Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
In Situ Stabilisation of Silver Nanoparticles at Chitosan-Functionalised Graphene Oxide for Reduction of 2,4-Dinitrophenol in Water

This investigation reports the in situ growth of silver nanoparticles onto covalently bonded graphene oxide-chitosan, which serve as supported nanocatalysts for the NaBH4 reduction of 2,4-dinitrophenol in aqueous systems. Fumaryl chloride reacted with chitosan in an acidic environment to yield a tailored polymeric material. The latter was, in turn, treated with the pre-synthesised graphene oxide sheets under acidic conditions to generate the GO-functionalised membrane (GO-FL-CS). The adsorption of Ag+ from aqueous media by GO-FL-CS yielded a set of membranes that were decorated with silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs@GO-FL-CS) without any reducing agent. Various analytical tools were used to characterise these composites, including Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area analysis, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy/energy-dispersive X-ray analysis, inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry, and transmission electron microscopy. The silver-loaded materials were further used for the remediation of 2,4-dinitrophenol from aqueous solutions under batch operation. The BET analysis revealed that the functionalisation of GO with chitosan and Ag NPs (average size 20–60 nm) resulted in a three-fold increased surface area. The optimised catalyst (Ag mass loading 16.95%) displayed remarkable activity with an apparent pseudo-first-order rate constant of 13.5 × 10−3 min−1. The cyclic voltammetry experiment was conducted to determine the nitro-conversion pathway. The reusability/stability test showed no significant reduction efficiency of this metal-laden composite over six cycles. Findings from the study revealed that Ag NPs@GO-FL-CS could be employed as a low-cost and recyclable catalyst to convert toxic nitroaromatics in wastewater.
Vortex beam: generation and detection of orbital angular momentum [Invited]

Recent advances in the research of vortex beams, structured beams carrying orbital angular momentum (OAM), have revolutionized the applications of light beams, such as advanced optical manipulations, high-capacity optical communications, and super-resolution imaging. Undoubtedly, the methods for generation of a vortex beam and detection of its OAM are of vital importance for the applications of vortex beams. In this review, we first introduce the fundamental concepts of vortex beams briefly and then summarize approaches to generating and detecting the vortex beams separately, from bulky diffractive elements to planar elements. Finally, we make a concise conclusion and outline that is yet to be explored.
What do people think about technological enhancements of human beings? An introductory study using the Technological Enhancements Questionnaire in the context of values, the scientistic worldview, and the accepted versions of humanism

BACKGROUND Rapid development of technologies increases the possibility of technological enhancements of human beings, e.g., in their cognitive skills or physical fitness. Attitudes towards such enhancements may result in their social acceptance or rejection. PARTICIPANTS AND PROCEDURE One hundred and thirty-nine young Polish adults participated in the study. Participants completed the designed Technological Enhancements Questionnaire (TEQ) and questionnaires to measure values, the scientistic worldview, and the accepted versions of humanism. RESULTS The study showed a one-dimensional TEQ structure and its satisfactory reliability. Attitudes towards technological enhancements correlated positively with achievement, self-direction in thought, power over resources, the scientistic worldview, and the evolutionary version of humanism. They also correlated negatively with tradition and the liberal version of humanism. CONCLUSIONS The TEQ questionnaire is a short, reliable tool to measure attitudes towards technological enhancements. This preliminary study provided some significant results, but future work to validate the questionnaire is needed.
Extension of the supervision concept to the monitoring of discrete event systems

This paper deals with the extension of supervision concept to monitoring discrete event systems (DES) to resolve the forbidden concepts based on controlled objects Petri nets. The synthesis of control in nominal functioning (supervision) is based on the forbidden state conditions, and an risk state conditions in degraded functioning (monitoring). After a brief presentation of the forbidden state problems in DES, the paper describes the supervision structure used and the control policy adopted in nominal functioning. It also presents the extension of the supervision concept to the monitoring and the control policy adopted in degraded functioning. The practical application of the theoretical results is illustrated using an example of flexible manufacturing systems.
Structural stigma and sexual minority men’s depression and suicidality: A multi-level examination of mechanisms and mobility across 48 countries

Abstract Background Sexual minority men are at greater risk of depression and suicidality than heterosexuals. Stigma, the most frequently hypothesized risk factor for this disparity, operates across socioecological levels-structural (e.g., laws), interpersonal (e.g., discrimination), and individual (e.g., self-stigma). However, there is limited data on whether changes in structural stigma, such as when a stigmatized person moves to a lower stigma context, affect mental health, and on the mechanisms underlying this association Methods The current study uses data from the 2017/18 European Men-who-have-sex-with-men Internet Survey (n = 123,428), which assessed mental health and psychosocial mediators. We linked these data to an objective indicator of structural stigma related to sexual orientation in respondents’ countries of origin (N = 178) and receiving (N = 48) countries Results Among respondents who moved from higher-to-lower structural stigma countries (n = 11,831), longer exposure to the lower structural stigma environments of their receiving countries was associated with a significantly: 1) lower risk of depression and suicidality; 2) lower odds of concealment, internalized homonegativity, and social isolation; and 3) smaller indirect effect of structural stigma on mental health through these mediators. Conclusions This study provides evidence that structural stigma is associated with the mental health of sexual minority men, both through proximal experiences and as a function of length of exposure to structurally diverse contexts, at least for those who move higher-to-lower structural stigma contexts. Findings suggest the importance of routinely assessing life-course structural influences on mental health and deploying interventions to address those influences.
Human factors for ship design; exploring the bottom rung

This paper is a part of an ongoing study, which will amalgamate maritime Human Factors (HF) and Human-Centred Design (HCD) knowledge into the Naval Architecture syllabus, and study the effects of this change through action research as a promising way to provide a fresh view to the industry from the bottom up. The first cohort to initiate this study consists of final year Naval Architecture students at the Australian Maritime College (AMC). The findings from a classroom questionnaire and an onboard survey that carried out on the training vessel, Bluefin, ~ analysed and the students' perspective on including HF/HCD into their syllabus and the key areas which need to be addressed in a follow up lecture series are presented.
Activity Analysis: Application to Occupation

Acknowledgments About the Authors Preface Module I: Activity: The Foundation of Occupation Unit 1: The Impact of Occupation on our Human Experience Unit 2: Activity Analysis: The Learning Process Module II: The Dimensions of Activity Unit 3: Activity Awareness and Action Identification Form 1: Activity Awareness Example: Making a Telephone Call Form 2: Action Identification Example: Making a Telephone Call Unit 4: Activity Analysis for Expected Performance Form 3. Activity Analysis for Expected Performance: Making a Telephone Call Module III Therapeutic Utilization of Activity Unit 5: Activity Gradation and Adaptation Unit 6: Activity Analysis for Therapeutic Intervention Form 4. Activity Analysis for Therapeutic Intervention: Making a Telephone Call Unit 7: The Client-Activity Intervention Plan Form 5. Client-Activity Intervention Plan: Making a Telephone Call Module IV The Versatility of Activity Unit 8: A Review of the Process Form 1. Activity Awareness Form: Making Cookies From a Recipe Form 2. Action Identification Form: Making Cookies From a Recipe Form 3. Activity Analysis for Expected Performance: Making Cookies From a Recipe Form 4. Activity Analysis for Therapeutic Intervention: Making Cookies From a Recipe Form 5. Client-Activity Intervention Plan: Making Cookies From a Recipe Unit 9: Utilizing Assistive Technology: The Forms Web Site Epilogue Suggested Readings Prior to 1996 Suggested Readings From 1996 to 2003 Appendices Appendix A: Position Papers of the American Occupational Therapy Association Appendix B: Uniform Technology for Reporting Occupational Therapy Services, First Edition Appendix C: Blank Student Worksheets Index.
Análise econômica da geração de energia elétrica a partir do biogás na suinocultura

The demand for alternative sources of energy has grown in recent years in line with the variation of petroleum prices coupled with the recent energy crisis. Through anaerobic digestion swine manure can be converted into biogas. In the present study it was evaluated the economic viability of using biogas as an alternative source for the production of electricity, for different periods of generation. The method used for the economic evaluation was the Net Present Value (NPV). The time of return on invested capital was also calculated taking into account the discount interest rate on cash flows. The study proved to be economically viable use of biogas from swine manure as a source for generating electricity. The increased demand for electricity in the property increases the Net Present Value and decreases the time required for return of the investment.
Design and modeling of a PZT thin film based piezoelectric micromachined ultrasonic transducer (PMUT)

The design and modelling framework for a piezoelectric micromachined ultrasonic transducer (PMUT) based on the piezoelectric thin film deposition of lead zirconate titanate (PZT) is defined. Through high frequency vibration (1-16MHz) of a thin plate, the PMUT transmits and receives pressure pulses to construct medical ultrasound images as an alternative to bulk piezoelectric transducers currently in use. Existing transducers are difficult to fabricate and lack the small scale necessary for small form factor, high resolution 2D imaging arrays. From acoustic priniciples, the potential PMUT acoustic pressure output is determined and compared to a radiating rigid piston model. Acoustic pressure is shown to scale with the volumetric displacement rate, which is related to the plate deflection. A Green's function approach is then used to explicitly solve for the plate deflection of a bimorph and unimorph PMUT with an arbitrary number of circular or ring electrodes. The resulting solution is much simpler and more flexible than previously published solution techniques enabling the optimization of electrode configuration for large deflection and acoustic pressure. Additionally, the contribution of residual stress is examined; particularly its effects on bandwidth, sensitivity, and resonant frequency and an appropriate electrode coverage of the PMUT plate is suggested. Based on modelling, an initial PMUT design is proposed and is currently being fabricated.
Principles of Internet Marketing: New Tools and Methods for Web Developers

PRINCIPLES OF INTERNET MARKETING: NEW TOOLS AND METHODS FOR WEB DEVELOPERS helps readers understand the "why" behind the "how" of Web site development. It teaches the importance of the brand and how that relates to Web site development, the reasons sites are developed, how they build an audience, and most importantly, how companies use the Web to earn revenue and build recognition among their desired market. You will learn the strategies used to drive traffic to a site, the tools that are available to keep audiences coming back (with a focus on social media tools), and the role marketing plays in the building a successful Web site.
Fluid-Limit Model for Dynamic MU-OFDMA Resource Allocation of Wi-Fi6 Networks

This letter analyses both static and dynamic resource allocation methodologies of the Multi-User Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (MU-OFDMA) feature of the Wi-Fi 6 network. In contrast to static MU-OFDMA, in the case of dynamic MU-OFDMA system, resource units (RUs) are allocated dynamically between the schedule and random access (RA) RUs based on the heterogeneous traffic requirements of the stations (STAs). In this letter, we first analyze the static MU-OFDMA system using the Fluid limit approach and derive the transmission probability of a STA in a time slot denoted as <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\tau $ </tex-math></inline-formula> as a function of the number of RA RUs (<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$N_{RA}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>). Later the dynamic MU-OFDMA system is modeled as a Discrete-Time Markov Chain (DTMC) wherein the <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$N_{RA}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> changes with every time slot. The DTMC is solved by using the parameter <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\tau $ </tex-math></inline-formula> as a function of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$N_{RA}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> that is derived previously using the Fluid limit approach. The trade-off between throughput and RA capability (rate of new users accessing the system) of a dynamic system is studied and validated against simulation.
A new technique for the fabrication of thin silicon radiation detectors

The fabrication of silicon radiation detectors with thicknesses lower than 30 /spl mu/m requires non-standard processing equipment and procedures. Such detectors are commonly manufactured by vias in thick silicon wafers of typically 300 /spl mu/m in order to locally create on small areas thin detectors. Since the etching step controls the thickness and uniformity of the detector, it must provide a constant and controllable etch rate and should not modify the surface microroughness, rendering this manufacturing technique critical. As an alternative, we have developed a new technique for the fabrication of thin detectors based on the use of substrates presenting a buried etch-stop layer. The detector thickness, its uniformity and the surface roughness are fixed and controlled by the substrate specifications. 5 to 30 /spl mu/m thick pin silicon diodes with surfaces ranging from 1 to 100 mm/sup 2/ have been fabricated. Using this technique, thickness uniformity as low as /spl plusmn/0.05 /spl mu/m can be obtained on 5 /spl mu/m thick detectors over 100 mm/sup 2/ area. 30 /spl mu/m thick pin detectors (S=64 mm/sup 2/) are fully depleted at zero bias and exhibit an energy resolution of less than 120 keV (/spl sim/2 %) for 5.5 MeV alpha particles. This constitutes a breakthrough towards the low cost fabrication of thin silicon radiation detectors using planar technology.
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation over the Right Inferior Parietal Cortex Reduces Transposition Errors in a Syllabic Reordering Task

Evidence derived from functional imaging and brain-lesion studies has shown a strong left lateralization for language, and a complementary right hemisphere dominance for visuospatial abilities. Nevertheless, the symmetrical functional division of the two hemispheres gives no reason for the complexity of the cognitive operations involved in carrying out a linguistic task. In fact, a growing number of neuroimaging and neurostimulation studies suggest a possible right hemisphere involvement in language processing. The objective of this work was to verify the contribution of the left and right parietal areas in a phonological task. We applied anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to the right or left inferior parietal lobe, during a syllabic reordering task. After having learnt a combination of images of real objects and trisyllabic pseudowords with a simple consonant–vowel (CV) syllabic structure (e.g., tu-ru-cu), participants were shown the same images paired to two different pseudowords: one correct but with transposed syllables, and one alternative, never before seen. The participant’s task was to orally produce the chosen pseudoword, after having rearranged the order of its syllables. Two types of error were considered: transposition (correct pseudoword but incorrectly reordered) and identity (incorrect pseudoword). The results showed that right anodal stimulation significantly reduced the number of transposition errors, whereas left anodal stimulation significantly reduced the number of identity errors. These results suggested that both left and right inferior parietal areas were differentially involved in a syllabic reordering task, and, crucially, they demonstrated that visuospatial processes served by the right inferior parietal area could be competent for establishing the correct syllabic order within a word.
Comparison of Oxidative and Hypoxic Stress Responsive Genes from Meta-Analysis of Public Transcriptomes

Analysis of RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) data is an effective means to analyze the gene expression levels under specific conditions and discover new biological knowledge. More than 74000 experimental series with RNA-seq have been stored in public databases as of October 20, 2021. Since this huge amount of expression data accumulated from past studies is a promising source of new biological insights, we focused on a meta-analysis of 1783 runs of RNA-seq data under the conditions of two types of stresses: oxidative stress (OS) and hypoxia. The collected RNA-seq data of OS were organized as the OS dataset to retrieve and analyze differentially expressed genes (DEGs). The OS-induced DEGs were compared with the hypoxia-induced DEGs retrieved from a previous study. The results from the meta-analysis of OS transcriptomes revealed two genes, CRIP1 and CRIP3, which were particularly downregulated, suggesting a relationship between OS and zinc homeostasis. The comparison between meta-analysis of OS and hypoxia showed that several genes were differentially expressed under both stress conditions, and it was inferred that the downregulation of cell cycle-related genes is a mutual biological process in both OS and hypoxia.
Analysis and Quantification of Alkyl (C12-22) Trimethyl Ammonium Chloride Content in Cosmetics: Regulatory Compliance Gap Analysis

Background: Exceeding the recommended Alkyl (C12-22) trimethyl ammonium bromide and chloride levels in cosmetics and personal care products is a serious health threat. Objectives: To quantify and investigate Cetrimonium chloride and Behentrimonium chloride in cosmetics and personal care products in the UAE market to gauge whether or not they adhered to requirements for safety and health. Methods: A total of 164 cosmetics products were collected and analyzed in this study. The gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) method was developed and validated for the determination of Cetrimonium chloride and Behentrimonium chloride surfactants in cosmetics products. With each product, Cetrimonium chloride and Behentrimonium chloride (%) were calculated. To test cross-group differences in Cetrimonium chloride and Behentrimonium chloride (%), Kruskal–Wallis test was applied. Results: Of the 125 tested cosmetics and personal care products, five (4%) exceeded the recommended Cetrimonium chloride level in rinse-off hair products (2.5%), 10 (8%) exceeded the recommended Cetrimonium chloride level in leave-on hair products (1%), and 24 (61.5%) exceeded the recommended Cetrimonium chloride level used as a preservative in cosmetics products. Moreover, of the 125 tested cosmetics and personal care products, 21 (53.8%) exceeded the recommended Behentrimonium chloride level used as preservatives in cosmetics products. Conclusions: Although several structures for cosmetics quality and control across the globe are fairly comprehensive and intricate, there is a need to make them more rigorous to apply compliance with GMP and ensure regulatory control. Doing so would help enhance the inspection and regulation of cosmetics containing Behentrimonium chloride/Cetrimonium chloride preservatives. Furthermore, there is a dire need to establish a unified cosmetovigilance worldwide.
Detrimental Effect of Ozone on Pathogenic Bacteria

(1) Background: Disinfection of medical devices designed for clinical use associated or not with the growing area of tissue engineering is an urgent need. However, traditional disinfection methods are not always suitable for some biomaterials, especially those sensitive to chemical, thermal, or radiation. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the minimal concentration of ozone gas (O3) necessary to control and kill a set of sensitive or multi-resistant Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The cell viability, membrane permeability, and the levels of reactive intracellular oxygen (ROS) species were also investigated; (2) Material and Methods: Four standard strains and a clinical MDR strain were exposed to low doses of ozone at different concentrations and times. Bacterial inactivation (cultivability, membrane damage) was investigated using colony counts, resazurin as a metabolic indicator, and propidium iodide (PI). A fluorescent probe (H2DCFDA) was used for the ROS analyses; (3) Results: No reduction in the count colony was detected after O3 exposure compared to the control group. However, the cell viability of E. coli (30%), P. aeruginosa (25%), and A. baumannii (15%) was reduced considerably. The bacterial membrane of all strains was not affected by O3 but presented a significant increase of ROS in E. coli (90 ± 14%), P. aeruginosa (62.5 ± 19%), and A. baumanni (52.6 ± 5%); (4) Conclusion: Low doses of ozone were able to interfere in the cell viability of most strains studied, and although it does not cause damage to the bacterial membrane, increased levels of reactive ROS are responsible for causing a detrimental effect in the lipids, proteins, and DNA metabolism.
Work along Both Lines: The Positive Impact of Work-Based Social Media Use on Job Performance

Social media has rapidly become an important tool in organizations and has a significant impact on employees’ work and organizational operations. By applying social media to their daily work, employees gain access to important information resources that can help them get things done. Using the conservation of resources theory, this study examines the impact of work resources generated by employees’ work-based social media use on work status, as well as job performance. Data were collected from the employees of Internet companies in Henan Province and Shanghai, China. We distributed 519 pairs of questionnaires, and 369 pairs of valid paired questionnaires were returned. To estimate the proposed relationships in the theoretical framework, we used SPSS and MPLUS. The results show that work-based social media use can increase employees’ work engagement, which in turn increases task performance, job dedication and interpersonal facilitation. It also reduces the negative effects of work interruptions on task performance and job dedication. Therefore, we conclude the positive effects of work-based social media use on job performance can be achieved by increasing work engagement and by reducing work interruptions.