Nature-based solutions (NbS) rapidly develop globally to address societal challenges and provide human well-being and biodiversity. Watershed restoration plays an essential role in enhancing the ecological and socio-economic benefits of the region. The design and implementation of watershed restoration projects play a crucial role in their effectiveness, and NbS has been applied as a concept in ecosystem-related projects. This paper provides an idea to evaluate the design or implementation of watershed restoration projects based on the eight criteria proposed by the IUCN Global Standard for Nature-Based Solutions and to adjust the projects based on the evaluation results. The aim is to standardize the implementation process of watershed restoration projects to achieve more significant benefits and practically apply the concept of NbS in watershed restoration. implementation scheme of the Shan-Shui Initiative in the Jiulong River Watershed and concludes that the method is feasible in evaluating and improving the design and implementation scheme of ecological restoration projects in the actual basin. According to the assessment results, the degree of matching based on NbS for the implementation scheme of the Jiulong River Watershed Shan-Shui Initiative is 73%, which meets the criteria of NbS but needs to be improved in terms of monitoring and assessment, synergistic management, and benefit trade-offs.

The human gut microbiota (GM) is a complex and dynamic ecosystem that hosts trillions of commensal and potentially pathogenic microorganisms. It is crucial in protecting humans from pathogens and in maintaining immune and metabolic homeostasis. Numerous studies have demonstrated that GM has a significant impact on health and disease, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD). AD is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by impaired short-term memory and cognitive deficits. Patients with AD have been reported to exhibit abnormalities in GM density and species composition. Oxidative stress (OS) has been implicated in the onset and progression of AD, however, the relationship between OS and gut microbiota in AD onset and progression is not clear. Twendee X®︎ (TwX), an oral supplement consisting of 8 active ingredients, has been shown to prevent dementia in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in humans and substantially improve cognitive impairment in mouse models of AD. This positive effect is achieved through the potency of the combined antioxidants that regulate OS and therefore similar results cannot be achieved by a single antioxidant ingredient. To examine the impact of long-term OS elevation as seen in AD on the body and GM, we examined GM alterations during the initial OS elevation using a rat 2-week OS loading model, and examined the effects of TwX on OS and GM. Furthermore, using a questionnaire survey and fecal samples, we analyzed the impact of TwX on healthy individuals' gut bacteria and the associated effect on their quality of life (QOL). TwX was found to increase the number of bacteria species and their diversity in GM, as well as butyrate-producing bacteria, which tend to be reduced in AD patients. Additionally, TwX improved defecation condition and QOL. The gut bacteria function as part of the homeostatic function during OS elevation, and prophylactic administration of TwX strengthened this function. The results suggests that the preventative effect of TwX on dementia may involve the GM in addition to the other effects previously demonstrated.

In this paper, we explore a new norm on L^p-space called r-norm, and hence producing a new normed space called r-normed space. Measure theoretic and functional analytic properties are covered such as the relation between r-norm and the classical p-norm. An application of r-normed space in probability theory and statsitics is also presented, notably, its role as a rigorous framework in describing the coefficient of determination.

The formation of the required AC voltage level is currently one of the most important problems. An unstable voltage level can lead to the failure of domestic and industrial equipment, also to the appearance of a lighting equipment flicker effect, which can adversely affect the operating mode. In this regard, the development of AC voltage regulators that perform the function of stabilizers has become relevant. In turn, new topologies should be energy efficient and reliable, this can be achieved by reducing the number of semiconductor elements, which in turn will reduce losses and increase efficiency. In addition to voltage stabilization, AC voltage regulators have found application as soft-start devices for asynchronous motors, and have become competitors to frequency converters. The power level can vary from units to tens of kilowatts where such devices can be used. This paper provides a review of AC voltage regulators, which can be used both as soft starters and AC voltage stabilizers. The analysis of the circuits was carried out and the efficiency was evaluated through their total harmonic distortions (THD), power factor and efficiency coefficient. Experiments were also performed for a number of circuits, where their operating modes were evaluated. Eventually, all circuits were divided into full number of switches with two or more AC switches per phase, with a reduced number of switches, where one AC switch per phase and with low number of switches – with one complementary pair of AC switches for all three phases.

Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have been used in a broad range of applications conferring to bio-molecules diverse proprieties such as deliver, stabilization and reduction of adverse effects of drugs or plant ex-tracts. Polyphenolic compounds from Bacopa procumbens (BP) are able to modulate proliferation, adhesion, migration and cell differentiation, reducing artificial scratch area in fibroblast cultures and promoting wound healing in in vivo model. Here, chemically synthetized AuNPs conjugated with BP (AuNP-BP) were characterized by Uv-Vis, ATR-FTIR, DLS and zeta-potential. Results showed over-lapping FTIR spectra of polyphenolic compounds from B. procumbens capping the AuNPs, stable size by the DLS and zeta potential, AuNP-BP was 44.58 nm, the zeta-potential of AuNPs was -36.3±12.3 mV after conjugation with the BP; - (AuNP-BP), the zeta-potential was reduced to -18-2±7.02 mV. Enhancement of wound healing effect were evaluated by morphometric, histochemical and FTIR changes in rat wound excision model. Results showed that the nanoconjugation process reduced 100 folds BP concentrations to have the same wound healing effect of BP alone. Besides histological and FTIR spec-troscopy analyses, demonstrated that AuNP-BP treatment displayed better macroscopical performance; the reduction on inflammatory cells, and the increased synthesis and better organization of collagen fibers.

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are membrane-bound particles released from cells, and their cargo can alter the function of recipient cells. EVs from X-irradiated cells have been shown to play a likely role in non-targeted effects. However, EVs derived from proton irradiated cells have not yet been studied. We aimed to investigate and compare the proteome of EVs and their cell of origin after proton or X-irradiation. The EVs were derived from a human oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) cell line exposed to 0, 4, or 8 Gy with either protons or X-rays. The EVs and irradiated OSCC cells underwent liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry for protein identification. Interestingly, we found different protein profiles both in the EVs and in the OSCC cells after proton irradiation compared to X-irradiation. In the EVs, we found that protons cause a downregulation of proteins involved in cell growth and DNA damage response compared to X-rays. In the OSCC cells, proton and X-irradiation induced dissimilar cell death pathways and distinct DNA damage repair systems. These results are of potential importance for understanding how non-targeted effects in normal tissue can be limited and for future implementation of proton therapy in the clinic.

This article presents the results of studies of the structure and conductive properties of Na3Fe2(PO4)3 polycrystals synthesized by solid-phase and melt (using concentrated optical radiation) methods. It has been established that with the melt method, the synthesis of the material occurs under significantly nonequilibrium temperature-gradient conditions, which leads to the creation of deformations in the sample that contribute to an increase in ionic conductivity. The ability of the Na3Fe2(PO4)3 structure to adapt to anomalous deformations that occur under temperature-gradient conditions indicates the elasticity of the crystalline framework {[Fe2(PO4)]3-}3∞. Through a comparative assessment of the structural parameters and conductive properties of these materials, it is shown that polycrystals obtained by the melt method have a better texture and greater ionic conductivity. The advantage of this method is that the duration of the synthesis of α-Na3Fe2(PO4)3 is halved. It is concluded that this method is applicable to obtain effective polycrystals of other compositions.

The present study investigates the decision-making process of investors on the Pakistan Stock Exchange with regard to portfolio construction, explicitly focusing on the incorporation of ESG concerns. The present study employed SmartPLS and structural equation modeling (SEM) to quantitatively assess data received from a sample of 393 out of 400 respondents. Based on the available data, investors participating in the Pakistan Stock Exchange are notably impacted by ESG aspects. The findings of this study hold significance for emerging economy firms, regulators, and investors, both in terms of theoretical and practical ramifications. The study's findings demonstrate a clear indication of investors' significant emphasis on ESG matters. Furthermore, it provides valuable insights for stakeholders who are involved in the ever-evolving realm of sustainable finance within developing countries

This study aims to understand Filipino rice farmers’ aspirations, both farming and non-farming-related. Understanding aspirations can help the government and interested third-party entities to provide impactful initiatives to farmers. The Role Identity Theory guided our analysis in this study. This study is predominantly qualitative, with focus group discussion as the main method of collecting data. The research sites were in Kalinga, Nueva Ecija, Laguna, Quezon, Northern Samar, Zamboanga del Sur, Sultan Kudarat, and Agusan del Norte. Among the farming-related aspirations noted in this study relate to property, fair price, infrastructure, government support, and good governance. The non-farming related aspirations relate to infrastructure development; progress; government support and governance; love, passion, peace, and unity; wellness and long life.

At present Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) is one of the leading contributing factor to mortality and the impact of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection on the sinonasal tract has become more prominent, particularly with the rising awareness of olfactory dysfunction (OD). We extracted data from published papers available in electronic databases (Wiley online library, PubMed, and Nature). We used the following search terms alone or with combinations - Olfactory dysfunction, SARS-CoV-2, mechanism and treatments. We found worldwide up to 98% of patients confirmed OD due to COVID-19. Current studies have implied that regardless of the high self-reported recovery rate, 25–40% of patients after 1 or 2 months and approximately 15%–28% of patients at six months struggle to fully restore their sense of smell. Moreover, female sex, younger and older age, active smoking, and chronic lung disease are reported as the associated risk factors of OD. Although the pathophysiological mechanism of action(s) of the OD is yet to be explored in depth, central nervous system (CNS) entrance, olfactory bulb (OB) and sustentacular cell damage, neural routes inflammation, non-neuronal cells damage, decreased OB volume and deregulation of olfactory receptor genes are among the commonly reported mechanisms for the development of OD.

(1) Background: The COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected worldwide, with varying responses implemented to control its spread. This study aimed to compare the epidemic data compiled by the World Health (2) Methods: Organization to understand the impact of the measures adopted by each country on the mortality rate. The increase or decrease in the number of confirmed cases was understood in logarithmic terms, for which logarithmic growth rates “K” were used. The mortality rate was calculated as the percentage of deaths from the confirmed cases, which was also used for logarithmic comparison. (3) Results: Countries that effectively detected and isolated patients had a mortality rate 10 times lower than those that did not. Although strict lockdowns were once effective, they could not be implemented on an ongoing basis. In fact, after their cancelation, large outbreaks occurred because of medical breakdowns. The virus variants mutated with increased infectivity, which impeded the measures that were once effective, including vaccinations. Although the designs of mRNA vaccines were renewed, they could not keep up with the virus mutation rate. The only effective defence was steadily identifying and isolating patients. (4) Conclusions: These findings have crucial implications for the complete containment of the pandemic and future pandemic preparedness.

Background The workload of nurses in the intensive care unit (ICU) can affect the quality of nursing services. Aim This study aimed to determine the relationship between the nursing activity score and missed care in patients hospitalized in the ICU in Zanjan, Iran. Methods This observational and prospective study was conducted from April 3 to September 18 in 2021. In this study, the tools used included a patient and nurses' profile questionnaire, Nursing Activity Score (NAS). Missed care was observed in the 301 patients for whom the NAS was calculated. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to investigate the differences in mean levels of missed care. Logistic regression models were used to assess the association between factors and missed nursing care. Results Results show that the Medical ICU's mean NAS was 76.31 (95% CI: -13.06 -14.89). In 9 dimensions of care, the extent of missed care was 40.7%. In the care dimensions of assessment, hand hygiene, and infection control, the mean NAS had a statistically significant increase at higher levels of missed care (P<.5). Furthermore, work experience was identified as a protective factor for missed care (OR =.59, 95% CI: .37–.94, χ2= =4.97, p =.026). Conclusion The study revealed a high incidence of missed care. The study revealed that the mean workload was high in certain dimensions of care such as assessment, hand hygiene, and infection control. The increase in workload for nurses results in lost care. Nonetheless, the utilization of experienced nurses can help mitigate this problem. However, utilizing experienced nurses can help reduce this problem.

Simple cysts (SCs) within the testes are rare in adults. The testicular SC lining comprises mesothelial cells. This report presents a case involving the accidental discovery of a castration-worthy SC in the right testis of a Japanese man in his 90s who was diagnosed with prostatic adenocarcinoma. Microscopic analysis revealed that the cystic wall was covered with flat to cuboidal mesothelial cells. Immunohistochemistry demonstrated mesothelial cell positivity for calretinin, Wilms tumor 1 (WT-1), Hector Battifora mesothelial epitope-1 (HBME-1), and cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p16 (p16INK4a). Notably, no human papillomavirus (HPV) in situ hybridization was detected. This report outlines an exceptionally rare instance of a simple cyst within the testis, suggesting the possibility of its origin from ectopic rete testis epithelium. This marks the inaugural documentation in the English literature of an SC within the testis found incidentally during castration for prostatic cancer.

A recently proposed single image parasite quantification (SIMPAQ) platform based on a Lab-On-a-Disc (LOD) device has been earlier successfully tested in field conditions demonstrating the efficiency in soil-transmitted helminths (STH) egg detection and analysis. A related study (Micromachines 2021, 12, 1032) revealed the effects that can limit the performance of a SIMPAQ method due to the action of the Euler and Coriolis forces, and the interaction of the moving eggs with the walls of the LOD chamber. Here we propose a new improved design that allows to overcome those limitations and enhance the yield of the SIMPAQ LOD device which is demonstrated in the experiments with synthetic particle model system and real parasite eggs.

Existing research concerning the effects of the sitting birth position during the second stage of labour on maternal and neonatal outcomes remains controversial, and there is a lack of studies to explore its effect on the childbirth experience. The objective of this study is to explore whether the sitting birth position would influence maternal and neonatal outcomes, as well as the childbirth experience reported by Chinese women using the Childbirth Experience Questionnaire (CEQ). A total of 296 women (including primiparous women and multiparous women) were enrolled in our study, and they were divided into the sitting position cohort (n=106) or the lithotomy position cohort(n=116). The study found that primiparous women in the sitting position cohort had a shorter duration of the second stage of labour, higher spontaneous vaginal birth rates, lower episiotomy rates and better childbirth experience (p<0.01). There was no significant difference for perineal lacerations, 2h-postpartum haemorrhage (P>0.05) between the two cohorts of primiparous women. After adjusting for confounding factors through multiple linear and logistic regression analyses, the results remained consistent with those reported above. No neonate in each cohort had Apgar scores at 1min and 5 min postpartum less than 7 or the Cord artery pH less than 7.00, regardless of parity. In addition, among multiparous women, there was no significant difference in any maternal and neonatal outcomes and women’s CEQ scores (p>0.05) between two cohorts. Based on the findings, we recommend that women could take the sitting birth position into account when giving birth for a positive childbirth experience, especially for primiparous women. The study could also serve as a reference for healthcare providers in the management of childbirth positions and the development of high-quality maternal care.

The time evolution of the continuous measure symmetry for the system built of the three bodies interacting via the potential U(r)~1/r is reported. Gravitational and electrostatic interactions between the point bodies were addressed. In the case of the pure gravitational interaction the three-body-system deviated from its initial symmetrical location, described by the Lagrange equilateral triangle, comes to collapse, accompanied by the growth of the continuous measure of symmetry. When three point bodies interact via the Coulomb repulsive interaction, the time evolution of CMS is quite different. CMS calculated for all of studied initial configurations of the point charges and all of their charge-to-mass ratios always comes to its asymptotic value with time, evidencing the stabilization of the shape of the triangle, constituted by the interacting bodies.

The rapid progress in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and natural language processing has led to the emergence of increasingly sophisticated large language models (LLMs) enabling their use in healthcare. The study assesses the performance of two LLMs: the GPT-3.5 and GPT-4 models in passing the medical examination for access to medical specialist training in Spain MIR. Our objectives included gauging the model's overall performance, analyzing discrepancies across different medical specialties, discerning between theoretical and practical questions, estimating error proportions, and assessing the hypothetical severity of errors committed by a physician. We studied the 2022 Spanish MIR examination after excluding those questions requiring image evaluations or having acknowledged errors. The remaining 182 questions were presented to the LLM ChatGPT4 and GPT-3.5 in Spanish and English. Logistic regression models analyzed the relationships between question length and question sequence d performance. GPT-4 outperformed GPT -3.5, scoring 86.81% in Spanish (p<0.001). English translations had a slightly enhanced performance. Among medical specialties, GPT-4 achieved a 100% correct response rate in several areas, with specialties like Pharmacology, ICU, and Infectious Diseases showing lower performance. The error analysis revealed that while a 13.2% error rate existed, gravest categories like "error requiring intervention to sustain life" and "error resulting in death" had a 0% rate. Conclusions: GPT-4 performs robustly on the Spanish MIR examination, varying its capability to discriminate knoweldge across specialties. While the model's high success rate is commendable, understanding the error severity is critical, especially when considering AI's potential role in real-world medical practice and its implication on patient safety.

Transportation electrification has been identified as a crucial shift to be made for achieving energy security and emission reduction targets. Electric Vehicles (EVs) play a significant role in achieving these targets; therefore, there is a growing trend to develop new EV technologies and associated infrastructure. Along with these developments, EVs' Quality of Service (QoS) aspects should be enhanced to increase the number of EVs on the road. Various QoS factors are defined to assess the QoS of EVs, and one of the two aims of this paper is to provide a comprehensive review of these factors. The other aim is to review recent developments of associated communication technologies which are essential for exchanging information between EVs and charging stations. This paper serves as a comprehensive review and useful reference for researchers working on QoS aspects of EVs and associated communication systems aiming to enhance the QoS.

Building carbon footprint analysis is a key instrument for assessing the impact of different constructions on climate change. Several standards and methodologies are available to calculate the footprint of buildings, including standards and norms, life cycle assessment (LCA), and dedicated software tools. The use of BIM software for these calculations is both scientifically justified and very practical. This scientific publication focusses on the application of a BIM-based research methodology for the analysis of the carbon footprint of a single-family house. The research process included the following steps: (i) design of a single-family house with timber frame construction using Archicad BIM software, (ii) simulation of the building energy performance using the EcoDesigner Star plug-in, (iii) life cycle assessment (LCA) using the plug-in for Archicad, (iv) preparation of a second model with traditional masonry construction for comparison, and (v) comparative analysis of the single-family house models with timber frame and masonry construction. Analysis of the results highlights significant differences in CO2e emissions between masonry and timber buildings and the varying impact of individual elements on the total CO2e emissions of the buildings studied. These findings are relevant for future work on sustainable building design and construction, which aims to minimise negative environmental impacts. The goal of minimising the cumulative carbon footprint of buildings is critical to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and combating climate change.

The health of inmates living in a restricted environment are affected by oral health behaviours and is related to their oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL). We investigated oral health behaviours and oral symptoms among male inmates and analysed factors related to OHRQoL. Three hundred and seventy-six male inmates in two prisons were investigated using a self-reported questionnaire. The survey items included oral health behaviours, oral symptoms, self-esteem, and OHRQoL level. We analysed cross-correlations and factors related to OHRQoL. Toothbrushing after lunch and dinner was practiced by 83.5% of male inmates. ‘Food impaction’ was experienced by 45.4%. The OHRQoL level among male inmates was low, at 39.90 points. A hierarchical multiple regression model that controlled for general characteristics identified the following OHRQoL factors, in order of significance: trouble biting/chewing (β = -0.307), toothache (β = -0.154), temporomandibular joint disorder (β = -0.099), and periodontal health (β = 0.089). Self-esteem and OHRQoL were not significantly correlated. To ensure oral health in male inmates, the results of this study suggests that an oral health education programme, as well as provision of adequate dental care services, is required to increase appropriate oral health practice rates.

Ballasted railway tracks can be modelled using reduced/simplified models composed of several layers of discrete components. This paper deals with the two-layer model, which is very popular due to its computational efficiency. In order to provide some recommendations for track design, it is necessary to identify which set of parameters leads to some irregular/unexpected behavior. Such irregularity is investigated at three levels, such as: (i) critical velocity of moving constant force; (ii) instability of a single moving mass; (iii) instability of two moving masses. All results are presented in dimensionless form to cover a wide range of real parameters. Irregular cases are identified by sets of parameters leading to them and then general conclusions are drawn. Regarding the method, all results are obtained analytically or semianalytically, where “semi” refers to solving the roots of a given polynomial by predefined numerical procedures in symbolic software. No numerical integration is involved in all results presented. This means that the results are highly accurate and refer to exact values, so any kind of parametric or sensitivity analyses is readily possible.

A comparative study of the physicochemical properties of natural bentonite clays of Pogodayevо (Republic of Kazakhstan, mod.1) and Dash-Salakhli (Republic of Azerbaijan, mod.2) deposits and modification of the bentonite clay with polyhydroxocations of iron (III) and aluminium (III). It-wasestablished that the modification of natural bentonitesusing polyhydroxocations of iron (III) and aluminium(III) by the method of "co-precipitation" leads to a change in their chemical composition, structural and sorption properties. The results showed that hydroxy-aluminum cations ([Al3O4(OH)24(H2O)12]7+) and poly-hydroxyl-Fe or polyoxo-Fe were intercalated into clay layers, which led to an increase in the values of d001 and specific surface areas compared to those of the original bentonite, from 37 to 120 for the Pogodaevo bentonite and from 51 to 172 respectively for bentonite from the Dash-Salakhli deposit. It is shown that modified sorbents based on natural bentonite are finely porous objects with a predominance of pores of 1.5−6.0 nm in size. As a result, there is a significant increase in the specific surface area of sorbents. Modification of bentonite with polyhydroxocations of iron (III) and aluminium (III) by the "co-precipitation" method also leads to an increase in the sorption capacity of the sorbents obtained with respect to nickel (II) cations. Modified bentonites were used for the adsorption of Ni (II) ions from the model solution. Ni (II) was absorbed in a neutral pH solution. The study of equilibrium adsorption showed that the data are in good agreement with the Langmuir isotherm model. The maximum adsorption capacity of the Ni (II) monolayer obtained from the Langmuir equation was 25.0 mg/g (mod. 1_Al_5-c), 18.2 mg/g (mod. 2_Al_5-c) for Al-bentonite and 16.7 mg/g (mod. 1_Fe_5-c), 10.1 (mod. 2_Fe_5-c) for Fe-bentonite. The kinetics of adsorption is considered. The high content of Al-OH anion exchange centresin them determines the higher sorption activity of Al-modified bentonites.

In contrast to some low molar-mass per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), well-established to be toxic, persistent, bioaccumulative and mobile, fluoropolymers (FPs) are water insoluble, safe, bio-inert, durable niche high performance polymers which fulfil the 13 polymer of low concern (PLC) criteria in their recommended conditions of use. In addition, more recent innovations (e.g., the use of non-fluorinated surfactants in aqueous radical (co)polymerization of fluoroalkenes) from industrial manufacturers of FPs are highlighted. This review also aims at showing how these specialty polymers endowed with outstanding properties are essential (even irreplaceable since hydrocarbon polymer alternatives used in similar conditions fail) for our daily life (electronics, Energy, optics, internet of things, transportation, etc) and constitute a special family a part from other “conventional” C1-C10 PFASs found everywhere on the Earth and Oceans. Furthermore, some information reports the recycling (e.g. the unzipping depolymerization of polytetrafluoroethylene, PTFE, into TFE), end of life of FPs, their risk assessment, circular economy and regulations. Various researches are devoted to Environment involving FPs, though they represent a niche volume (with a yearly production of 330,300 tonnes) compared to all plastics (with 460 million tonnes). Complementary to other reviews on PFASs, which lack of such above data, this review presents both fundamental and applied strategies as evidenced by major FP producers.

This study investigates the importance of convective systems for extreme rainfall along the northern coast of the Gulf of Guinea (GG) and their relationship with atmospheric and oceanic conditions. Convective system data (MCSs), daily precipitation, sea surface temperature (SST) and moisture flux anomalies are used from June to September 2007-2016. The results show that 2/3 of MCSs crossing Abidjan are produced in June, which is the core of the major rainy season. Likewise, 2/3 of MCSs originate from continental areas, while 1/3 comes from the ocean. Oceanic MCSs are mostly initiated close to the coast, which also corresponds to the Marine Heat Waves region. Continental MCSs are mostly initiated inland. The results also highlight the moisture flux contribution of three zones which have an impact on the onset and the sustaining of MCSs: (i) the seasonal migration of ITCZ, (ii) the GG across the northern coastline, (iii) and finally the continent. These contributions of moisture fluxes coincide with oceanic warming off the Northeast Brazil and the northern coast of the GG both two days before and the day of extreme rainfall events. The ocean contributes to moisten the atmosphere, and therefore to supply and sustain the MCSs during their lifecycle.

In the context of digital empowerment, the digital literacy level of tea farmers has a significant impact on the intelligent development and transformation of the tea industry. This study extends the original model of UTAUT theory by introducing Personal innovativeness theory and Self-efficacy theory, and constructs a new model to explore the influencing factors of moderate scale tea farmers' digital literacy improvement behavior. There are a total of 22 research hypotheses. Using structural equation modeling and collecting questionnaire data for analysis, the following research results were obtained: (1) Performance expectancy, social influence, effort expectancy, personal innovativeness and self-efficacy all significantly positively affect the willingness of tea farmers to improve their digital literacy, and then according to the path coefficient, in descending order, social influence (0.226)>self-efficacy (0.224)>effort expectancy (0.178)>performance expectancy (0.157)> personal innovativeness (0.155); (2) Facilitating condition and willingness to improve digital literacy have a significant positive impact on tea farmers' digital literacy improvement behavior，and then from the size of the path coefficient, the willingness to improve (0.271)>facilitating condition (0.106); (3) The willingness of tea farmers to improve their digital literacy plays a complete mediating role between personal innovativeness and self-efficacy on their digital literacy improvement behavior, and partially mediates between performance expectancy, social influence, and effort expectancy on their digital literacy improvement behavior, and according to the proportion of indirect effects, the order is effort expectancy (27%), performance expectancy (47%), and social influence (49%); (4) The gender and age of tea farmers have a significant positive moderating effect on the impact of performance expectancy on the willingness to improve digital literacy; age and experience have a significant positive moderating effect on the impact of effort expectancy on the willingness to improve digital literacy; the age of tea farmers has a significant positive moderating effect on the improvement of digital literacy behavior through facilitating condition. This study extends the applicability of the UTAUT theoretical model and proposes strategies to improve the digital literacy of tea farmers, providing practical guidance for tea farmers to improve their digital literacy and providing reference for research related to farmers' digital literacy.

The study presented here, through the use of GIS and physical variables, generate a new meth-odology for the calculation of erosivity (Factor R) for the qualitative evaluation of soil loss po-tential (laminar erosion) in the Northwest margin of the municipality of São Francisco, mostly located in the Pardo-MG river basin. The results obtained were statistically correct when com-pared to the traditional R calculation and the laminar erosion methodology. It is worth noting that the new proposal presented here indicated sites of qualitative loss of soil in the same places where there are closed-loop satellite signals of degraded Cerrado, something not identified in the traditional model. As conclusion it can be said that the obtained results were extremely sat-isfactory, being advised more studies to verify this new method proposed here in more places beyond the study area elaborated here

Ever since the tremendous success of the rapid vaccine development against COVID‑19, its availa-bility, distribution, and deployment have been a significant concern; however, evidence suggests that vaccine hesitancy has become a greater problem. Therefore, trust in vaccines is crucial and critically dependent on regimes' ability to communicate the benefits of immunization. This study investigated ideas on ways to reduce barriers to COVID-19 vaccination uptake. It explores methods to overcome COVID-19 vaccine barriers through qualitative research: interviews and group discussions involving healthcare providers, administration personnel, teachers, and individuals with chronic conditions across urban (Mombasa) and rural (Kilifi) Kenya. Audio-recorded discussions were transcribed and thematically analyzed across locations. Five themes emerged in our results regarding how to reduce barriers to the COVID vaccine in the context of Kenya, including awareness campaigns, engaging diverse stakeholders, using various communication techniques, capacity building to increase vac-cination centers and trained staff, and lastly, revising relevant government health policies and guidelines. These results indicate the importance of adopting multiple approaches, as no single strategy could boost vaccine acceptance. Moreover, this study provides recommendations for con-ceiving actionable interventions to potentially boost vaccine demand and maintain routine immun-ization in Kenya.

Steel structures, such as bridges, must be continuously maintained. Due to increasing trac loads, design and execution shortcomings, many steel bridges are subject to various types of damage, such as cracks. The bridges must be maintained by crack removal and re-welding the cracks. During this work, the bridge is closed for trac in order to suppress the crack ank movement during welding. As a result, trac loads on other routes are higher, which increases further damage on detour routes and subsequently additional welding work and costs on theses structures. Therefore, the aim is to provide a method that allows welding work on steel structures under running trac, respectively under cyclic loads. First, measurements at a representative steel bridge were conducted to derive gap opening parameters of amplitude and frequency for welding tests under cyclic loads. In a test setup for reproducible and comparable welding tests, specimen were welded under cyclic loads. Deep grinding of the root layer allowed defect-free welding within the range of 0.1 mm amplitude at a frequency of 2 Hz loadings. For such welds, the weld quality and the fatigue strength was comparable to the standard requirements.

PM-Gati-Shakti Initiative, integration of ministries, including railways, ports, waterways, logistic infrastructure, mass transport, airports, and roads. Aimed at enhancing connectivity and bolstering the competitiveness of Indian businesses, the initiative focuses on six pivotal pillars known as "Connectivity for Productivity": comprehensiveness, prioritization, optimization, synchronization, analytical, and dynamic. In this study, we explore the application of these pillars to address the problem of "Maximum Demand Forecasting in Delhi." Electricity forecasting plays a very significant role in the power grid as it is required to maintain a balance between supply and load demand at all times, to provide a quality electricity supply, for Financial planning, generation reserve, and many more. Forecasting helps not only in Production Planning but also in Scheduling like Import / Export which is very often in India and mostly required by the rural areas and North Eastern Regions of India. As Electrical Forecasting includes many factors which cannot be detected by the models out there, We use Classical Forecasting Techniques to extract the seasonal patterns from the daily data of Maximum Demand for the Union Territory Delhi. This research contributes to the power supply industry by helping to reduce the occurrence of disasters such as blackouts, power cuts, and increased tariffs imposed by regulatory commissions. The forecasting techniques can also help in reducing OD and UD of Power for different regions. We use the Data provided by a department from the Ministry of Power and use different forecast models including Seasonal forecasts for daily data.

Energy poverty is a severe electrification challenge in Nigeria that has affected the country's economic development. The gap between electricity demand and supply continues to increase, and a large percentage of the populace affected are rural dwellers. With the prevailing electricity inaccessibility in rural, renewable energy sources (RES) present viable option for addressing rural electrification challenge. However, RES like solar have intermittency challenges since they are weather dependent. Thus, a hybrid microgrid system (HMS) comprising solar, hydropower and battery storage was sized as a feasible solution for electrifying rural areas in Nigeria. For the HMS sizing, a site was selected, whose residential load demand was estimated. The renewable energy generation potential for the selected resources at the site as well as grid reliability were assessed. Hybrid Optimisation Model for Multiple Energy Resources (HOMER) was used to size the HMS. An economic analysis was performed to determine the levelised cost of energy (LCOE) and net present cost (NPC). For the sized HMS, two scenarios were considered: off-grid and grid-connected HMS configurations. The results showed that the LCOE of the off-grid and grid-connected configurations are $0.101/kWh and $0.046/kWh, respectively. The NPC of the off-grid and grid-connected configurations are $227,307 and $145,282, respectively.

Abstract: It has been shown that three-dimensional self-assembled multicellular structures derived from human pluripotent stem cells show electrical activity similar to EEG. More recently, neurons were successfully embedded in a digital game-worlds (Kagan, et al. 2022). The biologically inspired neural network (BNN), expressing human cortical cells, was able to show internal modification and learn the task at hand (predicting the trajectory of a digital ball while moving a digital paddle). In other words, the system allowed to read motor information and write sensory data into cell cultures. In this article, we discuss Neural Correlates of Consciousness (NCC) theories, and their capacity to predict or even allow for consciousness in a BNN. We found that In-formation Integration Theory (IIT) is the only NCC that offers the possibility for a BNN to show consciousness. IIT argues that any system capable of integrating information will have some degree of phenomenal consciousness. The pattern of activity appearing in the BNN, with increased density of sensory information leading to better performance, implies that the BNN could be conscious. This may have profound implications from a physiological, philosophical, and ethical perspective.

Rather high speed of modern water bikes that they develop using only human muscle power increases their popularity. For example, the maximum speed of prototypes reaches the value 3 m/s. Similar vehicles can be used not only for recreation and fitness, but also for transportation. To increase their speed and tonnage, we recommend improving the pontoon shape and using electrical power. The total drag and maximal speeds of the vehicles with the human muscle and electrical power are estimated. Expected success in improving the pontoon shape opens wide prospects for the use of these special shaped hulls in shipbuilding.

This study aimed to explore the experiences of teachers in the recovery of educational skills. Specifically, ten teachers of Andap National High School are selected for the in-depth interview. This study employed a qualitative-phenomenological research design of which in-depth interview (IDI) was used in gathering the data. The study utilized phenomenological approach to study a particular phenomenon concerning the post-pandemic experiences of teachers in the implementation of the face-to-face classes. After gathering sufficient amount of data through the conduct of in-depth interviews, thematic analysis was used to analyse further the results and to check the disparities and similarities of all responses gathered. This was the time wherein responses were categorized and organized into themes. The findings of the study revealed that the challenges encountered of educational skills recovery were sources of learning materials, learning gaps, learners characteristics, difficulty with comprehension and lack of interest. It was also revealed that the most challenging teaching experiences in the recovery of educational skills were catching attention, learning gaps, communicating to students, need for remedial instruction, retroactive interference and difficulty in understanding English Language. They frequently have to quickly convert lesson material they had intended to teach in a classroom setting to any learning modality implemented. Further, adjust and learn new trend, provide opportunities to develop new skills, helps to manage stress, improved educational outcomes, become well-rounded teacher, networking and learning and continue doing responsibilities helped in these insights had in confronting challenges brought by the pandemic.

Our lives are comprised of moment-to-moment activity experiences. According to the Model of Human Occupation (MOHO), our occupational experiences can be affected by volition, which consists of personal causation, values, and interests. This study investigated how momentary volition affected occupational satisfaction and mind-wandering while performing occupations. This study also examined the relationship between momentary volition and the overall life perspectives of life satisfaction and life balance. Undergraduate students participated in this cross-sectional study. The experience sampling method (ESM) was used to measure students’ momentary states such as activity, volition, occupational satisfaction, and mind-wandering. After conducting the ESM, the participants’ life satisfaction was measured using the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS), and their life balance was measured by the Life Balance Inventory (LBI). Forty-two participants and 1,092 sampling data were included in the analysis. Momentary personal causation, values, and interests contributed to occupational satisfaction. Mind-wandering was predicted negatively by interests but positively by personal causation. Momentary interests were positively correlated with SWLS and LBI scores. This study demonstrated that momentary volition was associated with occupational satisfaction and engagement, as well as life satisfaction and balance, in undergraduate students.

Abstract: This study aimed to evaluate the application of chemical defensives and long-life inoculant, in mixtures or not, under the nodulation process of plants and the quality of soy seeds during storage. The first was carried out in a greenhouse and completely randomized design was used, in an 8 x 2 factorial scheme, with three replications, and the treatments consisted of applications of seed treatments via industrial: (T1 - control; T2 - MaximAdvanced; T3 - Fortenza; T4 - long-life inoculant; T5 - MaximAdvanced + Fortenza); T6 - MaximAdvanced + long-life inoculant; T7 - Fortenza + long-life inoculant; T8 - MaximAdvanced + Fortenza + long-life inoculant), which were sown in pots containing soils from two cultivation areas; the second in the laboratory, using a completely randomized design, in a factorial scheme 8 x 7, with four replications, with treatments consisting of eight combinations of industrial seed treatment in the greenhouse, stored for two months. That seed treatment industrial with fungicide/insecticide/inoculant, applied in isolation or not, does not influence the soy nodulation process. Soy seeds, regardless of the type of treatment received with fungicide/insecticide/long-life inoculant products, in mixtures or in isolation, may be stored for a period of 40 days for commercial purposes.

The recent happenings in the world such as flood and wild forest fire were as a result of climate effect as being envisaged by scientists. It is urgent now to adopt a source of energy that will eliminate this effect on our universe. Solar energy is the major energy means that is abundant which could be utilized. In this review, the prospects of solar energy exploration were studied in Nigeria which include assessments, economic viability and hybrid systems. Findings show higher potential in the North as compared to the Southern region. Additionally, potential of offshore solar energy system was simulated by considering 2002, 2003 and 2004 data sets from Era5-land base. Their monthly mean, seasonal changes and annual mean value were estimated. The algebraic annual solar radiance for 2002, 2003 and 2004 were 34,914.732 kWh/m2, 33,898.316 kWh/m2 and 34,338.324 kWh/m2. Suggestions were made due to the present status of solar energy utilization that will enhance its maximum usage and development. One of these is the establishment of a functioning financial scheme and the database for all renewable energy systems. When all these are put in place, the energy supply will increase, climate effect will be reduced, and the economy will be boosted.

A novel group of conjugative plasmids of Pseudomonas is characterized. The prototype plasmid pPPUT-Tik1-1 (153663 bp), isolated from a permafrost strain of P. putida Tik1, carries a defective mercury transposon Tn501 and a streptomycin resistance transposon Tn5393. Ten plasmids and 34 contigs with backbone regions closely related to pPPUT-Tik1-1 have been found in Gene Bank. Two of these plasmids isolated from clinical strains of P. putida and P. fulva are almost identical to the ancient plasmid. A characteristic feature of this group of plasmids is the presence of two genes encoding the initiators of replication (repA1 and repA2). None of these genes has high similarity with plasmid replication genes belonging to known incompatibility groups. It has been demonstrated that while pPPUT-Tik1-1-like plasmids have homologous backbone regions they significantly differ by the molecular structure and the functional burden of their accessory regions. Some of the pPPUT-Tik1-1-related plasmids carry determinants of antibiotic resistance and/or heavy metal salts. Some plasmids are characterized by the ability to degrade xenobiotics. Plasmids related to pPPUT-Tik1-1 are characterized by a narrow host range and are found in various species of Pseudomonas genus. A group of shortened plasmids containing the same replication module, but without conjugation genes, were also found. These plasmids also contain other structural changes that strongly distinguish them from plasmids related to pPPUT-Tik1-1. The data obtained indicate the need for a complex approach to the classification of plasmids.

The petroleum industry produces thousands of barrels of oilfield waters from the initial stage driven by primary production mechanisms to the tertiary stage. These produced waters contain measurable amounts of oil in water emulsions, the exact amounts being determined by the chemistry of the crude oil. To meet strict environmental regulations governing the disposal of such produced waters, demulsification to regulatory permissible levels is required. Within the electric double layer theory, coupled with the analytical solutions to the Poisson Boltzmann Equation, continuum electrostatics approaches can be used to describe the static and electrokinetic properties of such emulsion systems. Therefore, theoretical understanding of the stability of oil in water emulsions within such fundamental concepts provides reliable approaches to demulsification. In this paper, we have used theoretical approaches, based on zeta potential and surface charge density models to determine the stability of oil in water emulsions for different crude oil samples. Accordingly, we have used literature based data on the chemistry of the crude oils, and have ranked the order of emulsion stability based on criterial established by zeta potential plots for the oil. Our theoretical calculations show that where the isoelectric points of crude oil samples are closer to each other, the degree of ionization plots versus pH indicate close tends for salinities at varying pH of oilfield waters. Based on the chemistry of crude oil samples, the most efficient and cost-effective means of demulsification is by reducing produced water pH to values closer to the average point of zero charge pH values

Within the eastern part of the Black Sea and Sea of Azov, the vegetation of charophytes was studied using the Brown-Blanquet approach. For the first time, five communities are described, including three associations and two subassociations from the alliance Charion canescentis Krausch 1964, the order Charetalia intermediae Sauer 1937, and the class Charetea intermediae F. Fukarek 1961. Diagnoses of the described syntaxa are given. A comparison with the Baltic and Mediterranean communities of charophytes is made. It is shown that all the Azov-Black Sea communities with the dominance of charophytes, in contrast to Western European ones, include Lamprothamnium papulosum with high constancy. At the same time, the communities of the southern seas of Russia are characterized by a lower occurrence and abundance of higher aquatic plants (except for Nanozostera noltei) and a slightly higher occurrence of red and green algae. An indirect ordination analysis showed the ecological isolation of the described phytocenoses and revealed two main factors influencing the floristic composition of communities – the granulometric composition of bottom sediments and water eutrophication.

Advances towards smart ecosystems showcases Internet of Things (IoT) as a transversal strategy to improve energy efficiency in buildings, to enhance their comfort and environmental conditions, and to grow knowledge about building behavior, its relationships with the users and the interconnections among themselves and with the environmental and ecological context. EU estimates that 75% of the building stock is inefficient and aged with +40 years old. Although many buildings have some kind of system for regulating their indoor temperature, only a small subset provides integrated Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems; within that subset, only a low percentage includes smart sensors, and only a minimum of that percentage integrates those sensors into IoT ecosystems. This work proposes several contributions. On the one hand, to understand the built environment as a set of interconnected systems that constitute a complex framework where IoT ecosystems are key enabling technologies to improve energy efficiency and Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) by filling the gap between theoretical simulations and real measurements. On the other hand, to understand IoT ecosystems as cost-effective solutions where: acquire data through connected sensors, analyze information in real-time, and build knowledge to make data-driven decisions. Furthermore, data set is public for third-party use to contribute scientific community to their research studies. Thus, this paper also contributes with a detailed functional scheme of IoT ecosystem deployed in 3 buildings of University of Zaragoza (Spain) with +200 geolocated wireless sensors with +100 representative spaces. The obtained results, through real installations with IoT as learning factory, show several learned lessons (about building complexity; energy consumption, costs and savings; and IAQ and health improvement) and contribute, as a proof-of-concept, with a proposal of prediction of building performance based on both correlations (between CO2 and occupancy) and neural networks (applied to CO2 and temperature). In summary, in a real context of economic restrictions, complexity, higher energy costs, social vulnerability and climate change, IoT-based strategies, as proposed in this work, highlight as an open, modular and interoperable approach to move towards smart communities (buildings, cities, regions, etc.) by improving energy efficiency and environmental quality (indoor and outdoor) with low cost, quick implementation, and low impact on users within great challenges for growth, interconnection, climate change and sustainability.

This paper presents the results of the study of carbon films deposited on substrates of quartz, mica and silicon by the method of electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR). This study has identified the dependences of the intensities of the EPR signal, the g- factor, and the line width on the temperature of carbon films on various substrates with perpendicular and parallel arrangement of the sample plane relative to the orientation of the magnetic field are presented. The results of this study show that the dependence of the line width on temperature measurements does not change under both conditions for recording the EPR spectra. The research has also shown that with increasing temperature, the normalized intensity of the EPR signal line increases when carbon is deposited on various substrates (quartz, mica, and silicon) by the method of plasma decomposition of a mixture of CH4 and H2.

Background: Permanent Daylight Savings Time (DST) may improve road safety by providing more daylight in the evening but could merely shift risk to morning commutes or increase risk due to fatigue and circadian misalignment. Methods: To identify how potential daylight exposure and fatigue risk could differ between permanent DST versus permanent Standard Time (ST) or current time arrangements (CTA), generic work and school schedules in five United States cities were modeled in SAFTE-FAST biomathematical modeling software. Commute data were categorized by morning (0700-0900) and evening (1600-1800) rush hours. Results: Percent darkness was greater under DST compared to ST for the total waking day (t=2.59, p=0.03) and sleep periods (t=2.46, p=0.045). Waketimes occurred before sunrise 63%±41% percent of the time under DST compared to CTA (42%±37%) or ST (33%±38%; F(2, 74)=76.37; p<0.001). Percent darkness was greater during morning (16%±31%) and lower during evening rush hour (0%±0%) in DST compare to either CTA (morning:7%±23%; evening:7%±14%) or ST (morning:7%±23%; evening:7%±15%). Discussion: Morning rush hour overlapped with students’ commutes and shift worker reverse commutes, which may increase traffic congestion and risk compared to evening rush hour. Switching to permanent DST may be more disruptive than either switching to ST or keeping CTA without noticeable benefit to fatigue or potential daylight exposure.

Asthma is the most prevalent cause of chronic respiratory diseases. Herein, we evaluate asthma burden in Mexico based on results from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD 2019) study 2019. Using data from the GBD 2019, we estimated asthma prevalence, incidence, mortality, and disability-adjusted lived years (DALYs) counts and crude and age-standardized rates per 100,000 people with a 95% uncertainty interval (UI) by sex and age at the national and subnational levels in Mexico from 1990 to 2019. At the national level, asthma affected 3.35 million (95% UI, 2.59-4.37) people, with 606.0 thousand (433.0-811.1) new incident cases and 1,655 (3-1,931) deaths during 2019. Asthma caused a slightly higher burden in females and affected mainly age groups between 1 and 14 years of age. The burden of asthma gradually decreased from 1990 to 2010. However, during the last decade (2010-2019), prevalence increased by 8.2%, as did incidence by 11.3%, whereas mortality and DALYs decreased by 23.3 and 1.6%, respectively. Finally, the burden of asthma displayed a heterogeneous pattern of disease at the subnational level. In conclusion, asthma causes a significant health loss in Mexico that differentially affects the population distributed among the states of the country, thus causing health disparities that should be addressed to provide sustainable asthma diagnosis and control to reduce its burden, especially at early stages of life.

When generalized noncommutative Heisenberg algebra accommodating impacts of finite gravitational fields as specified by loop quantum gravity, doubly–special relativity, and string theory, for instance, is thoughtfully applied to the eight-dimensional manifold (M8), the generalization of the Riemannian manifold becomes imminent. By constructing the deformed affine connections on a four-dimensional Riemannian manifold, we have determined the minimal length deformation of Riemann curvature tensor and its contractions, the Ricci curvature tensor, and Ricci scalar. Consequently, we have been able to construct the deformed Einstein tensor. As in Einstein’s classical theory of general relativity, we have proved that the covariant derivative of the deformed Einstein tensor vanishes, as well. We conclude that the minimal length correction suggests a correction to the spacetime curvature which is manifest in the additional curvature terms of the corrected Riemann tensor and its contractions. Accordingly, the spacetime curvature endows additional curvature and geometrical structure.

Habitat quality has great significance for regional ecological conservation and human welfare. In this study, we evaluated the spatial and temporal characteristics of land use and habitat quality in the temperate desert sub-region of Ordos Plateau using patch-generating land use simulation (PLUS) and integrated valuation of ecosystem services and trade-offs (InVEST) models. From 2000 to 2020, the areas of grassland, cropland, and unused land in the study area increased significantly; the areas of water bodies and woodland increased slightly; and the area of wasteland decreased significantly. Moreover, the habitat quality in the temperate desert subzone of the Ordos Plateau showed a trend of increasing and then decreasing from 2000 to 2020. The areas of lower and low habitat quality first decreased and then increased, and the overall area decreased over time. Conversely, the areas of high and higher habitat quality initially increased and then decreased, and the overall area increased over time. The area of medium habitat quality first decreased and then increased, although the overall change was minimal. Based on the PLUS model, the habitat quality of the study area in 2025 predicted under the natural development scenario was compared with that predicted under the ecological conservation scenario, showing higher habitat quality and lower habitat degradation under the ecological conservation development scenario. These results can be used to provide a scientific basis and decision reference for the sustainable use of land resources and high-quality socio-economic development in the temperate desert sub-region of the Ordos Plateau.

The diffusion of New Ways of Working (NWW) is an important trend in contemporary organi-zations. Many related empirical studies have been produced, but none have focused on differences in employees’ perceptions of the opportunity to use NWW according to organization sector (pri-vate, semi-public, public). This study, based on neoinstituionalism and HR attributions theory, investigated these differences via a survey (n=2693) of employees at private (n=358), semi-public (n=204), and public (n=2131) organizations. The results show that public employees reported less opportunity to use NWW than their private and semi-public counterparts. Furthermore, private sector employees were more likely to attribute well-being and productivity benefits to NWW than their public sector and semi-public counterparts. We also show that institutional and organiza-tional variables specific to the characteristics of organizations in the three sectors partially ex-plain the degree of perceptions with respect to the opportunity to use NWW.

Stress is one of the important factors affecting the growth and development of plants. In recent years, a large body of data on transcriptional changes in response to stress in plants has been obtained. Despite the fact that the important role of the regulation of translation in response to stress has been proven in plants, knowledge in this area remains extremely scarce. In this review, we focused on mRNA translation in the cytoplasm of higher plants. Most of the current research on the effects of translation has been done in yeast and mammalian systems. Translation factors and mechanisms are mostly conserved among eukaryotes; however, some differences are known to exist among plants. A comprehensive understanding of the complex apparatus of translation and its regulation in plants is required. In this work, we have tried to update modern ideas about the regulation of translation under conditions of abiotic stress.

Climate change complies firms to introduce various measures to enhance both their competitiveness and sustainability, particularly energy efficiency measures (EEMs). Energy efficiency is particularly important in energy-intensive sectors such as the industrial sector. However, EEMs within the industrial firms are hindered by several internal barriers such as competing interests within firms, the lack of information regarding energy efficiency opportunities, and the low technical competence. In this regard, energy audit aims to improve energy efficiency in facilities and to tackle internal barriers to energy efficiency. We construct a model which aims to explore the importance of energy audit in implementing EEMs and reducing the intensity of internal barriers to energy efficiency. Our research model was empirically tested through survey data gathered from 193 industrial firms in Morocco. Results show that competing interests, the lack of information and the low technical competence hinder the adoption of EEMs within industrial firms. In addition, energy audits enhance EEMs, and mitigate the negative effect of the lack of information and the low technical competence on the adoption of EEMs. However, energy audits do not attenuate the negative effect of competing interests on EEMs. This study reinforces previous studies with additional confirmation regarding the importance of energy audits for tackling the lack of information, and the low technical competence within firms. Furthermore, our study extends prior research as we found that energy audits do not reduce the intensity of competing interests within firms regarding EMMs’ implementation.

Introduction: When analyzing the current situation in Spain, derived from our current lifestyles far from following a Mediterranean lifestyle, there is an alarming prevalence of diabesity, which increases the global risk of suffering from cardiovascular disease (CVD) and decreases the quality of life related to health (QLRH). In order to guarantee, beyond glycemic control of patients with type 2 diabetes (DM2), adequate control of cardiovascular risk factors (CVRF) in DM2, it will be necessary to carry out a community intervention focused on the application of education programs focused on promoting the acquisition of healthy eating habits through the Mediterranean diet (DMED). This dietary pattern, together with physical exercise, has been shown to contribute to improving the QLRH of patients. Objective: To analyze the quality of life related to health, present in patients with poorly controlled type 2 diabetes, to determine the possible relationship between this and the degree of adherence to the Mediterranean diet and to examine whether there are differences between the sexes. Material and methods: Observational descriptive study in 93 patients diagnosed with DM2 with poor glycemic control (1Ac ≥ 7%), carried out in various health centers in Albacete and Cuenca, in which the baseline relationship between adherence to DMed and the HRQoL. They were administered a data collection sheet that included a survey of the degree of adherence to the DMed (MEDAS-14) and QLRH (SF-12v2) in the Primary Care (PC) medical and nursing consultations. The variables were analyzed: age groups, sex, years of evolution of DM2, body mass index (BMI), as well as basal glycemia (GB) and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c). The “MEDAS-14” (adherence to DMED) was the main variable and the “SF-12v2” (QLRH) was the secondary variable. Material and methods: Observational descriptive study in 93 patients diagnosed with DM2 with poor glycemic control (1Ac ≥ 7%), carried out in various health centers in Albacete and Cuenca, in which the baseline relationship between adherence to DMed and the HRQoL. They were administered a data collection sheet that included a survey of the degree of adherence to the DMed (MEDAS-14) and QLRH (SF-12v2) in the Primary Care (PC) medical and nursing consultations. The variables were analyzed: age groups, sex, years of evolution of DM2, body mass index (BMI), as well as basal glycemia (GB) and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c). The “MEDAS-14” (adherence to DMED) was the main variable and the “SF-12v2” (QLRH) was the secondary variable. Results: Patients with poorly controlled DM2 and with low adherence to the MedDM show a non-significantly greater affectation in the physical sphere: fair general state of health, physical function I (limitation to make moderate efforts such as moving a table, vacuuming or walk more than an hour), physical function II (limitation to climb several flights of stairs), physical role (problems at work or daily activities doing less than loved ones), physical role II (they had to stop performing some tasks at work or activities of daily living) and regular body pain. Presenting less affectation in the mental field: emotional role I, emotional role II, mental health I, vitality and mental health II. Without affectation in the social function since they consider that rarely the emotional or physical problems have hindered their social activities. Conclusions: Diabetic patients with poor glycemic control have low adherence to the MedMD (<9 points) and have poor QLRH. Low adherence to the DMed and obesity are related to a greater affectation in the physical dimension and less affectation in the mental dimension without affectation in the "social function".

The increased demand for resources and energy that is developing with rising global consumption represents a key challenge for our generation. Biogas production can contribute to sustainable energy production and closing nutrient cycles using organic residues or as part of a utilization cascade in the case of energy crops. Compared to hydrogen (H2), biogas with a high methane (CH4) content can be fed into the gas grid without restrictions. For this purpose, the CH4 content of the biogas must be increased from 52 to 60 % after anaerobic digestion to more than 96 %. In this study, biological hydrogen methanation (BHM) in trickling-bed reactors (TBR) is used to upgrade biogas. Design of experiments (DoE) is used to determine the optimal process parameters. The performance of the reactors is stable under all given conditions, reaching a “low” gas grid quality of over 90 %. The highest CH4 content of 95.626 ± 0.563 % is achieved at 55 °C and 4 bar, with a methane formation rate (MFR) of 5.111 ± 0.167 m³/(m³·d). The process performance is highly dependent on the H2:CO2 ratio in the educts, which should be as close as possible to the stochiometric ratio of 4. In conclusion, BHM is a viable approach to upgrade biogas to biomethane quality and can contribute to a sustainable energy grid.

Testicular granulosa cell tumors (TGCTs) are rare tumors of sex cord stromal origin. TGCTs can be classified into the adult type and the juvenile type. The adult type is extremely rare with only 93 known cases reported in the literature. We, herein, present a report of a case of a 30 year old male patient who presented with a testicular mass, underwent radical inguinal orchiectomy and the pathology examination revealed an adult type granulosa tumor. We additionally review the literature to summarize the scientific knowledge of an entity barely described worldwide.

In the vaginal ecosystem there is a symbiotic relationship between the microbiota and the host, particularly Candida spp., which are considered commensals of the vaginal mucosa. During pregnancy there is an increase in hormonal secretion that alters the vaginal microbiota and favors the development of Candida infection. Several studies have shown the increased prevalence of Candida during pregnancy, as well as its association with perinatal complications and current clinical practice guidelines recommend fluconazole as the treatment of choice during pregnancy in case of infection by Candida albicans and non-albicans Candida. However, in the Mexican population, this association has not been studied. So in this study, an intentional search for colonization by Candida spp. in pregnant women who attended the obstetric triage of the Hospital Regional de Alta Especialidad de Ixtapaluca during the period from May to October 2019, and they were followed up until the end of the pregnancy. Data on age, number of pregnancies, gestational age, body mass index, and perinatal outcomes were analyzed. Of 83 patients included in the study, yeasts corre-sponding to C. albicans (12) and C. glabrata (4) were isolated in 16. In the group of patients with Candida, the maternal age range was from 15 to 36 years old, of which 7 were adolescents and 2 with advanced maternal age, with an average of 2 gestations, the range of body mass index was from 19.3 to 42.4, of which 4 were overweight and 7 obese. Perinatal complications were observed in three patients, one presented chorioamnionitis and in two the neonates were small for gestational age. No association was found between colonization by Candida spp. and the number of preg-nancies, gestational age, body mass index or perinatal results. However, it was found that age (adolescence) may be a risk factor for the development of vulvovaginitis during pregnancy.

Nickelate superconductors, R1-xAxNiO2 (where R is a rare earth metal and A = Sr, Ca), experimentally discovered in 2019 exhibit many unexplained mysteries as the existence of a superconducting state with Tc (up to 18 K) in thin films and its absence in bulk materials. Another unexplained mystery of nickelates is their temperature-dependent upper critical field, Bc2T, which can be nicely fitted to two-dimensional (2D) models; however the deduced film thickness, dsc,GL, exceeds the physical film thickness, dsc, by a manifold. To address the latter, it should be noted that 2D models assume that dsc is less than the in-plane and out-of-plane ground state coherence lengths, dsc&lt;ξab0 and dsc&lt;ξc0, respectively, and, in addition, that the inequality ξc0&lt;ξab0 satisfies. Analysis of the reported experimental Bc2T data showed that at least one of these conditions does not satisfy for R1-xAxNiO2 films. This implies that nickelate films are not 2D superconductors, even despite though that the superconducting state is observed only in thin films. Based on this, here we proposed analytical three dimensional (3D) model for global data fit of in-plane and out-of-plane Bc2T in nickelates. The model is based on a heuristic expression for temperature dependent coherence length anisotropy: γξT=γξ01-1a×TTc, where a&gt;1 is a unitless free-fitting parameter. The proposed expression for γξT, perhaps, has a much broader application because it has been successfully applied to bulk pnictide and chalcogenide superconductors.

The affected upper limb in children with Unilateral Spastic Cerebral Palsy (US CP) has motor and somatosensory impairments, that contribute negatively to children’s bimanual performance and quality of life. Mirror Therapy (MT) is being studied to become an approachable intensive and home-based therapy, suitable for children with US CP. The aim of this study is to examine the feasibility of a 5-week home-based program of MT for children with US CP. Six children aged 8-12 years old performed the therapy, five days per week, 30 minutes per day. A minimum of an 80% of compliance was required. The evaluations included the feasibility of the therapy (compliance, total dosage, perceived difficulty of the exercises, and losses of follow-ups and evaluations), the bimanual performance, the somatosensory function and the quality of life at baseline, at the end of the intervention, and at 1-month follow-up. All children completed the therapy and were included in the analysis. The total accomplishment was 86.47 ± 7.67. The perceived difficulty of the exercises ranged from 2,37 to 4,51. As a conclusion, a home-based program of Mirror Therapy is suitable and feasible for children with US CP.

Cardiovascular diseases remain the leading cause of mortality worldwide. Although new therapies are actively being developed and used for cardiovascular pathologies, these attempts have not significantly decreased mortality rates. Regenerative medicine has made enormous progress and set promising approaches over the past half-century. However, since autologous (donor-derived) vascular grafts are lacking, an alternative prosthesis must be constructed for cardiovascular disease patients. In vascular tissue manufacturing and regenerative medicine, scientists seek to improve this significant clinical challenge using bio-fabrication techniques combining additive manufacturing, biomaterials science, and advanced cellular biology. In the last few decades, many improvements and changes in various approaches have helped develop bioengineered concepts that reflect native blood vessels’ structure and function. However, numerous challenges must be overcome to clinically translate the next generation of tissue-engineered vascular transplants. This review provides update on the cell sources, scaffold essential for cardiovascular tissue engineering, and tissue engineering approaches as prospective options for curative therapy for blood vessel disease.

Seasonal changes and varying degree of corneal hydration has been linked to excimer laser corneal ablation rates. Use of PMMA as calibration material in refractive lasers is well established. However, PMMA ablation may be equally affected by seasonal variations in temperature and humidity, intern affecting the calibration process. Aim of this work is to analyze the effect of seasonal changes in PMMA Performance using SCHWIND AMARIS laser system. PET and PMMA ablations conducted in climate-controlled environment with 826 consecutive AMARIS systems manufactured over 6 years were retrospectively analyzed. Lasers were stratified depending on seasons and months of the year. Metrics like Single laser pulse fluence, nominal number of laser pulses, mean performance, standard deviation, and technical performance of system were compared to global average values. Cyclic winter-summer variation was confirmed with seasons winter and summer showing statistically significant variations with respect to global values. Metric technical performance showed deeper PMMA ablation performance in summertime, with maximum seasonal deviation of 6%. Results were consistently confirmed in seasonal as well as monthly analyses. These findings could help minimize variance among laser systems by implementing compensation factors depending on seasons such that laser systems installed worldwide follow the same trend line of variation.

Background The purpose of this study was to clarify the relationship structure of quality of life (QOL) in survivors of breast cancer, including difficulty in daily life and negative experience as health-related indicators. Methods Participants were survivors of breast cancer for more than 2 years after primary breast cancer surgery and belonged to self-help groups. The assessment used FACT-B (QOL), HADS (anxiety and depression), SOC (sense of coherence), WHODAS 2.0 (difficulties in daily life), and CAOD (negative experiences). Bayesian structural equation modeling (BSEM) was performed to analyze the hypothesized model. If the causal model was significant, multiplication of the path coefficient from anxiety and depression to QOL, and from SOC to anxiety and depression, was considered a direct effect on QOL, and from SOC to difficulty in daily life, from difficulty in daily life to negative experiences, and from negative experiences to anxiety and depression were considered indirect effects on QOL. Results Goodness of fit of the model in the BSEM was satisfactory. The direct effect was 0.274, and indirect effect was 0.163. Conclusions These direct and indirect approaches to difficulties in daily life are very significant because they can provide a basis for development of support strategies to increase QOL.

The many problems faced by the theory of general relativity (GR) have always motivated us to explore the modified theory of GR. Considering the importance of studying the black hole (BH) entropy and its correction in gravity physics, we study the correction of thermodynamic entropy for a kind of spherically symmetric black holes under the generalized Brans-Dicke (GBD) theory of modified gravity. We derive and calculate the entropy and heat capacity. It is found that when the value of event horizon radius~$r_+$~is small, the effect of the entropy correction term on the entropy is very obvious, while for larger values~$r_+$~, the contribution of the correction term on entropy can be almost ignored. In addition, we can observe that as the radius of the event horizon increases, the heat capacity of BH in GBD theory will change from a negative value to a positive value, indicating that there is a phase transition in black holes. Given that studying the structure of geodesic lines is important for exploring the physical characteristics of a strong gravitational field, we also investigate the stability of the geodesic motion of particles in static spherically symmetric BHs within the framework of GBD theory. Concretely, we analyzes the dependence of the innermost stable circular orbit on model parameters. Also, the geodesic deviation equation is also applied to investigate the stable circular orbit of particles in GBD theory. The conditions for the stability of BH solution and the limited range of radial coordinates required to achieve stable circular orbit motion are given. Finally, we show the locations of stable circular orbits, and obtain the angular velocity, the specific energy and angular momentum of the particles which move in circular orbits.

Aiming to diminish the defects caused by high-speed pulsed GMAW welding, such as non-penetration, non-fusion, humping and undercut, the paper proposed an improved twin-wire double-pulsed high-speed welding process by introducing the impact of additional shielding gas on the welding pool and the effects of different shielding gas flowrates on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the welded seam was investigated. The 2205 duplex stainless steel plate was used as the base material for the butt welding test, and the welded seams were subjected to tensile test, metallographic analysis, hardness analysis, and nondestructive testing. The results indicate that as the flowrate of additional shielding gas increases in the range of 8 L/min~16 L/min, the width of the welded seam increases and the height of reinforcement decreases gradually. However, a grooved seam with a lower middle region and higher sides will appear when the gas flowrate becomes excessively large. The test results indicate that the jet impact force is relatively moderate when the flowrate of the additional shielding gas is 12 L/min and thus, is optimal for the welded seam.

In recent years, the discharge of various emerging pollutants, chemicals and dyes in water and wastewater has represented one of the prominent human problems. Since water pollution is directly related to human health, highly resistant and emerging compounds in aquatic environments will pose many potential risks to the health of all living. Therefore, water pollution is a very acute problem that has constantly increased in recent years with the expansion of various industries. Consequently, choosing efficient and innovative wastewater treatment methods to remove contaminants is crucial. Among advanced oxidation processes, electrochemical oxidation (EO) is the most common and effective method for removing persistent pollutants from municipal and industrial wastewater. However, there are still many gaps despite the great progress in using EO to treat real wastewater. This is due to the lack of comprehensive information on the operating parameters which affect the process and its operating costs. In this paper, among various scientific articles, the impact of operational parameters on the EO performances, a comparison between different electrochemical reactor configurations, and a report on general mechanisms of electrochemical oxidation of organic pollutants have been reported. Moreover, an evaluation of cost analysis and energy consumption requirements have also been discussed. Finally, the combination process between EO and another important advanced oxidation technology, PEC, called photoelectrocatalysis (PEC), has shortly been discussed and reviewed. This article showed that there is a direct relationship between important operating parameters with the amount of costs and the final removal efficiency of emerging pollutants. Optimal operating conditions can be achieved by paying special attention to reactor design, which can lead to higher efficiency and more efficient treatment. The rapid development of EO for removing emerging pollutants from impacted water and its combination with other green methods can result in more efficient approaches to face the pressing water pollution challenge.

The central coast is one of the importantly livable regions in China, and green land plays a meaningful role in improving human settlements through regulating ecosystem services. However, the research on spatiotemporal heterogeneity of green land in different urbanized areas are still lacking in this region, which limits the timeliness of reporting on the land-surface thermal properties of residential environment from green land perspective. To address this issue, the synergistic methodology of “artificial numerical technology -- urban interior mixed pixel classification -- surface radiation energy balance model” was applied to investigate the green land change and its impact on human settlements in Rizhao region, which is known for its coastal ecology and greenery in China and obtained the United Nations habitat award. Main conclusions of this study are below: (1) Although total green land decreased by 474.05 km2, resulting in a decrease of 9.17% in its share of the entire study area from 2000-2022 during the urbanization process, but the greening levels improved within the built-up area, with the greening proportion of 25.34% in 2000 and 42.98 km2 in 2022. (2) Differences in green land at different urbanized regions were first observed, namely, urban greening rate was 37.78% in the old urban areas of 2022, while it was up to 46.43% in new urban areas. More attention was paid to the construction of urban green space during urban expansion, which will inevitably bring better visual and comfort experience to residents. (3) Thermal comfort indicators for urban residents were evaluated in latent heat flux (0-457.83 W/m2), sensible heat flux (0-645.09 W/m2), total available energy (254.07-659.42 W/m2) and others. (4) The lowered cooling temperature effect in the middle, high green land density region was 1.05 ℃ and 2.12 ℃ compared to the low-density region, and the average air temperature was 25.86 ℃. Also, spatial patterns of hot and cold uncomfortable areas were displayed in this study. Overall, this study provides the meaningfully practical reference for exploring the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of green land and its impact on residents' environments from the perspective of land-surface thermal properties in coastal areas of China and around the world.

Lithium batteries are widely used due to their advantages such as high energy density, stable performance, low pollution, and long recyclable life. Accurate SOC estimation is important for the use of lithium batteries. To address the problem of low accuracy of SOC estimation by traditional methods, this paper proposes a joint method of fractional order robust unscented Kalman filter (FORUKF) and robust unscented Kalman filter (RUKF) to estimate SOC. The method is based on a fractional order model (FOM) that combines the unscented transformation (UT) technique, the H∞ observer and the joint estimator. Specifically, an adaptive genetic algorithm (AGA) was first used to identify the parameters of the FOM for lithium batteries and to verify the accuracy of the model. Estimation and updating of the ohmic resistance R0 and the capacity QN in the model in real-time by RUKF and then estimation of the SOC by FORUKF. Finally, the accuracy of FORUKF-RUKF was verified under the Federal Urban Driving Schedule (FUDS), US06 Highway Driving Schedule and Beijing Dynamic Stress Test (BJDST). According to the results, the FORUKF-RUKF estimated SOC was found to have better accuracy and robustness than the RUKF, FOUKF and EKF.

Technology-enabled maintenance via sensors and the internet of things (IoT) technologies is seen as the “new maintenance strategy”. The aim is to use these technologies to focus on unnecessary breakdowns and increase levels of asset availability where the existing of a dedicated team to maintain or data on asset condition is limited, useless or full of noise. This paper presents the integration of various sensing nodes within an automated laser cutting machine for monitoring of critical components’ conditions. The integrated system provides a centralised platform for data collection from various sensors and provides early failure detection mechanism based on specified set points with alert mechanisms utilising a custom dashboard for data visualisation. The research highlights the required stages for the identification of the appropriate components and sensory devices for the development of efficient monitoring environment.

Industrial data scarcity is one of the largest factors holding back the widespread use of machine learning in manufacturing. To overcome this problem, the concept of transfer learning was developed and it achieved high attention in recent industrial research. Our paper focuses on the problem of time series segmentation and presents the first in-depth research about transfer learning for deep-learning based time series segmentation on the example of industrial end-of-line pump testing. In particularly, we investigate if the performance of deep learning models can be increased by pretraining the network with data from other domains. Three different scenarios are analyzed: source and target data being closely related, source and target data being distantly related, and source and target data being non-related. The results demonstrate that transfer learning can enhance the performance of time series segmentation models in respect to accuracy and training speed. The benefit is most clearly seen in scenarios where source and training data are closely related and the number of target training data samples is lowest. However, in the scenario of non-related datasets, cases of negative Transfer Learning were observed as well. Thus, the research emphasizes the potential, but also the challenges of industrial Transfer Learning.

This paper presents four key results in the philosophy of language. Firstly, it distinguishes between partial and consistent assertion of a sentence, and introduces the concept of an equivocal sentence, which is both partially asserted and partially denied. Secondly, it proposes a novel definition of truth, stating that a true sentence is one that is consistently asserted. This definition avoids the Liar paradox, does not restrict classical logic, and applies to declarative sentences in the language used by any particular person. Thirdly, the paper introduces an epistemic model of language, called assertional language, which formalizes the definition of truth. Finally, it provides an argument for the falsity of so-called Liar sentences. The proposed definition of truth can be viewed as a formal account of the correspondence theory. The epistemic model is a powerful concept that allows for combining different languages in a meaningful way. This model is uniquely capable of reflecting on epistemic inconsistencies, such as logical paradoxes, in a consistent manner and without resorting to non-classical solutions.

Phthalate esters (PAEs) are a ubiquitous kind of environmental endocrine-disrupting chemicals, causing environmental and health issues. EstJ6 is an effective phthalate-degrading hydrolase, and its mutant with a combination of three non-conservative distal mutations has an improved activity against PAEs with unknown molecular mechanisms. Herein, we attempt to fill the significant gap between distal mutations and the activity of this enzyme using computational approaches. We find mutations result in a redistribution of enzyme’s preexisting conformational states and dynamics changes of key functional regions, especially the lid over the active site. The outward motion of the lid upon mutations should make it easier for substrates or products to enter or exit. Additionally, the stronger substrate binding affinity and conformational rearrangements of catalytic reaction-associated residues in mutant, accompanied by the strengthened communication within the protein, might contribute to the elevated catalytic efficiency. Finally, an attempt has been done to improve the thermostability of EstJ6 upon introducing a distal disulfide bond between residues A23 and A29, and the simulation results are as expected. Together, our work explored the allosteric effects caused by distal mutations, which could provide insights into the rational design of esterases for industrial applications in the future.

Locust is a pest that attacks human and animal food and endangers national security by threatening food security. Spraying is the easiest and fastest way to deal with them. But the easiest way is not always the best way. With chemical resistance, not only will permanent immunity from locust attacks not arise, but they will also become resistant to poisons. While we have to pay billions of dollars annually for this strategy, we will also cause water and soil pollution. Therefore, the research results of other researchers were used and modeled to measure the possibility of hunting invasive locusts to investigate the possibility and benefits of this action. So, this study was conducted in the field method. The obtained results indicate that it is possible to hunt invasive locusts. If traps are placed on time and in the right place, the possibility of preserving crops after the pest attack increases by 2.3 times more in protected fields than in unprotected fields. By hunting locusts, fields and even pastures are preserved, poisons are prevented from entering the food chain and ecosystem, part of the economic loss of farmers affected by the invasion of locusts will be compensated, and by providing animal feed through hunting locusts, water consumption will be reduced, soil erosion and energy consumption are saved.

The Roman villa of Pisões (Beja, Portugal), was part of the Lusitanian colony of Pax Iulia. This place stands out for the predominance of the water element in several structures of the villa, highlighting the balneum and the large natatio, one of the largest known in Roman Hispania. The records of the initial excavations that took place since 1967 do not allow the establishment of clear functionalities of the villa. The University of Évora, owner of the site, conceived an action plan for the requalification and enhancement of the archaeological site. One of the tasks aims to investigate using Applied Geophysics. This work analyses the landscape directly related to the villa, given that it is in the flooded area of a river, with a Roman containment dam. It is uncertain whether the water supply comes from this structure or other nearby springs. The use of ground-penetrating radar, combined with unnamed aerial vehicles, all integrated in a geographic information system, allows us to know the location of underground water connections and create a topographic model with high resolution. Considering all the information, we propose a model for the water transport inside the villa and estimate the location of the water supply.

The difficulty in the clinical diagnosis of labor is due to an evolutionary mismatch. The ability to hide the signs and symptoms of labor is an evolutionary trait that was once advantageous, but became maladaptive due to environmental changes. Prospective diagnosis of labor is not possible with certainty using only clinical criteria; however, by analyzing the urinary metabolome of women in labor, this diagnosis is likely possible in all cases. In this review, we explain why the two methods (clinical and metabolomic) differ in efficacy and sensitivity, and we try to fit this difference into an evolutionary framework that explains these discrepancies considering evolutionary mismatch. The study of metabolomics allows the truth to emerge from the past, and the diffusion of metabolomic techniques and their application to clinical reality in the form of POC (Point of Care) could change the management of labor and childbirth in the future.

In this article we investigate the role of “Renewable Energy Consumption” in the context of Circular Economy. We use data from the World Bank for 193 countries in the period 2011-2020. We perform several econometric techniques i.e., Panel Data with Fixed Effects, Panel Data with Random Effects, Pooled OLS, WLS. Our results show that “Renewable Energy Consumption” is positively associated among others to “Cooling Degree Days” and “Adjusted savings: net forest depletion” and negatively associated among others to “GHG net emissions/removals by LUCF” and “Mean Drought Index”. Furthermore, we perform a cluster analysis with the application of the k-Means algorithm optimized with the Silhouette Coefficient and we find the presence of two clusters. Finally, we compare eight different machine learning algorithms to predict the value of Renewable Energy Consumption. Our results show that the Polynomial Regression is the best algorithm in the sense of prediction and that on average the renewable energy consumption is expected to growth of 2.61%.

N-of-1 data are unavoidable in zoological medicine. Accordingly, zoological medicine clinicians and investigators need research techniques that can make use of these data. This article reviews two methodologies for using both observational and experimental N-of-1 data: 1) systematic reviews and meta-analyses of case reports and 2) prospective N-of-1 trials. Systematic reviews of case reports and other observational evidence are formal, unbiased summaries of clinical characteristics of a particular disease-taxon combination. They offer advantages to narrative reviews by minimizing omission of relevant articles, thereby reducing the potential for mischaracterization of the literature. Meta-analyses are extensions of systematic reviews that quantitatively synthesize the data from the included articles. While valuable, systematic reviews and meta-analyses of case reports can have limited interpretations due to publication bias and confounding present in their source materials. In contrast to case reports, N-of-1 trials are prospective study designs that allow clinicians to make strong inferences about the effect of an intervention in a particular patient. They are double-blinded, single patient, multi-crossover studies that are of particular value in fields where it is difficult to recruit sufficient patients for conventional randomized control trials (RCTs), such as zoological medicine. Because they require multiple crossover periods, N-of-1 trials are ideal for evaluating short-acting interventions in patients with somewhat stable chronic diseases, such as osteoarthritis. More complex than conventional therapeutic trials, N-of-1 trials require prior consideration of how to achieve blinding, appropriate placebo controls, quantitative primary outcomes, analysis methods, and ethical approval. Aggregation of N-of-1 trials allows estimation of the average treatment effect across the population with fewer participants than a conventional RCT. While systematic reviews and meta-analyses of case reports can be used to synthesize the observational N-of-1 data already in existence, N-of-1 trials offer an exciting way to prospectively generate strong evidence that will be useful for evidence-based decision-making.

Weeds are a permanent component of anthropogenic ecosystems, which requires strict control to avoid the accumulation of their long–lasting seeds in the soil. With high crop infestation, many elements of crop production technologies (fertilization, productive varieties, growth stimulators, etc.) turn out to be practically meaningless due to high yield losses. Intensive use of chemical herbicides (CH) has led to undesirable consequences: contamination of soil and wastewater, accumulation of their residues in the crop, the emergence of CH-resistant populations of weeds. In this regard, the development of environmentally friendly CH with new mechanisms of action is relevant. Natural phytotoxins of plant or microbial origin may be directly explored in herbicidal formulations (biorational CH) or indirectly as scaffolds for nature-derived CH. This review considers: 1) the main current trends in the development of CH that may be important for enhancement of biorational herbicides; 2) advances in the development and practical application of natural compounds for weed control; 3) the use of phytotoxins as prototypes of synthetic herbicides. Some modern approaches such as computational methods of virtual screening and design herbicidal molecules, development of modern formulations, determination of molecular targets are stressed as important to make exploration of natural compounds more effective.

The multiple regression method is still an important tool for establishing precipitation forecast models with a lead time of one season. This study developed a flexible statistical forecast model for July precipitation over the middle-lower reaches of the Yangtze River (MLYR) based on the prophase winter sea surface temperature (SST). According to the characteristics of observed samples and related theoretical knowledge, some special treatments (i.e., more flexible and better–targeted methods) were introduced in the forecast model. These special treatments include a flexible MLYR domain definition, the extraction of indicative signals from the SST field, artificial samples, and the amplification of abnormal precipitation. Rolling forecast experiments show that the linear correlation between prediction and observation is around 0.5, more than half of the abnormal precipitation years can be successfully predicted, and there is no contradictory prediction of the abnormal years. These results indicate that the flexible statistical forecast model is valuable in real-life applications. Furthermore, sensitivity experiments show that forecast skills without these special treatments are obviously decreased. This suggests that forecast models can benefit from using statistical methods in a more flexible and better-targeted way.

TomoBreast hypothesized that hypofractionated 15 fractions/3 weeks image-guided radiation therapy (H-IGRT) can reduce lung-heart toxicity, as compared with normofractionated 25-33 fractions/5-7 weeks conventional radiation therapy (CRT). 123 women with stage I-II operated breast cancer were randomized to receive CRT (N=64) or H-IGRT (N=59). The primary endpoint used a four-items measure of the time to 10% alteration in any of patient self-reported measure, physician clinical evaluation, echocardiography or lung function tests, analyzed by intention-to-treat without exclusion. Results found comparable survivals, but H-IGRT significantly reduced the toxicity measured by lung diffusion capacity and alveolar volume as compared with CRT, G1 in 53% (31/59) versus 72% (44/61) patients, P=0.006; G2, 29% versus 48%, P=0.020. H-IGRT significantly reduced the risk of composite cardio-pulmonary alteration at 5 years, 10.2% versus 26.7%, P=0.024. In conclusion, TomoBreast is a proof-of-concept that image-guided radiation-therapy can improve the overall balance of lung-heart outcomes in breast cancer adjuvant therapy. Furthermore, the significance of the findings supports the efficacy of a small trial size design, which can be critical when clinical research resources are limited.

Despite the fact that COVID-19 is no longer a global pandemic due to development and integration of different technologies for the diagnosis and treatment of the disease. Technological advancement in the field of molecular biology, electronics, computer science, artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, nanotechnology etc. has led to the development of molecular approaches and computer aided diagnosis for the detection of COVID-19. This study provides a holistic approach on COVID-19 detection based on (1) molecular diagnosis which include RT-PCR, antigen-antibody and CRISPR-based biosensors and (2) computer aided detection based on AI-driven models which include Deep Learning and Transfer learning approach. The review also provide comparison between these 2 emerging technologies and open research issues for the development of smart-IoMT-enable platform for the detection of COVID-19.

Here I describe an overlooked form of non-biological paralife (i.e., near-life) that has been evolving on Earth for millions of years, and is currently in the final stages of transitioning into a new form of life. Any consideration of non-biological life or paralife is complicated by the fact that there is no consensus among biologists for the definition of life. This ambiguity has caused disagreement about whether subcellular reproduction systems like viruses are a form of life, despite having genomes, mutations, heritable phenotypes and system-improving evolution. To resolve this problem, I develop a definition of life that is entirely functional and independent of any of the structural idiosyncrasies of biological life on Earth: an order-generating system controlled by internally-encoded information that perpetuates itself by functioning to counteract its entropic decay. Using this definition, subcellular transposons, plasmids, and viruses are paralife because they match the definition of life in all ways except that they induce their order-generating functioning by a living host rather through their own self-sustaining production system. Using this functional definition of life, I show that utility- products (UPs) like fabricated hand tools are part of induced-reproduction systems that have features equivalent to biological genomes, mutations, heritable phenotypes, and a process of system-improving evolution. The perceived benefit of utility-products causes them to induce their reproduction by a biological life-form (humans). For these reasons, human utility products are functionally just as close to being a form of life as subcellular transposons, plasmids, and viruses, i.e., they are Utility-Product paralife (UP-parlife). I also show that some forms of UP-paralife are currently evolving into mechanical life that is capable of both self- sustaining reproduction and system-improving evolution without outside assistance. This transition requires the development of a high level of factory and/or UP automation and artificial intelligence (AI) that is capable of complex reasoning, imagination and creativity. Finally, I consider the influence of UP-life and UP-paralife on the development of the level of structural complexity in the universe, and I briefly speculate about how these non-biological forms of life and paralife will influence the expansion of scientific knowledge about the universe.

In the present study, the problem of the sulfuric acid recycling from spent copper plating solution was solved using a hybrid membrane technology, including diffusion dialysis and electrodialysis. A real solution from the production of copper-coated steel wire, containing 1.45 mol/L of sulfuric acid, 0.67 mol/L of ferrous sulfate and 0.176 mol/L of copper sulfate was processed. Diffusion dialysis with anion-exchange membranes was used to separate sulfuric acid and salts of heavy metals. Then purified dilute sulfuric acid was concentrated by electrodialysis. Energy consumption for sulfuric acid electrodialysis concentration at a current density of 400 A/m2 was 162 W·h/mol with current efficiency 16 %. After processing according to the hybrid membrane scheme, the solution contained 1.13 mol/L sulfuric acid, 0.077 mol/L ferrous sulfate and 0.022 mol/L copper sulfate. The resulting acid solution with a small amount of ferrous sulfate and copper sulfate met the established requirements for a copper plating bath solution and can be reused in production.

In general, isolators and dampers used in seismically isolated buildings are designed to be isotropic in any horizontal direction. However, in the case of buildings with plan irregularities, their nonlinear responses depend on the direction of seismic loading. To discuss the influence of the angle of seismic incidence (ASI) on the nonlinear response of irregular building structures, it is important to define the angle of the critical axis of the horizontal ground motion. One possible choice is the “principal axis of ground motion” proposed by Arias (1970). However, because this principal axis is independent of the natural period of a structure, it could be complicated to use for seismically isolated structures with long natural periods. In this study, the influence of the ASI of long-period pulse-like seismic input on an irregular base-isolated building is investigated. First, the angle of the principal axis of ground motion is defined in terms of the cumulative energy input. Then, a nonlinear time-history analysis of a five-story irregular base-isolated building is performed using 10 long-period pulse-like ground motion records considering various ASIs. The results show that, compared with the principal axis of ground motion proposed by Arias, defining the principal axis of ground motion in terms of the cumulative energy input is more suitable for discussions concerning the influence of the ASI on the response of an irregular base-isolated building.

Assessment of stigma among cancer patients is of utmost importance as stigma may lead to various psychological sequelae and lower quality of life. This study aimed to translate the English version of the Shame and Stigma Scale (SSS) into Malay and validate the Malay version of the SSS (SSS-M) among cancer patients in Malaysia. Initially, concurrent translation and back translation of the SSS-M was performed, and face and content validity were assessed. Then, the SSS-M was administered to a total of 234 patients of mixed types of cancer to assess its reliability (internal consistency and test-retest reliability), construct validity (convergent and discriminant validity), exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The SSS-M total score registered good internal consistency (Cronbach’s α of 0.886) and test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.846, p < 0.001). EFA and CFA confirmed that the SSS-M consisted of 20 items in 5 domains. Its convergent and discriminant validity were achieved. Hence, the SSS-M demonstrated good psychometric properties and is available for use to assess stigma among cancer patients in Malaysia.

Until now, the literature on Chinese International Online Shopping (CIOS) (B2C export from China) mainly concentrated on the potential income that it constitutes for Chinese international trade. However, regarding International Online Consumers' (IOCs) purchase behaviors, research does not provide insight into the impact of Countries' Level of Economic Development (CLED) on the IOCs' preferences and choices about Chinese brands. Based on 9971 purchases about Chinese mobile phone brands, countries' macroeconomic data, and a multinomial logistics model (MLM), we examined IOCs' preferences and choices about Chinese brands. The result shows that the CLED influences IOCs' preferences and choices. Consequently, accounting of CLED in consumers’ preferences and choices introduces a new dimension in understanding IOCs' behaviors and attitudes towards Chinese mobile phone brands. This work contributes to Chinese brands' globalization research from the perspective of CLED. Such a model can be used to guide e-retailers and brand managers.

Physics lacks a confirmed description of dark matter, has yet to develop an adequate understanding of dark energy, and includes unverified conjectures regarding new elementary particles. This essay features modeling that addresses those problems and explains otherwise unexplained data. Our modeling starts from five bases – multipole expansions for the electromagnetic and gravitational fields associated with an object, the list of known elementary particles, some aspects of mathematics for isotropic harmonic oscillators, concordance cosmology, and a conjecture that the universe includes six isomers of most elementary particles. The multipole expansions – which have use in conjunction with Newtonian kinematics modeling, special relativity, and general relativity – lead to a catalog of kinematics properties such as charge, magnetic moment, mass, and repulsive gravitational pressure. The multipole expansions also point to all known elementary particles, some properties of those particles, and properties of some would-be elementary bosons and elementary fermions. The harmonic-oscillator mathematics points to Gauge symmetries regarding some elementary bosons. The would-be elementary fermions lack charge and would measure as dark matter. The conjecture regarding six isomers of most elementary particles rounds out and dominates our specification for dark matter. Five of the isomers form the basis for most dark matter. Our modeling explains ranges of observed ratios of dark matter effects to ordinary matter effects – for the universe, galaxy clusters, two sets of galaxies observed at high redshifts, three sets of galaxies observed at modest redshifts, and one type of depletion of cosmic microwave background radiation. Our description of repulsive gravitational pressure points toward resolution for tensions – between data and modeling – regarding the recent rate of expansion of the universe, resolution for possible tensions regarding large-scale clumping, and resolution for possible tensions regarding interactions between neighboring galaxies. Our work regarding gravity, dark matter, and elementary particles suggests characterizations for eras that might precede the inflationary epoch, a mechanism that might have produced baryon asymmetry, mechanisms that govern the rate of expansion of the universe, and insight about galaxy formation and evolution.

The calculation of the collapse load of spherical domes is addressed using a semi-analytical approach under the hypotheses of small displacements and perfect plasticity. The procedure is based on the numerical approximation of the self-stress that represents the projection of the balance equilibrium null space on a finite dimensional manifold. The so obtained self-equilibrated stress span is superimposed to a finite element linear elastic solution to the prescribed loads yielding to the statically admissible set accordingly to Melan’s theorem. The compatibility of the stress with the constitutive law of the material has been enforced using linearized limit domain in terms of generalized stress, namely axial force and bending moment along the local spherical curvilinear coordinates. The procedure has been tested with reference to numerical and experimental data from the literature confirming the accuracy of the proposed method. The comparison with the literature confirms that the buckling load is much greater than the plastic collapse loads both calculated through the proposed procedure and reported in the quoted literature.

With the ongoing COVID pandemic, the emergence of a novel omicron variant in November 2021 has chaos the world. Despite mass vaccination, this omicron has spread rapidly raising concerns around the globe. The Omicron variant has a vast array of mutations as compared to another variant of concern with overall 50 mutations where 30 mutations are present in its spike protein. This mutation has led to immune escape and more transmissibility compared to other variants, including Delta. A cluster of mutations (H655Y, N679K, and P681H) present at the omicron spike protein could aid in transmission. Currently, no virus-specific data are available to predict the efficacy of anti-viral and mAbs drugs. However, two monoclonal antibody drugs: Sotrovimab and Evusheld are authorized for emergency use in COVID patients. This virus is not fading away soon. The easiest solution and less expensive measure to fight against this pandemic are following COVID appropriate protocols.There is need to strengthen the level of research for development of potential vaccines and anti-viral drugs. It is also important to monitor and expand genomic surveillance to keep track of the emergence of new variants thus avoiding the spread of new diseases worldwide. This article highlights the emergence of omicron and vast number of mutation in its protein. In addition, recent advancement in drugs approved by FDA to treat COVID patients has been listed and focused in this paper.

According to our current understanding of quantum mechanics, a `measurement' violates unitarity. In other words as the act of measurement `resets' the probabilities described by the Schrödinger equation, in the very `moment' of the collapse of the wavefunction, conservation of probability does not hold. To make progress in our understanding of the measurement problem it is thus expected that one must encompass in a single equation both otherwise mutually-exclusive processes of measurement and unitary evolution. In this light, turning to the continuity equation, we realize the possibility that if we allow for existence of sources and sinks in the `fluid of probability' we get closer to such a theory by arriving at nonlinear generalizations of Schrödinger and Klein-Gordon equations. The generalized equations derived are then shown to satisfy all conditions that are expected from a proper generalization: simplification to their linear counterparts by a well-defined dynamical condition, and Galilean and Lorentz invariance.

Exploration practices have proven that over mature shale gas exhibits a feature of carbon isotope reversal. The geochemical statistics indicate that the wetness (C2-C5/C1-C5) of shale gas with carbon isotope reversal is less than 1.8%. In addition, the magnitude of carbon isotope reversal (δ13C1- δ13C2) for the over mature shale gas presents a parabolic variation with decreasing wetness. δ13C1-δ13C2 increases with decreasing wetness within a wetness range of 0.9% ~1.8% and then decreases with decreasing wetness at wetness < 0.9%. The CH4 cracking experiment demonstrates that CH4 polymerization occurring in the early stage of CH4 cracking is an important factor involved in isotope reversal of over mature shale gas. Moreover, δ13C1- δ13C2 decreases with an increase in experimental temperature prior to CH4 substantial cracking. The values of δ13C1 and δ13C2 tend to equalize during CH4 substantial cracking. The δ13C1-δ13C2 of mud gas present at different depths during shale gas drilling in Sichuan Basin increases initially, then decreases with further increase in the depth and finally tends to zero, with only a trace hydrocarbon gas being detectable. Statistical data suggests that the shale gas production in Sichuan Basin decreases with the decreasing δ13C1-δ13C2 value and wetness. Thus, δ13C1-δ13C2 and wetness could potentially serve as useful criteria to screen CH4 cracking degree and to determine the largest depth of natural gas exploration. Great care should be taken during shale gas exploration in deeper layers, with wetness and δ13C1-δ13C2 less than 0.2% and 1%, respectively, since very low wetness (<0.2%) and δ13C1-δ13C2 (<1%) might be indicative of CH4 substantial cracking in a geological setting.

This paper focuses on the combination of the method of moments and the wire-grid approximation as an effective computational technique for modeling symmetrical antennas with low computational cost and quite accurate results. The criteria and conditions for the use of wire-grid surface approximation from various sources are presented together with new recommendations for modeling symmetrical antenna structures using the wire-grid approximation. These recommendations are used to calculate the characteristics of biconical and horn antennas at different frequencies. The results obtained using different grid and mesh settings are compared to those obtained analytically. Moreover, the results are compared to those obtained using the finite difference time domain numerical method, as well as the measured ones. All results are shown to be in a good agreement. The used recommendations for building a symmetrical wire-grid of those symmetrical antenna elements provided the most advantageous parameters of the grid and mesh settings and the wire radius, which are able to give a quite accurate results with low computational cost. Additionally, the known equal area rule was modified for a rectangular grid form. The obtained radiation patterns of a conductive plate using both the original rule and the modified one are compared with the electrodynamic analysis results. It is shown that the use of the modified rule is more accurate when using a rectangle grid form.

The process of revitalising quiescent cells in order for them to proliferate plays a pivotal role in the repair of warn out tissues as well as for tissue homeostasis. This process is also crucial in the growth, development and well-being of higher multi-cellular organisms such as mammals. Deregulation of quiescent-proliferation transition is related to many diseases, in particular cancer. Recent studies have revealed that this process is regulated tightly by the Rb−E2F bistable switch mechanism. Based on experimental observations, in this study, we formulate a mathematical model to examine the effect of the growth factor concentration on the proliferation-quiescence transition in human cells. Working with a non-dimensionalised model, we prove positivity, boundedness and uniqueness of solutions. To understand model solution behaviour close to bifurcation points, we carry out bifurcation analysis, which is further verified by use of numerical bifurcation analysis, sensitivity analysis and numerical simulations. Indeed, bifurcation and numerical analysis of the model predicted a transition between stable, bistable and stable states, which are dependent on the growth factor concentration parameter (GF). The derived predictions confirm experimental observations.

In 2019, the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) estimated that prostate cancer (PC) was the 16th cause of death globally in males. In Mexico, PC epidemiology has been reported for a selected number of metrics and years, although without including the most up-to-date estimates. Herein, we describe and compare the burden and trends of PC in Mexico and its 32 states from 2000 to 2019. For this, we extracted online available data from the GBD 2019 to estimate the crude and age-standardized rate (ASR per 100,000 people) of incidence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs). In Mexico, PC caused 27.1 thousand (95% uncertainty intervals, 20.6-36.0 thousand) incident cases, 9.2 thousand (7.7-12.7 thousand) deaths, and 161.5 thousand (122.7-219.5 thousand) DALYs in males of all ages in 2019. Among states, Sinaloa had the greatest ASR of incidence and Guerrero the highest values of deaths and DALYs. The burden of PC showed an increasing trend, although the magnitude of change differed between metrics and locations. We found both an increasing national trend and subnational variation in the burden of PC. Our results confirm the need for updated and timely estimates to design effective diagnostic and treatment campaigns in locations where the burden of PC is the highest.

Artificial Intelligence is increasingly being used by social media platforms to tackle online hate speech. The sheer quantity of content, the speed at which is it developed and the enhanced pressure companies are facing by States to remove hate speech quickly from their platforms have led to a tricky situation. This commentary argues that automated mechanisms, which may have biased datasets and be unable to pick up on the nuances of language, should not be left unattended with hate speech as this can lead to issues of violating freedom of expression and the right to non-discrimination.

This paper takes the VR animation display of the Ming Xiao Mausoleum General stone statue life as an example to study the advantages of VR animation in the display of material heritage. Combined with literature and pictures, the digital restoration of the Ming Xiao Mausoleum stone statue is carried out in MAYA and Z brush, and the construction of the scene and the output of the final effect are realized in UE4.

There is little doubt that life's origin followed from the known physical and chemical laws of Nature. The most general scientific framework incorporating the laws of Nature and applicable to most known processes to good approximation, is that of thermodynamics and its extensions to treat out-of-equilibrium phenomena. The event of the origin of life should therefore also be amenable to such an analysis. In this paper, I describe the non-equilibrium thermodynamic foundations of the origin of life for the non-expert. This ``Thermodynamic Dissipation Theory for the Origin of Life'' is founded on Classical Irreversible Thermodynamic theory developed by Lars Onsager, Ilya Prigogine, and coworkers.

Background: Since the previous study dealing with the case fatality ratio and infection fatality ratio caused by COVID-19, the author has received many comments that prompted the question: "Why did an optimistic prognosis fail?" To answer this question, a more detailed and expanded analysis was carried out in a new study. Objective: To evaluate the dynamics of monthly numbers of cases, deaths, tests and CFR worldwide during three phases of the COVID-19 pandemic. Material and Methods: Twenty three sets of databases, dated the 22nd of each month from January 2020 to November 2021, for 213 countries were collected from the Worldometer website. The number of cases, deaths, tests, CFR, IFR, etc. were counted for various periods of time for each of the 213 countries, then results related to different periods of time were compared. Results: The analysis of the main epidemiological parameters led to the division of three phases of the global pandemic evolution. The first phase (23.01.20-22.07.20), the second phase (23.07.20-22.01.21) and the third phase (23.01.21-22.07.21) were different in terms of the number of tests performed, new cases, and mortality due to COVID-19. By the end of the second phase, the worldwide statistics indicated the imminent end of the pandemic, but the third phase was characterized by a sudden rise in the number of new cases and deaths that could not be explained rationally. The most dramatic evolution of the epidemic curve occurred in the countries where doctors had successfully battled COVID-19 during the first two phases of the pandemic. Conclusions: Despite the decrease in overall death numbers during the latest months analyzed, additional study is necessary to identify the cause for the increase in the number of new cases and deaths during the third phase of the pandemic. Only complete information regarding the positive and negative impact of medical and non-medical methods of diagnostics and prophylaxis of COVID-19 can help to organize effective measures to end the current pandemic and prevent a similar one from occurring in the future. Presumably, there are several causes of the negative evolution of the current pandemic, including the overreliance on PCR tests, application of non-specialized premises for quarantine and treatment, decrease in herd and individual immunity, inadequate change of therapeutic protocols, and ignoring prophylactic treatment. It can be suggested that the use of immunemodulatory drugs, for example, thymus extract or thymic peptides, in groups of people with compromised immunity is necessary, and prophylactic and therapeutic protocols should be changed from the 'standard' types to 'personalized' ones.

Currently, the design and construction of embankments of roads, railroads and hydraulic structures are based on regulatory documents developed 25-30 years ago. For the construction of granite massifs it is necessary to use sandy soils, the distribution of which in the Arctic zone of Siberia in the areas of construction is not more than 1.5%. In this case, the range of transport of sand in the alluvial area is 35 kilometers, in the rest of the area - an average of 60 kilometers. Large volumes of soil massifs require large amounts of transportation units, fuel consumption and are accompanied by large emissions of hydrocarbons into the atmosphere. Over the past 15 years, the authors have developed designs and technologies that significantly reduce the energy consumption during the construction of soil embankments. Combined structures are cages made of geosynthetic materials filled with unsuitable melted and frozen overmoistened clay and peaty soils. This allowed the use of soils within the construction sites and thereby reduce the range of transportation from 0.2 to 2.0 kilometers. As an example, when reducing the range of transportation from 25 km to 1 km, the energy consumption is reduced by a factor of 21. The use of geosynthetics made it possible to set the initial parameters of the water-heat regime control process, which increased the life cycle of the embankment from 2 to 5 times in comparison with traditional soil massifs and reduced the consumption of energy for repair and maintenance of linear transport structures. This article gives a theoretical substantiation of water-heat regime management, based on which new designs and technologies have been proposed and tested in Siberia in 2008-2013. The results of the tests confirm the theoretical research. Thus, the use of combined constructions of geosynthetics and inapplicable soils not only reduces the distance of transportation, but also reduces the volume of earthworks. It reduces the consumption of energy by 1.5-2 times.

Patients living with cancer often experience serious adverse events due to their condition or its treatments. Those events may lead to a critical care unit admission or even result in death. One of the most important but challenging part of care is to build a caring plan according to the patient’s wishes, meeting his goals and values. Advance directives (ADs) allow everyone to give their preferences in advance regarding life sustaining treatments, continuation, and withdrawal or withholding of treatments in case one is not able to speak his mind anymore. While the absence of ADs is associated with a greater probability of receiving unwanted intensive care around the end of his life, their existence correlates with the respect of the patient’s desires and his greater satisfaction. Although progress has been made to promote ADs’ completion, they are still scarcely used among cancer patients in many countries. Several limitations to their acceptation and use can be detected. Efforts should be made to provide tailored solutions for the identified hindrances. This narrative review aims to depict the situation of ADs in the oncology context, and to highlight the future areas of improvement.

Intracellular potassium concentrations, [K+], are high in all types of living cells, but the origins of this K+ are unknown. The simplest hypothesis is that life emerged in an environment that was high in K+. One such environment is the spaces between the sheets of the clay mineral, mica. The best mica for life’s origins is the black mica, biotite, because it has a high content of Mg++ and it has iron in various oxidation states. Life also has many of the characteristics of the environment between mica sheets, giving further support for the possibility that mica was the substrate on and within which life emerged.

Background. 46,XX disorders of sex development are rare. Approximately, 90% of XX males are SRY-positive, while testicular development in the absence of SRY takes place in a minority. Methods: A boy with 46,XX karyotype (SRY-negative; absence of SOX9 duplications) was investigated by targeted Next Generation Sequencing (NGS), Multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA), and Comparative Genomic Hybridization array (CGH-array). Results: The boy had normal male phenotype and normal prepubertal values of testicular hormones. He presented a heterozygous duplication of 49.626 bp, encompassing exons 2 and 3 of DMRT1. The result was arr[GRCh37] 9p24.3(845893_895518)x3. Since both breakpoints are harbored in the intronic regions, the duplication does not stop or shift the coding frame. Additional known pathogenic or uncertain variants in pro-testis gene cascade were not identified. Conclusions: This study report a boy with 46,XX testicular disorder of sex differentiation, showing a de novo partial intragenic duplication of DMRT1. This intragenic duplication may result in a gain of function, acting as primary pro-testis gene (or anti-ovary gene) in a 46,XX human foetus and permitting normal pre-pubertal endocrine testis function.

Social and academic integration variables have shown to be relevant for the understanding of university dropout. However, there is less evidence regarding the influence of these variables on dropout intention, as well as predictive models that explain their relationships. Improvements in this topic become relevant considering that dropout intention stands as a useful measure to anticipate and intervene on this phenomenon. The objective of the present study was to evaluate a predictive model for the university dropout intention that considers the relationships between social and academic variables, during the first university semester of 2020. The research was carried out using a cross-sectional associative-predictive design, with a convenience sampling (n=711) due the restrictions of pandemic period. The results showed a good fit of the proposed hypothetical model that explains 38.7% of dropout intention. Both social support and perceived social isolation predicted the sense of belonging, and through it, engagement. Previous academic performance predicted early academic performance, and through it, engagement. The set of variables predicted the intention to quit, through engagement. These results are a contribution both to the understanding of the phenomenon and to guide potential interventions in the early stages of the university experience.

In developing countries today, population growth and the penetration of higher standard of living appliances in homes has resulted in a rapidly increasing residential load. In South Africa, the recent rolling blackouts and electricity price increase only highlighted this reality calling for sustainable measures to reduce the overall consumption and peak load. The dawn of the smart grid concept, embedded systems and ICTs have paved the way to novel HEMS design. In this regard, the Internet of Things (IoT), an enabler for smart and efficient energy management systems is seeing increasing attention for optimizing HEMS design and mitigate its deployment cost constraints. In this work, we propose an IoT platform for residential energy management applications focusing on interoperability, low-cost, technology availability and scalability. We focus on the backend complexities of IoT Home Area Networks (HAN) using the OCF IoTivity-Lite middleware. To augment the quality, servicing and reduce cost and complexities, this work leverages open-source Cloud technologies from Back4App as BaaS to provide consumer and Utilities with a data communication platform within an experimental study illustrating time and space agnostic “mind-changing” energy feedback, Demand Response Management (DRM) and appliance operation control via a HEM App via an Android smartphone.

In this paper we study solutions and drift homogenization for a class of viscous lake equations by using the method of semigroups of bounded operators. Suppose that the initial value i.e.,for some Hölder continuous function onwith smooth function value satisfying and Then the initial value problem (2) for viscous lake equations has a unique smooth local strong solution. Using this result we study the drift homogenization for three-dimensional stationary Stokes equation in the usual sense

Blockchain technology has been recognized as a promising solution to enhance the security and privacy of Internet of Things (IoT) and Edge Computing scenarios. Taking advantage of the Proof-of-Work (PoW) consensus protocol, which solves a computation intensive hashing puzzle, Blockchain assures the security of the system by establishing a digital ledger. However, the computation intensive PoW favors members possessing more computing power. In the IoT paradigm, fairness in the highly heterogeneous network edge environments must consider devices with various constraints on computation power. Inspired by the advanced features of Digital Twins (DT), an emerging concept that mirrors the lifespan and operational characteristics of physical objects, we propose a novel Miner-Twins (MinT) architecture to enable a fair PoW consensus mechanism for blockchains in IoT environments. MinT adopts an edge-fog-cloud hierarchy. All physical miners of the blockchain are deployed as microservices on distributed edge devices, while fog/cloud servers maintain digital twins that periodically update miners’ running status. By timely monitoring miner’s footage that is mirrored by twins, a lightweight Singular Spectrum Analysis (SSA) based detection achieves to identify individual misbehaved miners that violate fair mining. Moreover, we also design a novel Proof-of-Behavior (PoB) consensus algorithm to detect byzantine miners that collude to compromise a fair mining network. A preliminary study is conducted on a proof-of-concept prototype implementation, and experimental evaluation shows the feasibility and effectiveness of proposed MinT scheme under a distributed byzantine network environment.