Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Land and Seabed Surface Modelling in the Coastal Zone Using UAV/USV-Based Data Integration

The coastal zone is an area that includes the sea coast and adjacent parts of the land and sea, where the mutual interaction of these environments is clearly marked. Hence, the modelling of the land and seabed parts of the coastal zone is crucial and necessary in order to determine the dynamic changes taking place in this area. The accurate determination of the terrain in the coastal zone is now possible thanks to the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs). The aim of this article is to present land and seabed surface modelling in the coastal zone using UAV/USV-based data integration. Bathymetric and photogrammetric measurements were carried out on the waterbody adjacent to a public beach in Gdynia (Poland) in 2022 using the DJI Phantom 4 Real Time Kinematic (RTK) UAV and the AutoDron USV. As a result of geospatial data integration, topo-bathymetric models in the coastal zone were developed using the following terrain-modelling methods: Inverse Distance to a Power (IDP), kriging, Modified Shepard’s Method (MSM) and Natural Neighbour Interpolation (NNI). Then, the accuracies of the selected models obtained using the different interpolation methods, taking into account the division into land and seabed parts, were analysed. Research has shown that the most accurate method for modelling both the land and seabed surfaces of the coastal zone is the kriging (linear model) method. The differences between the interpolated and measurement values of the R95 measurement are 0.032 m for the land part and 0.034 m for the seabed part. It should also be noted that the data interpolated by the kriging (linear model) method showed a very good fit to the measurement data recorded by the UAVs and USVs.
CHEMICALLY MODIFIED ASCOPHYLLUM NODOSUM SEAWEED: A SUSTAINABLE SOLUTION FOR HEAVY METAL REMOVAL FROM WASTEWATER

In this study, a batch adsorption process was conducted utilizing Ascophyllum Nodosum biosorbent as an organic adsorbent used for the elimination of heavy metal ions (specifically chromium, nickel, and zinc) from wastewater. To examine the surface morphology and functional groups, the biosorbent underwent analysis using FTIR, SEM & EDX technologies. To understand the nature of the adsorption process, several isothermal studies were conducted. These studies aimed to determine whether the adsorption process was homogeneous or heterogeneous in nature. Furthermore, the physical or chemical nature of the metal ion adsorption on the adsorbent was investigated through kinetic studies. Thermodynamic investigations were also carried out to assess whether the adsorption of metal ions was exothermic or endothermic, as well as to conclude the spontaneity of the process. Notably, the findings indicated that the inclusion of 0.3N HCl resulted in the highest rate of desorption, indicating its effectiveness in releasing the adsorbed metal ions. The AN – Brown Algae adsorbs targeted metal ions (Cr(VI), Ni(II), Zn(II)) at percentage of 93.55%, 87.56% and 83.27% respectively from the synthetic solution under the optimum conditions in batch study.
Assessment of Electrical Brain Activity of Healthy Volunteers Exposed to 3.5 GHz of 5G Signals within Environmental Levels: A Controlled–Randomised Study

Following the recent deployment of fifth-generation (5G) radio frequencies, several questions about their health impacts have been raised. Due to the lack of experimental research on this subject, the current study aimed to investigate the bio-physiological effects of a generated 3.5 GHz frequency. For this purpose, the wake electroencephalograms (EEG) of 34 healthy volunteers were explored during two “real” and “sham” exposure sessions. The electromagnetic fields were antenna-emitted in an electrically shielded room and had an electrical field root-mean-square intensity of 2 V/m, corresponding to the current outdoor exposure levels. The sessions were a maximum of one week apart, and both contained an exposure period of approximately 26 min and were followed by a post-exposure period of 17 min. The power spectral densities (PSDs) of the beta, alpha, theta, and delta bands were then computed and corrected based on an EEG baseline period. This was acquired for 17 min before the subsequent phases were recorded under two separate conditions: eyes open (EO) and eyes closed (EC). A statistical analysis showed an overall non-significant change in the studied brain waves, except for a few electrodes in the alpha, theta, and delta spectra. This change was translated into an increase or decrease in the PSDs, in response to the EO and EC conditions. In conclusion, this studhy showed that 3.5 GHz exposure, within the regulatory levels and exposure parameters used in this protocol, did not affect brain activity in healthy young adults. Moreover, to our knowledge, this was the first laboratory-controlled human EEG study on 5G effects. It attempted to address society’s current concern about the impact of 5G exposure on human health at environmental levels.
Nested Low-Loss Hollow Core Fiber

A novel hollow core antiresonant fiber made of a single material is numerically investigated. The design of the fiber cladding based on nested antiresonant tubes without additional radial interconnection struts suppresses the presence of spurious loss peaks and dips within the antiresonant windows, which benefits for the wide bandwidth and low loss transmission. Through simply adding antiresonant membranes, the leakage loss of the fiber can be effectively reduced and the bending loss is negligible. Adoption of this fiber design in the negative curvature fibers will lead to improved performance in terms of losses compared to previously reported antiresonat fibers.
Long-term orientation and corporate social responsibility in small and medium-sized enterprises: the role of strategy formation mode

Purpose This study aims to explore the effects of long-term orientation (LTO) and strategy formation mode on corporate social responsibility. While many researchers have investigated how large businesses address corporate social responsibility (CSR), there is little empirical evidence on how small- and medium-sized businesses implement CSR or what individual drivers shape this process. Design/methodology/approach The paper surveyed 282 small and medium-sized managers from the United Kingdom. The respondents were recruited using platform Prolific Academic. Findings The findings reveal that LTO is a prerequisite for developing CSR and shapes strategy formation mode. The findings also suggested that deliberate strategies are positively related to CSR. The results are consistent across different components of LTO (futurity, continuity and perseverance) and CSR types (internal and external). Originality/value The results show that all aspects of LTO are relevant for CSR in SMEs. Besides LTO, deliberate strategy formation model is an important factor contributing to CSR. The paper presents as first an empirical contribution to the strategy literature by examining positive relationship between LTO and deliberate strategy formation mode.
Role of multiple discrete heaters on the entropy generation during natural convection in porous square and triangular enclosures

Abstract Comparative study based on the entropy generation analysis has been carried out within porous square and triangular (design 1 and 2) enclosures subjected to discrete heating involving double heaters (cases 1–3) and single heater (case 0) along each side wall during natural convection for involving Prm = 0.015 and 7.2 at . Galerkin finite element method is implemented for the accurate evaluation of the entropy generation terms involving thermal and velocity gradients based on elemental basis set. Cases 1–3 are found to correspond lower values of the entropy generation compared to case 0 especially at higher values of Dam.
Decomposing a Graph into Unigraphs

Unigraphs are graphs uniquely determined by their own degree sequence up to isomorphism. There are many subclasses of unigraphs such as threshold graphs, split matrogenic graphs, matroidal graphs, and matrogenic graphs. Unigraphs and these subclasses are well studied in the literature. Nevertheless, there are few results on superclasses of unigraphs. In this paper, we introduce two types of generalizations of unigraphs: $k$-unigraphs and $k$-strong unigraphs. We say that a graph $G$ is a $k$-unigraph if $G$ can be partitioned into $k$ unigraphs. $G$ is a $k$-strong unigraph if not only each subgraph is a unigraph but also the whole graph can be uniquely determined up to isomorphism, by using the degree sequences of all the subgraphs in the partition. We describe a relation between $k$-strong unigraphs and the subgraph isomorphism problem. We show some properties of $k$-(strong) unigraphs and algorithmic results on calculating the minimum $k$ such that a graph $G$ is a $k$-(strong) unigraph. This paper will open many other research topics.
Non-metropolitan gated developments in the Western Cape : patterns, processes and purpose

ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Gated developments, also known as gated communities, have become a feature of urban living throughout the world and have been the subject of intensive research. Gated developments in South African cities are a ubiquitous feature of the post-apartheid urban landscape with many new housing developments in the form of secure estates or fortified townhouse complexes. Almost all the international literature on gated developments has focused on them as a metropolitan phenomenon. Very few international studies have investigated gated developments in non-metropolitan locales and this topic is unexplored in the South African context. This dissertation addresses this research gap. The study area is the entire non-metropolitan area of the Western Cape province. The politicoadministrative concept of non-metropolitan is used rather than the descriptor rural because the latter implies an area of primary production with no diversification of productive activities. The study area excludes the metropolitan area of Cape Town but includes the rest of the province within which there are settlements of varying sizes having a diverse range of economic activities. It is in these places that gated developments were investigated to cover and discover particular aspects of the hitherto unexplored non-metropolitan gated developments of South Africa. The specific objectives were to place the research in the theoretical and conceptual debates of gated developments; map the occurrence of the phenomenon; and spatially analyse the location and security aspects of the developments at a macro scale. Two towns, Swellendam and Ceres, were selected as case studies as their gated developments present a host of significant features warranting further micro-scale analysis. The spatial and locational analyses yielded other researchable themes specific to certain types of developments, namely retirement gated developments in Oudtshoorn and Swellendam and gated developments outside the urban edge. A comprehensive spatially-linked database of gated developments in the study area was compiled from numerous sources, culminating in a process of groundtruthing that resulted in the collection of data on the physical features of each development. Qualitative data was collected from respondents through interviews, electronic communications and a questionnaire survey. Distribution patterns of gated developments were determined from spatial data and data on physical features was used to calculate security level index values for the gated developments. These data sets enabled spatial and typological comparisons to be made. Qualitative data added a ‘voice’ to the quantitative data and provided insights into social, economic and planning aspects of gated developments. The location of gated developments in the province is largely determined by proximity to metropolitan Cape Town and areas with high occurrences of amenities. The spatio-temporal patterns and typological distinctions of gated developments are influenced by…
Edge Computing for Metaverse: Incentive Mechanism versus Semantic Communication

We design an incentive mechanism for edge computing trading between virtual service providers (VSPs) and an edge computing provider (ECP). The VSPs deploy unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to collect sensing data from physical objects to update their digital twins (DTs) to serve their Metaverse users. To process the huge data, the VSP offloads a part of data computation to the ECP. Given the limited computing capacity, we propose a DL-based auction using the augmented Lagrangian method for determining the winning probabilities of the VSPs and their payments. The DL-based auction aims to maximize the ECP's revenue and holds incentive compatibility (IC) and individual rationality (IR) while satisfying budget (BG) constraints. To reduce the offloading cost, a semantic communication (SemCom) technique is deployed at the UAVs of the VSPs. The SemCom technique allows the UAVs to generate and transmit semantic symbols rather than the raw images to their corresponding VSP, which significantly reduces the offloading cost. To train the neural networks used in the DL-based auctions, we use a dataset including valuations of the computing resources to the VSPs, which is a function of the age of DT, the size of the semantic symbol, the sensing time and communication time of the UAVs, and the available computing capacity of the VSP. Simulation results clearly show that the proposed DL-based auction outperforms the classical auctions in terms of ECP's revenue, IR, IC, and BG. The results further show that the use of SemCom reduces the offloading cost for the VSPs.
A New Concept of Sustainable Wind Turbine Blades: Bio-Inspired Design with Engineered Adhesives

In this paper, a new concept of extra-durable and sustainable wind turbine blades is presented. The two critical materials science challenges of the development of wind energy now are the necessity to prevent the degradation of wind turbine blades for several decades, and, on the other side, to provide a solution for the recyclability and sustainability of blades. In preliminary studies by DTU Wind, it was demonstrated that practically all typical wind turbine blade degradation mechanisms (e.g., coating detachment, buckling, spar cap/shell adhesive joint degradation, trailing edge failure, etc.) have their roots in interface degradation. The concept presented in this work includes the development of bio-inspired dual-mechanism-based interface adhesives (combining mechanical interlocking of fibers and chemical adhesion), which ensures, on the one side, extra-strong attachment during the operation time, and on the other side, possible adhesive joint separation for re-use of the blade parts. The general approach and physical mechanisms of adhesive strengthening and separation are described.
Design of a Highly Efficient Class-F GaN MMIC Power Amplifier Using a Multi-Function Bias Network and a Harmonic-Isolation L-C Resonator

This paper proposes a new method to design compact and high-efficiency Class-F GaN microwave monolithic integrated circuit (MMIC) based power amplifiers (PAs). Closed-form design equations are derived to synthesize a multi-function bias branch sub-network (BBSN) and a harmonic-isolation matching branch sub-network (MBSN), which together form a network that is capable to satisfy the Class-F load condition from fundamental up to the <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$4^{th}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> harmonic frequency. These equations further assist in analyzing the impact of the finite inductor quality factor on the passive efficiency of the proposed network, yielding design choices that offer both reduced chip size and passive loss. For validation, the proposed method is applied to design a C-band high-efficiency PA in a commercial 0.25 <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\mu {\mathrm{ m}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> GaN-on-SiC HEMT process. Measurements under pulsed continuous-wave stimulation reveal, the proposed PA is capable of providing saturation output power of 38.5-39.1 dBm and excellent power-added efficiency (PAE) of 61%-70% over 5.3-5.9 GHz with a chip size of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$1.5\times2.2$ </tex-math></inline-formula> mm2. Moreover, when excited by a 100 MHz 256-QAM signal, the amplifier can offer an average PAE of 33.1-38.2%, adjacent channel power ratio (ACPR) of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$ < -35$ </tex-math></inline-formula>dBc, error vector magnitude (EVM) of 2.7-3.7%, without applying any digital pre-distortion (DPD).
Cytoplasmic incompatibility and female fecundity associated with Wolbachia infection in a cricket species

Wolbachia is a maternally inherited endosymbiont of the phylum α‐Proteobacteria that is found widely in arthropods and nematodes. Cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI) is the commonest endosymbiotic manipulation among arthropods, namely reduced embryo viability when Wolbachia‐infected males fertilize Wolbachia‐uninfected females. In this study, endosymbiont infection was investigated and crossing experiments were performed in the wing‐dimorphic cricket Velarifictorus aspersus (Walker) (Orthoptera: Gryllidae) to clarify the effects of Wolbachia on host reproduction. All the tested individuals were infected with two Wolbachia strains, wAsp‐a and wAsp‐f, which belong to supergroup A and supergroup F, respectively. There were no obvious differences in the duration of nymph development or the proportions of females between the Wolbachia‐infected and Wolbachia‐free lines. However, crossing Wolbachia‐infected males with uninfected females reduced the hatching rate by 28% compared with that when infected males were crossed with infected females. The number of eggs laid by Wolbachia‐free females was significantly lower than laid by infected females, either mating with infected males or uninfected males. These results suggest that Wolbachia induced incomplete CI and enhanced female fertility in V. aspersus. Because no homologous cifA and cifB genes, which are involved in CI, were found in supergroups C, D and F, it might be considered that the CI of V. aspersus was induced by strain wAsp‐a of supergroup A. Moreover, the significant increase in the density of wAsp‐a Wolbachia with nymph development might be related to the regulation of CI.
Transcriptome and Metabolome Analyses of Thitarodes xiaojinensis in Response to Ophiocordyceps sinensis Infection

Ophiocordyceps sinensis exhibits more than 5 months of vegetative growth in Thitarodes xiaojinensis hemocoel. The peculiar development process of O. sinensis has been elucidated through morphological observation and omics technology; however, little information has been reported regarding the changes that occur in the host T. xiaojinensis. The RNA sequencing data showed that when O. sinensis blastospores were in the proliferative stage, the greatest change in the infected larval fat body was the selectively upregulated immune recognition and antimicrobial peptide genes. When O. sinensis blastospores were in the stationary stage, the immune pathways of T. xiaojinensis reverted to normal levels, which coincides with the successful settlement of O. sinensis. Pathway enrichment analysis showed a higher expression of genes involved in energy metabolism pathway in this stage. Metabolomic analyses revealed a reduction of amino acids and lipids in hemolymph, but an upregulation of lipids in the fat body of the host larvae after O. sinensis infection. We present the first transcriptome integrated with the metabolome study of T. xiaojinensis infected by O. sinensis. It will improve our understanding of the interaction mechanisms between the host and entomopathogenic fungi, and facilitate future functional studies of genes and pathways involved in these interactions.
Monitoring and Defense of Industrial Cyber-Physical Systems Under Typical Attacks: From a Systems and Control Perspective

In the new industrial environment, the safe and reliable operation of Industrial Cyber-Physical Systems (ICPSs) is being threatened by new types of attacks: Attackers carefully tamper with the measurement and control data transmitted over the network, causing the controlled systems to behave abnormally. The essence of such threats is operational safety issues induced by information security issues, which need to be studied at the bottom monitoring and control layer of the system. Studying safety and security monitoring, as well as defense strategies against these attacks, is of paramount importance. The primary objective of this article is to offer readers a timely survey that sheds light on the current status of safety and security issues in ICPSs. A comprehensive comparison is conducted with existing approaches and relevant literature, focusing on a systems and control perspective. Specifically, we emphasize the concept of cyber-physical attacks by contrasting them with conventional cyberattacks. A summary of real-world instances of typical cyber-physical attacks is provided to illustrate their significance. In terms of methodology, we conduct a thorough review of attack principles, attack detection, and evaluation approaches, as well as defense schemes. During this process, we carefully compare the pros and cons of different detection methods. It is further elaborated that the information asymmetry between the offensive and defensive parties is the booster of the integrated design of industrial safety and security. Looking ahead, we identify and summarize fourteen open questions that warrant further research.
Research on the big data analysis of MOOCs in a flipped classroom based on attention mechanism in deep learning model

Engineering education can be improved through the implementation of a flipped classroom, an instructional approach that allows students to learn theory online and practice it offline. However, the flipped classroom approach does not directly solve the challenge of the high dropout rate in online distance education, such as massive open online courses (MOOCs). Actually, distance education lacks the convenience of face‐to‐face communication and supervision. This study considers a deep learning model based on an attention mechanism in addition to some other common traditional machine learning models in an engineering MOOC with a flipped classroom design. The aim is to predict students' future performance and assist teachers in discovering the important learning stages that affect the prediction, thus improving teaching and learning performance. Our model performs better than other commonly used models. It is found that the middle and final learning stages, where specific knowledge is taught, are important, offering a new approach to analyzing and promoting distance engineering education.
Engineering Plastic Eating Enzymes Using Structural Biology

Plastic pollution has emerged as a significant environmental concern in recent years and has prompted the exploration of innovative biotechnological solutions to mitigate plastic’s negative impact. The discovery of enzymes capable of degrading specific types of plastics holds promise as a potential solution. However, challenges with efficiency, industrial scalability, and the diverse range of the plastic waste in question, have hindered their widespread application. Structural biology provides valuable insights into the intricate interactions between enzymes and plastic materials at an atomic level, and a deeper understanding of their underlying mechanisms is essential to harness their potential to address the mounting plastic waste crisis. This review article examines the current biochemical and biophysical methods that may facilitate the development of enzymes capable of degrading polyethylene terephthalate (PET), one of the most extensively used plastics. It also discusses the challenges that must be addressed before substantial advancements can be achieved in using these enzymes as a solution to the plastic pollution problem.