffusion leads to the contraction of graphite microcrystals, a decrease in interlayer spacing, and an increase in defect density, resulting in a reduction in microcrystal size. Upon diffusion of iodine out of iodine-loaded graphite, the microcrystal size of the graphite increases, the interlayer spacing appears to return to the initial state, and the defect density decreases. By comparing the iodine diffusion performance of nanoporous graphite G400 and G450 with microporous graphite G500, it was determined that nanoporous graphite exhibits better inhibition of iodine diffusion compared to microporous graphite. Studying the diffusion behavior of iodine in micro/nano-porous graphite has significant academic significance and engineering value for the screening, design, and performance optimization of nuclear graphite.

In this work the effect of recycled concrete aggregate modified with mineral admixtures and Nano-silica on the mechanical properties and performance of the concrete was investigated after curing in tap water for 28 and 90 days. The compressive, ƒc, indirect tensile, ƒt, and flexural, ƒb, strengths for cured concrete specimens were measured and concrete strength ratios were analyzed. The water and rapid chloride permeability were measured. SEM analysis of microstructure was, also, investigated. The coarse aggregates used were dolomite (control) and recycled concrete aggregate with the incorporation of different mineral admixtures including ground granulated blast slag and granite as well as Nano-silica. It was found that, the slump values of the dolomite concrete decreases compared with recycle aggregate concrete. The results indicate that, the concrete mix containing recycle aggregate have the highest compressive strength, tensile strength and flexural strength compered to concrete mix containing dolomite aggregate. As far as the compressive strength is concerned, the addition 1 % NS and 15 % of slag improved the physico-mechanical properties of the recycled aggregate concretes compared to the other mixes after curing in tap water.

Tissue engineering and regenerative medicine has gradually evolved as a promising therapeutic strategy to the modern healthcare of the aging and diseased population. In this study, we developed a novel nano-fibrous scaffold and verified its application in the critical bone defect regeneration. The metformin-incorporated nano-gelatin/hydroxyapatite fibers (NGF) was produced by electrospinning, cross-linked, and then characterized by XRD and FTIR. Cytotoxicity, cells adhesion, cell differentiation, and quantitative osteogenic gene and protein expression were analyzed by bone marrow stem cells from rat. Rat forearm critical bone defect model was performed for the in vivo study. The nano-gelatin/hydroxyapatite fibers (NGF) were characterized by their porous structures with proper interconnectivity without significant cytotoxic effects; the adhesion of bone marrow stem cells on the nano-gelatin/hydroxyapatite fibers (NGF) could be enhanced. The osteogenic gene and protein expression were upregulated. Post implantation, the new regenerated bone in bone defect was well demonstrated in the NGF samples. We demonstrated that the metformin-incorporated nano-gelatin-hydroxyapatite fibers greatly improved healing potential on the critical sized bone defect. Although metformin-incorporated nano-gelatin/hydroxyapatite fibers had advantageous effectiveness during bone regeneration, further validation is required before it can be applied to clinical applications.

Phytophthora. infestans is a well known late blight causing oomycetes pathogen. It evolves and adapts to the host background and new fungicide molecules rapidly within a few years of their release, may be due to the predominance of transposable elements in its genome. Frequent and huge applications of fungicides cause environmental concerns. Here we developed target specific RNA interference based molecules, that are capable of effectively reducing the late blight infection. cDNA microarray expression data was used for the selection of genes involved in the early stage of infection process, sporulation etc. The in vitro synthesis of double stranded RNA molecule, targeting SDH, EF-1α, GPI-HAM344, PLD-3 and HSP-90 encoding genes revealed the reduction in growth, sporulation and symptom expression, which were subsequently assessed by culture bioassay, detached leaf assay and topical application methods. The multiple genes targeted dsRNA nano clay sprayed plants showed enhanced disease resistance (4% disease severity) and least sporulation (<1x103), compared to naked dsRNA spray. Use of nano clay was assumed to be involved in the effective delivery, protection and boosting the action of RNAi in potato plants. A significant difference in the growth, sporulation count, disease severity and reduced expression of the genes and confocal microscopy imaging authenticates the effects of SIGS on late blight disease progression. Our research demonstrated that topical dsRNA nano clay spray under the open-air environment could be an alternative to chemical fungicides and transgenic approaches as a novel plant protection strategy for late blight in an environmentally friendly manner.

Currently, metal nanoparticles have varied uses for different medical, pharmaceutical, and agricultural applications. Nano-biotechnology combined with green chemistry has great potential for the development of novel and necessary products that benefit human activities, while encourages the reduction of hazardous reagents for nanoparticle production. Green chemistry has an important role due to its contribution to unconventional synthesis methods of gold and silver nanoparticles from plant extracts, which have exhibited antimicrobial potential among other outstanding properties. Biodiversity-rich countries need to collect and convert knowledge from biological resources into processes, compounds, methods, and tools, which need to be achieved along with sustainable use and exploitation of biological diversity. Therefore, this review focuses on the importance of metal nanoparticles, the use of plant extract for their synthesis as well as other available methods, and the relevant antimicrobial activity that can be exploited in a sustainable model of agricultural management through a modern nanotechnological approach.

Porosity in plasma sprayed coatings is vital for most engineering applications. It is either advantageous or disadvantageous depending on the functionality of the coating and the immediate working environment. Consequently, the formation mechanisms and development of porosity has been extensively explored to find out modes of controlling porosity in plasma sprayed coatings. In this work, a comprehensive review of porosity on plasma sprayed coatings is established. The formation and development of porosity on plasma sprayed coatings are governed by set spraying parameters. Optimized set spraying parameters have been used to achieve the most favorable coatings with minimum defects. Even with the optimized set spraying parameters, defects like porosity still occur. Here, we discuss other ways that can be used to control porosity in plasma sprayed coating with emphasis to atmospheric plasma sprayed chromium oxide coatings. Techniques like multi-layer coatings, nano-structured coatings, doping with rare earth elements, laser surface re-melting and a combination of the above methods have been suggested in adjusting porosity. The influences of porosity on properties of plasma sprayed coatings and the measurement methods of porosity have also been reviewed.

Traditional silicon binary circuits continue to face challenges such as high leakage power dissipation and large area of interconnections. Multiple-Valued Logic (MVL) and nano-devices are two feasible solutions to overcome these problems. In this paper, we present a novel method to design ternary logic circuits based on Carbon Nanotube Field Effect Transistors (CNFETs). The proposed designs use the unique properties of CNFETs, e.g., adjusting the Carbon Nanotube (CNT) diameters to have the desired threshold voltage and have the same mobility of P-FET and N-FET transistors. Each of our designed logic circuits implements a logic function and its complementary via a control signal. Also, these circuits have a high impedance state which saves power while the circuits are not in use. We show a more detailed application of our approach by designing a two-digit adder-subtractor circuit. We simulate the proposed ternary circuits using HSPICE via standard 32nm CNFET technology. The simulation results indicate the correct operation of the designs under different process, voltage and temperature (PVT) variations. Moreover, we designed a two-digit adder/subtractor and a power efficient ternary logic ALU based on the proposed gates. Simulation results show that the two-digit adder/subtractor using our proposed gates has 12X and 5X lower power consumption and PDP (power delay product) respectively, compared to previous designs.

Metal and alloy toughening was the core and long-term research direction in materials filed. As grain size had bimodal distribution, micro/nano-structured alloys presented excellent comprehensive mechanical properties, and this had become one of the research hotspots and developing trends in the field of nanotechnology. In-situ tensile test was a direct and effective method to study the deformation mechanism of materials, which revealed the multiple mechanisms responding to feature grain sizes and provided reliable experimental means and research technique. Research on development of in-situ technique and its applications in mechanical properties was reviewed in this paper according to the recent advances on the modern mechanical properties for high strength and high plasticity alloy at home and abroad. The disadvantages of the present study of preparation methods and investigation techniques for high-performance alloy had been concluded. Finally, the development prospects of high strength and high plasticity alloy materials were analyzed.

The study focused on the technical and scale efficiency of smallholder pineapple farmers in the Central Region of Ghana. The input-oriented Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) was used to estimate technical, pure and scale efficiencies of the smallholder pineapple farmers, of which a random sampling procedure was used to select 320 respondents. The study revealed that the farmers were technically inefficient with mean technical efficiency under Constant Returns to Scale (CRS), pure efficiency under Variable Returns to Scale (VRS) and the Scale Efficiency levels of 0.505, 0.641 and 0.772, respectively, due to farmers’ inability to exploit fully the available technology while experiencing evident post-harvest losses resulting from low adoption of post-harvest technologies. Such findings are meaningful and could help the farming communities and relevant policymakers to understand the issues in farming production and hence undertake necessary actions to potentially improve farmers’ technical and scale efficiencies in the study area.

Background: The adoption of self-care behaviors among patients with congestive heart failure (CHF) is essential for the management of their health condition. However, there is a lack of tools for estimating self-care in CHF patients. We aim to develop and validate the Hippocratic heart failure self-care scale (HHFSCS). Methods: the scale includes 22 items which are reviewed by a committee of experts. Individuals indicate the frequency at which they follow each self-behavior on a five-point Likert scale. Adult patients with CHF (n=250) from a General Hospital, in Athens, were participated in the study from June 2020 to March 2021. Reliability coefficients and Explanatory Factor Analysis (EFA), using a Varimax rotation and the Principal Components Method were used to assess the psychometric measurements. Results: The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of the HHFSCS was 0.807. The exploratory factor analysis identified two domains that accounted for 88.44% of the variance of the scale items; however, each sub-scale could not be used as an independent scale. Finally, the test-retest showed a significant strong correlation (r=0.973, p&lt;0.001). Conclusions: The HHFSCS is a reliable and valid tool for assessing self-behaviors in CHF patients. Health professionals can use it in their clinical practice to improve the management of patient’s health conditions.

Small scale carp polyculture plays a key role for food supply in Bangladesh, however, factors including water pollution, limited infrastructure and inadequate disease management hinder its sustainability. This paper reports on a survey of 231 farmers across the 6 major carp producing regions in Bangladesh, analyzing factors including, farmers’ social aspects, farm characteristics, information on disease and approaches adopted to combat them, and biosecurity practices. Almost half (46.8%) of the farms surveyed experienced disease in carp species, with clear regional variations. Eighty four percent of farms reported carp mortalities during disease outbreak, with an average mortality level 10.23±11.81%. Clinical signs during outbreaks lasted between a week and a month, and there was a peak in disease outbreaks in two seasonal periods between June to July and October to December. Disease incidence was related to a range of factors including the farmer experience, ponds/farm type, stocked species, and biosecurity practice. A combination of disinfecting measures during pond preparation and measures during stocking, including discarding fingerling transport water off-farm, fingerling disinfection and check the health of fingerlings before stocking significantly reduced disease occurrence. Treatments involving the antibiotics, ciprofloxacin, erythromycin, and azithromycin were reported as ineffective, raising concerns about non-prudent use, inadequate dosing (perhaps without appropriate veterinary guidance) and the potential for further driving antimicrobial resistance in the environment. The research unveils a concerning pattern of disease high disease incidence across small-scale carp farms in Bangladesh and the significant potential for disease spread highlights the need for responsible disposal practices. The study emphasizes the need for improving training and awareness programs are vital for addressing biosecurity and disease management challenges, ensuring sustainable aquaculture and community well-being.

One of the current challenges in Higher Education is the development of students’ emotional competencies, and consequently, how these competencies can be trained. Moreover, this must be addressed within the UN framework of inclusive, equitable, quality education (United Nations Agenda 2030) (SDG 4). To address this challenge, the present study set the following objectives: (1) to analyze pre-service teachers’ level of interest in EI and their perceived level of general EI knowledge, (2) to examine their self-perception of certain variables of emotional knowledge, according to their degree program and year of studies, (3) to analyze the relationship between these emotional knowledge variables and perceived emotional intelligence (EI); and (4) to study the predictive capacity of the study variables on future teachers' emotional knowledge variables. The study sample contained a total of 434 university students from three degree programs at two universities in Spain, of which 82.70% were women, and the mean age was 20.91 years. Two instruments were used: an ad hoc questionnaire, which assessed perceived emotional knowledge according to three variables (General knowledge of EI, where level of training in EI is considered; Intrapersonal knowledge of EI; and Theoretical-practical knowledge related to teaching), and the Trait Meta-Mood Scale (TMMS-24), which assesses metaknowledge of emotional states across three variables (Attention, Clarity, and Repair). Results of the study suggest that there are differences in perceived EI knowledge according to students' year of studies and according to their degree, and indicate that students present high interest, while their perceived level of knowledge is low. In addition, emotional clarity is the EI variable that was identified as being important in the emotional knowledge of future teachers. This study shows evidence of the importance of social-emotional competencies in initial teacher training.

The grinding process by friction at the micro-scale in a mill with stones is considered a variable combination of contacts: with two-body (the asperities of lower millstone in direct contact with the asperities of upper millstone) and the three-body (micro-particles of ground seeds trapped between the asperities of lower and the upper stones of the mill). Three elements are described: (1) the mechanic contact of the asperities of the lower and upper millstone, to predict pressures on asperities, by modeling; (2) tests on a millstone sample covered with grinding particles, and (3) tests on a wafer sample formed by the millstones with the grinding particles between them. The paper highlights the combined effects of the micro-scale friction by individual measurements and to sum these effects an analytical model was used, and to validate the model, several experiments were performed. A suitable grind by friction assumes the grain’s movement and the interaction between the seeds and solid surfaces and is highlighted through theoretical and experimental studies. Topography analysis of the surface of the millstones revealed the model of microscopic frictional force. Endpoint measurements (the traces of the surface topography evolution), enable model verification in the grinding process.

Thanks to its valuable assessment possibilities (subjective complaints and changes in nasal patency in the course of the examination), nasal provocation test may serve as an alternative tool for oral food challenges in the future. However, this test requires successive attempts to regulate its methodology in order to develop a standardized lyophilisate form and determine the threshold dose for a positive result. The study objective was to present the methodological foundation for nasal food allergen provocation tests induced by freeze-dried powdered chicken egg white. A control group of 25 individuals with no history of allergy to chicken eggs or any other allergy was included in the study. Optical rhinometry and visual analog scale were used to assess the response of nasal mucosa to local allergen challenge. Minor variations in nasal flows as measured by optical rhinometry were observed in the provocation tests. The mean optical density measurements (as measured regardless of the allergen dose used) varied from positive to negative values and vice versa; e.g., amounting to 0.018 OD (standard deviation 0,095) at 15 minutes and −0.011 OD (standard deviation 0,090) at 30 minutes. No significant differences were observed with regard to the perceived nasal discomfort using the visual analog scale. Due to the absence of nasal mucosal reactivity, nasal challenge is an excellent methodological tool for implementing food allergen tests.

Pain is a complex multidimensional feeling combined with sensorial and emotional features. The majority of patients undergoing orthodontic treatment reported various degrees of pain, which is perceived as widely variable between individuals, even when the stimulus is the same. Orthodontic pain is considered the main cause of poor-quality outcomes, patients' dissatisfaction, and lack of collaboration up to the interruption of the therapy. A deep understanding of pain and how it influences the patient’s daily life is fundamental to establishing proper therapeutic procedures and obtaining the correct collaboration. Because of its multifaced and subjective nature, pain is a difficult dimension to measure. The use of questionnaires and their relative rating scales is actually considered the gold standard for pain assessment. Depending on the patient’s age and cognitive abilities is possible to choose the most appropriate instrument for self-reported pain records. Although several scales have been proposed and a lot of them are applied, it remains uncertain which of these tools represents the standard and performs the most precise, universal, and predictable task. This review aims to give an overview of the aspects which describe pain, specifically the pain experienced during orthodontic treatment, the main tool to assess self-perceived pain in a better and more efficient way, the different indications for each of them, and their correlated advantages or disadvantages.

Innovation and technology are important tools of minerals sector efficiency and productivity im-provement. The uptake of technologies has proven important levelrs to improve the productivity of mining sector. This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of mine-level productivity by using a global data of copper, gold, and platinum from 1991-2020. Various drivers of proioductivity have been analysed to draw policy insights. Empirical findings reveal significant disparities in technical efficiency and productivity across mines and regions. A further decomposition of TFP into its different components suggest that the adoption of innovative practices and investment in technology adoption could improve the overall productivity of these commodities. The findings also suggest that an appropriate input mix and optimal scale of production could boost platinum mining productivity. Regional disparities in productivity in different commodities (e.g., South Africa vs. Zimbabwe) give policymakers with insights into how to support production scale and productivity through appropriate input mixtures.

Although the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) is a well-established instrument for the assessment of depressive symptoms in older adults, this has not been validated specifically for Portuguese cognitively impaired persons. The objective of this study was to analyze the psychometric properties of two Portuguese versions of the GDS (GDS-27 and GDS-15) in a Portuguese mild-to-moderate cognitively impaired sample. Clinicians assessed for major depressive disorder and cognitive functioning in 117 participants with mild to moderate cognitive decline (76.9% female, Mage = 83.66 years). The internal consistency of GDS-27 and GDS-15 were 0.874 and 0.812, respectively. There was a significant correlation between GDS-27 and GDS-15 with Beck Depression Inventory-II GDS-27: rho = 0.738, p < 0.001; GDS-15: rho = 0.760, p < 0.001), suggesting good validity. A cutoff point of 15/16 in GDS-27 and 8/9 in GDS-15 resulted in identification of persons with depression (GDS-27: sensitivity 100%, specificity 63%; GDS-15: sensitivity 90%, specificity 62%). Overall, the GDS-27 and GDS-15 are reliable and valid instruments for the assessment of depression in Portuguese-speaking cognitively impaired persons.

Considering the differences between the European and African continents concerning the management of the mining production sector, we decided to carry out this study with the main objective of demonstrating that, in Africa, mining can positively change the quality of life of the populations where it develops and, at the same time, it is possible to respect the environment, which is our main wealth. To achieve these objectives, it is necessary to present the mining activity of the continent, emphasizing both the negative aspects and its strong points. The most important thing is to make a good diagnosis of the situation, which will allow us to cure our "patient", that is, African mining production.

Marketing is the manner of how to make our sales the best in the market, our prices the most accessible, our clients satisfactory, and thus our brand is the largest distributed. This needs sophisticated and advanced understanding of the total network related. Indeed, marketing data may be seen in different forms such as qualitative and quantitative. However, in the literature, it is easily noticed that large bibliography may be collected about qualitative studies, against few studies on the quantitative point of view. This is a major drawback that makes the marketing science still focusing on the design, although the market is strongly depending on quantities such as money and time. Indeed, marketing data may be a time series such as brand sales per specified periods, brand related-prices over specified periods, market shares, ..., etc. The purpose of the present work is to investigate some marketing models based on time series due to brands. We will precisely study the effect of the time scale on the persistence of brands sales in the market and on the forecasting of such a persistence according to the characteristics of the brand and the related market competition or competitors. Our study is acted on a sample of Saudi brands during the period November 22, 2017 to December 30, 2021.

Background This paper draws learnings and successes based on field implementation experience spanning four years (2016–2019) of implementing CLTS by Prince of Peace Orphans and Widows Vision, a community-based organization located in Kaberamaido district in eastern Uganda. Methods The study aimed to document, disseminate and inform from an evidence-based point of view how adaptation and collaborative engagements triggers learning from mistakes to inform iterative changes from improvements and success.This is a descriptive paper that used project documents review based on field implementation experience. Existing project reports were synthesised, collated and curated for evidence. Data were drawn from project reports and records to inform narratives in writing. Implementation of the project was executed in homogenous rural communities occupied by people of the same dialect, cultural and social settings. Results We note that success in CLTS implementation can hardly be achieved by merely following prescriptions in handbooks and guidelines but rather by devising innovative community engagement and other participatory and community-driven techniques that foster adaptive management, promote ownership, and buy-in.Having learned from our failures, we used data to inform decisions and transformatively deviated from traditional CLTS implementation and introduced high impact and innovative approaches such as the use of CLTS helpdesks and Situation room, the Pamoja approach, learning labs and iterative feedback loops, innovatively tackling slippage and carefully introducing the follow-up mandona approach. These enhanced experiential learning and ultimately resulted in sustained sanitation behaviour. Conclusions The CLTS approach as outlined in the handbook needs to be flexibly adapted to address contextual needs. Reflective and learning sessions reinforced with routine feedback loops from implementers and beneficiaries yields tremendous results, propagates experiential learning, and ultimately results in a transformative deviation from undesirable to desired sanitation behaviours. These innovative approaches once carefully blended have proved to be sustainable, are adaptable and can work in an even larger scale and in a variety of contexts.

In this study, a composite flame retardant was created by combining fish scale (FS), fishery waste, and ammonium polyphosphate (APP), a commercially available flame retardant. The composite flame retardant was added to epoxy resin (EP) to form an EP/APP/FS composite that prevents burns and is environmentally friendly. The use of FS conforms to the concept of circular economy and lowers costs by reducing the consumption of APP. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), integral procedural decomposition temperature (IPDT), pyrolysis kinetics, limiting oxygen index (LOI), the Underwriters Laboratories 94 (UL94) flammability test, scanning election microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy were used to determine the thermal properties, flame retardant properties, flame retardant mechanism, char morphology, and composition of the composites. The TGA results indicated that the addition of 40% flame retardant raised the char residue from 16.45 wt% (pure EP) to 36.07 wt%, IPDT from 685.6 °C (pure EP) to 1143.1°C, LOI from 21% (pure EP) to 30%, and UL94 classification from fail (pure EP) to V-0. These results suggest an increase in char residue, which indicates better protection of the polymer matrix material. The improvements in IPDT, LOI, and UL94 classification, which indicate greater thermal stability, lower flammability (from flammable to fireproof), and higher flammability rating (from fail to V-0), respectively, suggest that the composite material has favorable thermal properties and is less inflammable.

Eco-friendly and low-cost water-based nanolubricants containing rutile TiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) were developed for accelerating their applications in industrial-scale hot steel rolling. The lubrication performance of developed nanolubricants was evaluated in a 2-high Hille 100 experimental rolling mill at a rolling temperature of 850 ℃ in comparison to that of pure water. The results indicate that the use of nanolubricant enables to decrease the rolling force, reduce the surface roughness and the oxide scale thickness, and enhance the surface hardness. In particular, the nanolubricant consisting of 4 wt% TiO2, 10 wt% glycerol, 0.2 wt% sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (SDBS) and 1 wt% Snailcool exhibits the best lubrication performance by lowering the rolling force, surface roughness and oxide scale thickness up to 8.1%, 53.7% and 50%, respectively. The surface hardness is increased by 4.4%. The corresponding lubrication mechanisms are attributed to its superior wettability and thermal conductivity associated with the synergistic effect of rolling, mending and laminae forming that are contributed by TiO2 NPs.

Biological gels (bio-gels) are hydrated polymer networks that serve diverse biological functions, which often lead to intentional or unintentional exposure to particulate matter. In this work, we derive a microscopically motivated framework that enables the investigation of penetration mechanisms into bio-gels. We distinguish between two types of mechanisms: spontaneous (unforced) penetration and forced penetration. Using experimental data available in literature, we exploit the proposed model to characterize and compare between the micro-structures of respiratory, intestinal, and cervicovaginal mucus and two types of biofilms. Next, we investigate the forced penetration process of spherical and ellipsoidal particles into a locally quadrilateral network. The proposed framework can be used to improve and complement the analysis of experimental findings in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo. Additionally, the insights from this work pave the way towards enhanced designs of nano-medicines and allow to assess risk factors related to the nano-pollutants exposure.

Huge filaments with scales from several hundred megaparsecs to gigaparsecs are detected in the distribution of galaxies and clusters, quasars, gamma-bursters. The hypothesis on the nature of the huge filaments as regions of space-time deformation is proposed. An anisotropic deformation of the local region is described by the strain tensor, it depends on the velocities of matter. Galaxies get an extra velocity in the region, which leads to the formation of filamentary structures. The class of exact solution of the GR equations is constructed by introducing the special definition of the Christoffel symbols as function of the velocity of matter. With a definition of these symbols, the motion matter equation turns into identity. For the sake of simplicity, an ideal fluid is considered.

Severe postoperative pain affects most patients after thoracotomy and is a risk factor for post-thoracotomy pain syndrome (PTPS). This randomized controlled trial compared preemptively administered ketamine versus paravertebral block (PVB) versus control in patients undergoing posterolateral thoracotomy. The primary outcome was acute pain intensity on the visual analog scale (VAS) on the first postoperative day. Secondary outcomes included morphine consumption, patient satisfaction, and PTPS assessment with Neuropathic Pain Syndrome Inventory (NPSI). Acute pain intensity was significantly lower with PVB compared to other groups at four out of six time points. Patients in the PVB group used significantly less morphine via a patient-controlled analgesia pump than participants in other groups. Moreover, patients were more satisfied with postoperative pain management after PVB. PVB, but not ketamine, decreased PTPS intensity at 1, 3, and 6 months after posterolateral thoracotomy. Acute pain intensity at hour 8 and PTPS intensity at month 3 correlated positively with PTPS at month 6. Bodyweight was negatively associated with chronic pain at month 6. Thus, PVB but not preemptively administered ketamine decreases both acute and chronic pain intensity following posterolateral thoracotomies. The trial was prospectively registered at the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry (https://www.anzctr.org.au/; ACTRN12616000900415; 07 July 2016).

In this work a modified version of the well-known Simple Water Balance (SWB) model, comprising here three parameters instead of one, was used. Although simple, the model was tested in large-scale river basins in east-central Greece, upstream two hydrometric stations. The available historic runoff records comprised 19 hydrologic years each, on a monthly basis. Thirteen among them were used for calibrating the model, whereas the six subsequent, for validating it. Two different efficiency criteria were used as a measure of performance of the modified model. Their values, calculated for both calibration and validation stages, were close and relatively high. Thus, keeping in mind both the size and complexity of the river basins studied, one can conclude that the modified model, despite its simplistic concept and lumped form, fits satisfactorily the historic runoff series.

Mill scale is the by-product of iron and steel industry. It can be recycled via sinter plant or solid as sinter feed materials. 85 to 90% of the constituent particles are more than 0.008 inches. The iron content is near around 70 %, with a very small amount of alkaline compounds and non-ferrous metals. Mill scale is polluted and contaminated with lubricants, oils and greases from the equipment. In this experiment for recovering of oil from mill scale, it is treated with three different methods. Then all methods were compared according to the ability of oil elimination and iron recovered. After washing and boiling with surfactants, large amount of polluted waste water becomes a problem for environment so this wastewater was utilized for making of Microbial Fuel Cells (MFCs), production of electricity in MFC depends on the biodegradation of organic materials, so different waste were added in wastewater for making MFC. The remaining of MFC was converted in bioethanol, biodiesel and biofertilizer. So this research is economical and environmentally friendly and fulfilled the important aspect of green environment with zero waste. It will be a mile stone in the research of metallurgy, environmental engineering, recycling technology and zero waste management.

While deforestation rates decline globally they are rising in the Western Amazon. Artisanal-scale gold mining (ASGM) is a large cause of this deforestation and brings with it extensive environmental, social, governance, and public health impacts, including large carbon emissions and mercury pollution. Underlying ASGM is a broad network of factors that influence its growth, distribution, and practices such as poverty, flows of legal and illegal capital, conflicting governance, and global economic trends. Despite its central role in land use and land cover change in the Western Amazon and the severity of its social and environmental impacts, it is relatively poorly studied. While ASGM in Southeastern Peru has been quantified previously, doing so is difficult due to the heterogeneous nature of the resulting landscape. Using a novel approach to classify mining that relies on a fusion of CLASlite and the Global Forest Change dataset, two Landsat-based deforestation detection tools, we sought to quantify ASGM-caused deforestation in the period 1984–2017 in the southern Peruvian Amazon and examine trends in the geography, methods, and impacts of ASGM across that time. We identify nearly 100,000 ha of deforestation due to ASGM in the 34-year study period, an increase of 21% compared to previous estimates. Further, we find that 10% of that deforestation occurred in 2017, the highest annual amount of deforestation in the study period, with 53% occurring since 2011. Finally, we demonstrate that not all mining is created equal by examining key patterns and changes in ASGM activity and techniques through time and space. We discuss their connections with, and impacts on, socio-economic factors, such as land tenure, infrastructure, international markets, governance efforts, and social and environmental impacts.

The thermal lubrication of an entangled polymeric liquid in wall-driven shear flows between parallel plates is investigated by using a multiscale hybrid method coupling molecular dynamics and the hydrodynamics (i.e., the synchronized molecular dynamics method). The temperature of the polymeric liquid rapidly increases due to viscous heating once the drive force exceeds a certain threshold value. The rheological properties of the polymeric liquid drastically change at around the critical drive force. In the weak viscous-heating regime, the conformation of polymer chains is dominated by the local shear flow so that the anisotropy of the bond orientation tensor grows as the drive force increases. However, in the large viscous-heating regime, the conformation dynamics is dominated by the thermal agitation of polymer chains so that the bond orientation tensor recovers more uniform and random structures as the drive force increases, even though the local shear flows are further enhanced. Remarkably, these counter-intuitive transitional behaviors give an interesting re-entrant transition in the stress--optical relation, where a linear formalism in the stress--optical relation approximately holds even though each of the macroscopic quantities behaves nonlinearly. The robustness of the linear stress--optical relation is also confirmed in the spatiotemporal evolution at the hydrodynamic level.

Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) are widely used in geographic and environmental studies. In the current work, the fusion of multi-source DEMs is investigated to improve the overall accuracy of public domain DEMs. Multi-scale decomposition is an important analytical method in data fusion. Three multi-scale decomposition methods – the wavelet transform (WT), bidimensional empirical mode decomposition (BEMD) and nonlinear adaptive multi-scale decomposition (N-AMD) - are applied to the 1-arc-second Shuttle Radar Topography Mission Global digital elevation model (SRTM-1 DEM) and the Advanced Land Observing Satellite World 3D – 30 m digital surface model (AW3D30 DSM) in China. Of these, the WT and BEMD are popular image fusion methods. A new approach for DEM fusion is developed using N-AMD (which is originally invented to remove the cycle from sunspots). Subsequently, a window-based rule is proposed for the fusion of corresponding frequency components obtained by these methods. Quantitative results show that N-AMD is more suitable for multi-scale fusion of multi-source DEMs, taking the ice cloud and land elevation satellite (ICESat) global land surface altimetry data as a reference. The vertical accuracy of the fused DEM shows significant improvements of 29.6% and 19.3% in a mountainous region and 27.4% and 15.5% in a low-relief region, compared to the SRTM-1 and AW3D30 respectively. Furthermore, a slope position-based linear regression method is developed to calibrate the fused DEM for different slope position classes, by investigating the distribution of the fused DEM error with topography. The results indicate that the accuracy of the DEM calibrated by this method is improved by 16% and 13.6%, compared to the fused DEM in the mountainous region and low-relief region respectively, proving that it is a practical and simple means of further increasing the accuracy of the fused DEM.

The research sought to investigate the long term characteristics of wind in the Kisii region (elevation 1710m above sea level, 0.68^oS, 34.79^o E). Wind speeds were analyzed and characterized on short term (per month for a year) and then simulated for long term (ten years) measured hourly series data of daily wind speeds at a height of 10m. The analysis included daily wind data which was grouped into discrete data and then calculated to represent; the mean wind speed, diurnal variations, daily variations as well as the monthly variations. The wind speed frequency distribution at the height 10 m was found to be 2.9ms^-1 with a standard deviation of 1.5. Based on the two month’s data that was extracted from the AcuRite 01024 Wireless Weather Stations with 5-in-1 Weather Sensor experiments set at three sites in the region, averages of wind speeds at hub heights of 10m and 13m were calculated and found to be 1.7m/s, 2.0m/s for Ikobe station, 2.4m/s, 2.8m/s for Kisii University stations, and 1.3m/s, 1.6m/s for Nyamecheo station respectively. Then extrapolation was done to determine average wind speeds at heights (20m, 30m, 50m, and 70m) which were found to be 85.55W/m², 181.75W/m², 470.4W/m² and 879.9W/m² respectively. The wind speed data was used statistically to model a Weibull probability density function and used to determine the power density for Kisii region.

We focus on macromolecules which are modelled as sequentially growing dual scale-free networks. The dual networks are built by replacing star-like units of the primal treelike scale-free networks through rings, which are then transformed in a small-world manner up to the complete graphs. In this respect, the parameter γ describing the degree distribution in the primal treelike scale-free networks regulates the size of the dual units. The transition towards the networks of complete graphs is controlled by the probability p of adding link between non-neighbouring nodes of the same initial ring. The relaxation dynamics of the polymer networks is studied in the framework of generalized Gaussian structures by using the full eigenvalue spectrum of the Laplacian matrix. The dynamical quantities on which we focus here are the averaged monomer displacement and the mechanical relaxation moduli. For several intermediate values of the parameter’s set (γ, p) we encounter for these dynamical properties regions of constant in-between slope.

It is important to realize the transformation behavior of wüstite because it greatly affects the final structure of the oxide layer and the surface quality of the steel products. In the present study, the transformation behaviors of the wüstite layer are examined under nearly-oxygen-free conditions, to simulate the cooling processes after the hot rolled strip is coiled. As the single phase wüstite was prepared at 950˚C, the 460˚C transformed oxide layer was composed of a mixture of iron and magnetite formed through eutectoid reactions. For the 750˚C-fabricated wüstite, only magnetite was observed after transformation, without iron precipitates and residual wüstite. It is speculated that the unusual transformation behavior of the low-temperature-made wüstite results from the pseudo-structural intermediate phase transformation between wüstite and magnetite. This pseudo-structure is a pre-transformed wüstite and of various concentration of ferrous ion, which is determined by the fabrication conditions. During the hot strip mill process, the so-called wet scale, wüstite, is produced continuously from finish mill to laminar flow sections and ended at 570˚C. Consequently, the final eutectoid transformation below 570˚C is dominantly controlled by the surface temperature ranged from 750˚C to 950˚C for low carbon steel.

TThe following three objectives were tested in this study: (1) investigate the utility of low-altitude remote sensing using UAS technology to compare the effects of different N application systems in rice production; (2) use spatial extrapolation to scale up plot-level generated to farmer field rice yield data based on crop spectral signatures, and (3) predict and map out rice productivity as a function of N placement systems. Images were captured on a UAV platform at midseason of the rice crop. Orthomosaics were developed for selected fields in rice-producing zones. Grain yields were assessed from low, medium, and high crop health plots delineated based on NDVI values. On the plot scale, UDP outyielded non-UDP by 0.84%. Individual plot yield data were scaled up to the farmer field level through Jenks natural breaks classification and es-tablishing an empirical relationship between OSAVI and plot yields. Assessment of the scaled-up field levelfield-level data also confirmed the superiority of UDP N man-agement over the non-UDP systems in promoting rice yields. Scaling up plot scale da-ta to whole field levels also facilitated generating and mapping expected yield maps for individual farmer fields in the three zones studied. This study has established a tangible simple but tangible protocol protocol for predicting and mapping rice yields in small-scale farmer fields using UAS data.

With the increasing demand for energy worldwide, researchers from different fields have been striving to improve the sustainability and proper utilization of energy resources. Passive radiative cooling, as a natural energy transport method, can achieve cooling without additional external energy input. This review provides a comprehensive examination of passive radiative cooling, including its fundamental theories and latest development. A particular emphasis is placed on the diverse range of fields where passive radiative cooling has been applied, notably including but not limited to construction and architecture. The current state of applications, potential challenges that may arise with wider adaption and promising research directions for each field are thoroughly discussed. This review underscores the universal applicability and feasibility of passive radiative cooling and contributes to its future development by identifying promising areas for further exploration.

This study investigates the contribution of nano-alumina (nA: 1-3wt.% binder) to the performance of silica fume (SF-10%) blended mortar in ternary blended mortar. The fresh (workability, setting time) and hardened properties (compressive strength and thermal resistance (300 °C for 1 h)), were examined. Nano alumina (nA) contributed positively to the consistency of SF blended mortar such that similar workability could be achieved with OPC when 3% nA was added. The initial and final setting time of 180 and 220 mins were recorded in SF blended mortar and reduced by 18.4 and 21.8%, respectively by adding 3%nA. The optimum mixture that contained 10%SF and 2%nA had 3-d and 28-d compressive strengths of 28 and 43.2 MPa. In the absence of nA, this reduced by 14.3% and 29.4% while it reduced by 25.2% and 16.7%, respectively in OPC mortar. The main products characterizing SF-nA ternary blended binder with dense microstructural density were nepheline and tobermorite. Besides, it is more susceptible to carbonation despite its superior performance in thermal resistance when compared to SF blended and OPC mortars.

This paper describes the packaging models that are fundamental for the design of ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC), and their evolution. They are divided into two large groups: continuous and discrete models. The latter are those that provide the best answer in obtaining an adequate simulation of the packing of the particles up to nanometric size. This includes the interaction among the particles by means of loosening and wall coefficients, allowing a simulation of the virtual and real compactness of such particles. In addition, a relationship between virtual and real compactness is obtained, through the compaction index, which may simulate the energy of compaction that the particles undergo in their placement in the mold. The use of last-generation additives allows such models to be implemented with water-cement (w/c) ratios close to 0.18. However, the premise of maximum packing as a basic pillar for the production of UHPC should not be the only one. The cement hydration process affected by nanoadditions and the ensuing effectiveness in the properties in both fresh and hardened state according to the respective percentages in the mixture should also be studied. An adequate ratio and proportion of these additions may lead to an obtaining of better results even with lower levels of compactness.

At present, the world is now passing a very far different time than normal situation due to the COVID-19 pandemic crisis. The global life-style and human civilization is currently progressing with down-stream that affecting almost every sectors necessary for human civilizations except the current environmental situation. To control the COVID-19 spreading, most of the countries are following lockdown process that reduces human mobility, thus reducing the CO2 emission to the environment. Though the COVID-19 pandemic is a blessing for the present environment, however, the post-COVID world will face a massive thrust of energy and only conventional energy resources may not be enough to mitigate the energy demands. Solar power generation technology mainly the photovoltaic (PV) systems and their advancement can be the leading possibilities to minimize the gap between the power demand and generation. It is now time to think how we can improve the PV power generation in future and the post-COVID world. In this encyclopaedia communication, we report on Nano-technological approach to improve the conversion efficiency of GaAs solar cells. We have designed and optimized several types of nano-structured assemblies that can be implemented to reduce the front surface incident light reflection losses thus can assist to improve the conversion efficiency of GaAs solar cells.

The science on the anthropogenic airborne aerosols impacting upon the World Heritage marble monument, the Taj Mahal, at Agra has been studied in the light of modern physico-chemical approaches. The study is an effort to understand yet unrecognized airborne species which were found on the surface of the Taj Mahal monument. These species have been analyzed in the light of current analytical methods to impart characterization features and their possible impacts on the surface of the marble. Chemical constituents of these substrates which were incorporated over the top surface of the monument have been identified. Interestingly, the carbon particulates which were thought in the micro level, popularly called “particulate matters” has now been identified even in the nano domain entity, which are chemically more reactive, have been found on the surface of the monument. Because of their high chemical activity these nano carbons do play newer chemistry in the presence of air and sunlight generating several reactive oxygen species (ROS).These ROS are capable to respond to complicated chemical reactions on the surface of the marble in association with deposited cyanophyceae and other deposits of plant origin causing rapid degradation. This study provides the nature of onslaught borne out by such monument exposed under the prevalent smoggy environmental scenario.

The effect of γ-ray irradiation on surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensing capability of refractive index (n = 1.418–1.448) of the silica glass optical fiber comprised of germano-silicate glass cladding embedded with Au nano-particles (NPs) was investigated. As the γ-ray irradiation increased from 1 hour to 3 hours with the dose rate of 1,190 Gy/h, the morphology of the Au NPs and the SPR spectrum were found to change. The average diameter of Au NPs increased with the aspect ratio from 1 to 2 and the nano-particles became grown to the clusters. The SPR peak wavelength shifted towards longer wavelength with the increase of total dose of γ-ray irradiation regardless of the corresponding refractive indices. The SPR sensitivities (wavelength/refractive index unit, nm/RIU) also increased from 407 nm/RIU to 3,553 nm/RIU, 1,483 nm/RIU, and 2,335 nm/RIU after the γ-ray irradiation at the total dose of 1,190 Gy, 2,380 Gy, and 3,570 Gy, respectively.

Biocompatible polymeric materials with potential to form functional structures in association with different therapeutic molecules have a high potential for biological, medical and pharmaceutical applications. Therefore, the protective capability of the inclusion nano-Complex formed between the sodium salt of poly(maleic acid-alt-octadecene) and a β-lactam drug (ampicillin trihydrate) on the chemical, enzymatic and biological degradation was evaluated. PAM-18Na was produced and characterized as reported previously. The formation of polymeric hydrophobic aggregates in aqueous solution was determined, using pyrene as a fluorescent probe. Furthermore, the formation of polymer-drug nano-complexes was characterized by Differential Scanning Calorimetry-DSC, viscometric, ultrafiltration/centrifugation assays, zeta potential and size measurements by dynamic light scattering-DLS. The PAM-18Na capacity to avoid the chemical degradation was studied through stress stability tests. The enzymatic degradation was evaluated from a pure β-lactamase, while the biological degradation was determined by different β-lactamase producing Staphylococcus aureus strains. When ampicillin was associated with PAM-18Na, the half-life time in acidic conditions increased, whereas both the enzymatic degradation and the minimum inhibitory concentration decreased to a 90 and 75%, respectively. These results suggest a promissory capability of this polymer to protect the β-lactam drugs against chemical, enzymatic and biological degradation.

Previous high throughput screening studies indicated trans-eQTLs tend to be tissue specific. In this study, I probed if this feature can be used to identify tissue-specific gene regulatory networks. eQTL data (P<5e-8) for 16,259 genes were identified and their summary association statistics were obtained from the eQTLGene database. Next, eQTLs that display both cis and trans regulatory effects were selected and the association between their corresponding genes were examined using Mendelian randomization. A total of 169 genes that exerted trans-regulatory impacts on 692 genes were identified. 90% of the genes (N=749) aggregated into a gene regulatory network significantly enriched in hemo-immune processes. The robustness of finding was confirmed through simulation. The identified network displayed the scale-free topology. This provided the reason to examine the association of the network’s hub genes with the phenome. The outcome of analyses revealed GSDMB and ORMDL3 impact several disorders of immune origin and ALDH2 overexpression contributes to obesity. This study reports trans-eQTLs can be used to identify tissue-specific gene regulatory networks and describes a workflow to achieve this purpose. The network identified in this study showed scale-free topology indicating the hub genes of a GRN could be targeted to prevent disease outcomes.

Dynamic crossflow filtration (DCF) is the state-of-the-art technology for solid-liquid separation from viscous and sensitive feed streams in the food and biopharma industry. Up to now, the potential of industrial processes is often not fully exploited because fixed recipes are usually applied to run the processes. Therefore, a digital twin has been developed to optimize an industrial brownfield DCF plant. The core of the digital twin is a mechanistic-empirical process model combining fundamental filtration laws with process expert knowledge. The effect of variation of selected process and model parameters on plant productivity has been assessed using a model-based design-of-experiments approach and a regression metamodel has been trained with the data. A cyclic program that bidirectionally communicates with the DCF asset serves as frame of the digital twin. It monitors the process dynamics membrane torque and transmembrane pressure and feeds back the optimum permeate flow rate setpoint to the physical asset in almost real-time during process runs. The presented digital twin framework is a simple example how an industrial established process can be controlled by a hybrid model-based algorithm. With a digital process dynamics model at hand, the presented metamodel optimization approach can be easily transferred to other (bio)chemical processes.