bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ecologías de la saturación. Investigación artística: Space Debris :: Constelaciones de desechos
Authors: Pizarro Juanas Esther
Published: February 2023

El lanzamiento del Sputnik en 1957, el primer satélite de la humanidad, inauguró una nueva era en la conquista del espacio exterior; pero también marcó el inicio de un nuevo tipo de contaminación invisible a nuestros ojos, la contaminación espacial. Desde entonces, nuestro planeta se ha rodeado de numerosos satélites encargados de estudiar nuestro clima, predecir catástrofes, ayudarnos a responder preguntas científicas importantes para la evolución humana y mantenernos continuamente conectados y vigilados. La vida útil de estos satélites se ve amenazada por la saturación de objetos que rodean la Tierra. Los choques accidentales entre objetos que orbitan el espacio exterior pueden producir nubes de desechos que se mueven a gran velocidad, con el consiguiente riesgo de colisión para futuras misiones espaciales. Cuanto mayor es la conectividad planetaria, más aumenta la contaminación espacial. Este escenario de saturación nos conecta con premisas conceptuales, como el ambiente artificial, la ecología sin naturaleza o el hiperobjeto; puntos de anclaje de diversos autores relacionados con el Antropoceno, que serán examinados en este texto, y que servirán de pilar teórico para la propuesta artística que presentamos. La investigación artística que lleva por título, Space Debris :: Constelaciones de desechos­­­, analiza y evidencia el enorme enjambre de basura espacial que gira alrededor de la Tierra en sus cuatro órbitas principales. Basándose en datos extraídos de fuentes científicas, identifica las principales once potencias responsables de la acumulación exponencial de desechos espaciales, clasifica y categoriza los datos, y visibiliza cómo se distribuye toda esta constelación de desechos espaciales en el cosmos mediante una instalación escultórica inmersiva e interactiva.
Measurements of global polarization of QCD matter in heavy-ion collisions
Authors: Sun Xu , Zhou Chen-Sheng , Chen Jin-Hui , Chen Zhen-Yu , Ma Yu-Gang , Tang Ai-Hong , Xu Qing-Hua ,   Quark Matter Center, Institute of modern physics, Chinese Academy of Science, Lanzhou 730000, China,   Key Laboratory of Nuclear Physics and Ion-beam Application (MOE), Institute of Modern Physics, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China,   Institute of Frontier and Interdisciplinary Science & Key Laboratory of Particle Physics and Particle Irradiation (MOE), Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, China,   Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton 11973, USA
Published: February 2023

The experimental data of the global polarization of Λ hyperon, ϕ and K*0 vector mesons in high-energy heavy ion collision confirm the new phenomenon of global polarization of hot-dense QCD matter, which has attracted extensive attention from researchers and has become a new hot research direction in the frontier of high-energy nuclear physics. This paper reviews the recent global polarization measurements. We focus on the global polarization measurements of Λ hyperon and ϕ, K*0 mesons, carried out by the solenoidal tracker detector (STAR) collaboration group at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) at its Phase I of Beam Energy Scan program, and extend to the global polarization measurements containing multiple strange quark particles, such as Ξ, Ω and the local polarization studies of Λ along the beam direction. In the paper, we also briefly comment on the measurements at higher energy from the large hadron collider (LHC) and at very low energy in HADES experiment. In the end of the paper, the physical information given by these experimental results is also briefly discussed.
Study of magnetoplasmons in graphene rings with two-dimensional finite element method
Authors: Wang Wei-Hua ,   School of Material Science and Physics, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, China
Published: February 2023

Graphene plasmons are important collective excitations in graphene, which play a key role in determining the optical properties of graphene. They have quite lots of unique features in comparison with classical plasmons in noble metals. Of them, the active tunability is the most attractive, which is realized by external gating (equivalently electric field). As is well known, graphene also has strong magnetic response (e.g. room temperature quantum Hall effect), so magnetic field can act as another degree of freedom for actively tuning graphene plasmons, with the new quasi particles being so-called graphene magneto-plasmons. Because of the two-dimensional nature of graphene, the numerical studies (or full wave simulations) of graphene magneto-plasmons are usually carried out through a three-dimensional approximation, e.g. treating two-dimensional graphene as a very thin three-dimensional film. Actually, this treatment takes quite some time and requires high memory consumption. Herein, starting from Coulomb law and charge conservation law, we propose an alternative numerical method, namely, two-dimensional finite element method, to solve this problem. All the calculations are now performed in two-dimensional graphene plane, and the usual three-dimensional approximation is not required. To characterize the excitations of graphene magneto-plasmons, the eigenvalue loss spectrum is introduced. Based on this method, graphene magneto-plasmons in graphene rings of four kinds are investigated. The strongest magneto-optic effect is observed in circular ring, which is consistent with its highest rotational symmetry. In all the rings, the lowest dipolar graphene magneto-plasmon always supports symmetric mode splitting, which can be further modified by the interaction between inner edge and outer edge of ring. As the hole size is very small, the edge current confined to the outer edge dominates, and that confined to the inner edge can be ignored; while increasing the hole size, the interaction between these two edges increases, which results in the reduction of the symmetric mode splitting; when the hole size is larger than a critical value, the symmetric mode splitting will disappear.
Global spin alignment of vector mesons in heavy ion collisions
Authors: Sheng Xin-Li , Liang Zuo-Tang , Wang Qun ,   INFN-Firenze, Via Giovanni Sansone, 1, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino FI, Italy,   Key Laboratory of Particle Physics and Particle Irradiation, Ministry of Education, Institute of Frontier and Interdisciplinary Science, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, China,   Department of Modern Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
Published: February 2023

In non-central relativistic heavy-ion collisions, the large initial orbital angular momentum results in strong vorticity fields in the quark-gluon plasma, which polarize partons through the spin-orbit coupling. The global polarization of quark matter will be converted to the global polarization of baryons and the global spin alignment of vector mesons. The spin alignment refers to the \begin{document}$\rho_{00}$\end{document} element of the spin density matrix for vector mesons. When a vector meson decays to two pseudoscalar mesons, the polar angle distribution for the decay product depends on \begin{document}$\rho_{00}$\end{document}, through which the spin alignment can be measured. Theoretical studies show that the global spin polarization of baryons reflects the space-time average of the quark polarization, while the spin alignment of vector mesons reflects the local phase space correlation between the polarization of quark and antiquark. In this article, we review recent theoretical works about the spin alignment of vector mesons. We consider a non-relativistic quark coalescence model in spin and phase space. Within this model, the spin alignment of the vector meson can be described through the phase space correlation of quark's and antiquark's polarization. The contributions to the spin alignment of ϕ mesons from vorticity fields, electromagnetic fields, and effective ϕ meson fields are discussed. The spin alignment of vector mesons opens a new window for the properties of strong interaction fields in heavy-ion collisions.
Nonlocal soliton in non-parity-time-symmetric coupler
Authors: Jiang Hong-Fan , Lin Ji , Hu Bei-Bei , Zhang Xiao ,   Department of Physics, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, China
Published: February 2023

Parity-time (PT) symmetric is not a necessary condition for achieving a real spectrum and some studies about realizing real spectra in non-PT-symmetric systems with arbitrary gain–loss profiles have been presented recently. By tuning the free parameters in non-PT-symmetric potentials, phase transition could also be induced. Above phase transition point, discrete complex eigenvalues bifurcate out from continuous real eigenvalues in the interior of the continuous spectrum. In this work, we investgate the existence and stability of solitons in nonlocal nonlinear couplers with non-PT-symmetric complex potentials both below and above phase transition. There are several discrete eigenvalues in the linear spectra of the non-PT-symmetric system used here. With the square-operator iteration method, we find that different continuous families of solitions can bifurcate from different discrete linear eigenvalues. Moreover, linear-stability analysis collaborated with direct numerical propagation simulations demonstrates that the nonlocal solitions can be stable in a range of parameter values. we first address the cases below the phase transition. To be specific, when we fix the coupling coefficient and vary the degree of nonlocality, it’s found that fundamental solitons, dipole solitons, tripolar solitons, quadrupole solitons bifurcate from the largest,the second-largest, the third-largest and the fifth-largest discrete eigenvalue, respectively. These nonlocal solitons are all stable in the low power region. With an increase of the degree of nonlocality, the stability region shrinks for the fundamental solitons while it widens for the dipole and multiplole solitons. At the same time, the power of all the stable solitons increases with the increase of the degree of nonlocality. By varying the coupling coefficient, the arrangement of soliton families emerging in the discrete interval of the linear spectrum can be changed. For example, the dipole solitons bifurcate from the third-or fourth-largest discrete eigenvalue while the tripolar solitons bifurcate from the fifth largest discrete eigenvalue. Above phase transition,the fundamental solitons are unstable in the low and high power region but are stable in the moderate power region. The stability region shrinks with the increasing degree of nonlocality. We also find the family of dipole solitons bifurcates from the second-largest discrete eigenvalue, but all the dipole solitons are unstable. In addition, we find that the eigenvalues in linear-stability spectra of solitons emerge as conjugation pairs.
Synergistic stabilization of microtubules by BUB-1, HCP-1, and CLS-2 controls microtubule pausing and meiotic spindle assembly
Authors: Macaisne Nicolas , Bellutti Laura , Laband Kimberley , Edwards Frances , Pitayu-Nugroho Laras , Gervais Alison , Ganeswaran Thadshagine , Geoffroy Hélène , Maton Gilliane , Canman Julie C , Lacroix Benjamin , Dumont Julien
Published: February 2023

During cell division, chromosome segregation is orchestrated by a microtubule-based spindle. Interaction between spindle microtubules and kinetochores is central to the bi-orientation of chromosomes. Initially dynamic to allow spindle assembly and kinetochore attachments, which is essential for chromosome alignment, microtubules are eventually stabilized for efficient segregation of sister chromatids and homologous chromosomes during mitosis and meiosis I, respectively. Therefore, the precise control of microtubule dynamics is of utmost importance during mitosis and meiosis. Here, we study the assembly and role of a kinetochore module, comprised of the kinase BUB-1, the two redundant CENP-F orthologs HCP-1/2, and the CLASP family member CLS-2 (hereafter termed the BHC module), in the control of microtubule dynamics in Caenorhabditis elegans oocytes. Using a combination of in vivo structure-function analyses of BHC components and in vitro microtubule-based assays, we show that BHC components stabilize microtubules, which is essential for meiotic spindle formation and accurate chromosome segregation. Overall, our results show that BUB-1 and HCP-1/2 do not only act as targeting components for CLS-2 at kinetochores, but also synergistically control kinetochore-microtubule dynamics by promoting microtubule pause. Together, our results suggest that BUB-1 and HCP-1/2 actively participate in the control of kinetochore-microtubule dynamics in the context of an intact BHC module to promote spindle assembly and accurate chromosome segregation in meiosis.
COVID-19 induced birth sex ratio changes in England and Wales
Authors: Masukume Gwinyai , Ryan Margaret , Masukume Rumbidzai , Zammit Dorota , Grech Victor , Mapanga Witness , Inoue Yosuke
Published: February 2023

Background

The sex ratio at birth (male live births divided by total live births) may be a sentinel health indicator. Stressful events reduce this ratio 3–5 months later by increasing male fetal loss. This ratio can also change 9 months after major population events that are linked to an increase or decrease in the frequency of sexual intercourse at the population level, with the ratio either rising or falling respectively after the event. We postulated that the COVID-19 pandemic may have affected the ratio in England and Wales.

Methods

Publicly available, monthly live birth data for England and Wales was obtained from the Office for National Statistics up to December 2020. Using time series analysis, the sex ratio at birth for 2020 (global COVID-19 onset) was predicted using data from 2012–2019. Observed and predicted values were compared.

Results

From 2012–2020 there were 3,133,915 male and 2,974,115 female live births (ratio 0.5131). Three months after COVID-19 was declared pandemic (March 2020), there was a significant fall in the sex ratio at birth to 0.5100 in June 2020 which was below the 95% prediction interval of 0.5102–0.5179. Nine months after the pandemic declaration, (December 2020), there was a significant rise to 0.5171 (95% prediction interval 0.5085–0.5162). However, December 2020 had the lowest number of live births of any month from 2012–2020.

Conclusions

Given that June 2020 falls within the crucial window when population stressors are known to affect the sex ratio at birth, these findings imply that the start of the COVID-19 pandemic caused population stress with notable effects on those who were already pregnant by causing a disproportionate loss of male fetuses. The finding of a higher sex ratio at birth in December 2020, i.e., 9 months after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic, could have resulted from the lockdown restrictions that initially spurred more sexual activity in a subset of the population in March 2020.
Risk Factors Associated with Acute Renal Failure in Neonates of a neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Authors: Barrera Ana Jaqueline Uribe , Cueva Ana Isabel Valenzuela de la , Pérez Claudia Teresa Solano , Llergo Saraí Martínez , Hernández Sinaí Hinojosa , Zermeño María Del Carmen López , Hernández Ceruelos María del Carmen Alejandra , Ledezma Jesús Carlos Ruvalcaba
Published: February 2023

Objetive: Determining the risk factors associated with acute renal failure in neonates.

Materials and Methods: A case-control study was carried out, in 65 cases of acute renal failure and 65 without acute renal failure in the Intensive Care Unit Neonatals (NICU) of a hospital in Pachuca Hidalgo, Mexico. The variables studied; prematurity, low weight, type I respiratory distress syndrome, perinatal asphyxia, sepsis, necrotizing enterocolitis, administration of vancomycin, amikacin, amphotericin, cefotaxime and water restriction. The information was collected from the data of the clinical records and the analysis was carried out in the Epi-info software. The statistical analysis, it was performed using non-parametric tests such as Chi2 and Fisher's Exact Test.

Results: Denote underweight with an OR 2, 95% CI. from 1.1 to 3.3 and <P 0.05 by Chi2 and Fisher's exact test. For; perinatal asphyxia with OR 2.1, 95% CI. from 1.3 to 3.4 and <P 0.05 through Chi2 and Fisher's exact test. For vancomycin administration OR 4.7, 95% CI. From 2.3 to 9.3 and <P 0.05 by Chi2 and Fisher's exact test. For water restriction OR 2, 95% CI. From 1.2 to 3.3 and <P 0.05 by Chi2 and Fisher's exact test.

Conclusion: A significant association was found between acute renal failure with low weight, perinatal asphyxia, administration of vancomycin and water restriction.
Screenning of Arrhythmias in Patients Treated for Heart Failure in Parakou in 2017
Authors: Dohou S. H. M. , Codjo L. H. , Hounkponou K. M. , Soude M. D. , Amegan H. N. , Biaou C. O. A. , Sonou D. A. , Adjagba M. P. , Houenassi M. D.
Published: February 2023

Introduction: Rhythm disorders (RDs)  or arrhythmias are poor prognostic factors during heart failure (HF). Our objective was to study the frequency of rhythm disorders presented by patients treated for HF in Parakou, Benin in 2017.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study. It consisted of a systematic recruitment of all patients admitted for heart failure in the cardiology units of the city of Parakou from March to August 2017. The diagnosis of RDs was made by cardiac auscultation completed by electrocardiographic recording (standard and Holter over 24 hours). The Lown classification was used to describe the severity of ventricular TRs. The threshold for significance was p < 5%.

Results: A total of 83 heart failure patients aged 61.47 ± 15.97 years with a sex ratio of 1.08 were selected. Arrhythmia was detected by auscultation in 20.48%; by standard electrocardiogram (ECG) in 25.83% and by Holter ECG in 97.59% of patients. Among the arrhythmias detected by Holter ECG, 81.48% were atrial, including 28.79% of atrial fibrillation. RDs was ventricular in 90.12% of which 47.95% were severe. Left ventricular systolic dysfunction was significantly associated with ventricular arrhythmias. On the other hand, the frequency of ventricular arrhythmias was not associated with the severity of the HF according to the NYHA classification.

Conclusion: In Parakou, RDs are frequent in patients with HF. Holter ECG should be included in the follow-up of heart failure patients in order to improve their management.
Thermal Requirement, Heat and Radiation Use Efficiency of Kharif Soybean in Middle Gujarat Region as Influenced by Cultivars and Plant Geometry
Authors: Tak Vibha , Lunagaria M. M. , Virani V. B. , Parmar P. K.
Published: February 2023

The present study proposes to measure the thermal requirements, heat and radiation use efficiency of kharif soybean cultivars (NRC 37, GS 1 and GS 2) in the central region of Gujarat. The findings of study conclude that among all the different geometry 30 x 10 cm produced highest seed (4403 kg/ha) and total biomass yield (5818 kg/ha) over the other two spacing because higher heat use efficiency (heat use efficiency (HUE) for Growing degree day (GDD)- 0.69 kg/ha/°C Day; HUE for Heliothermal units (HTU) - 0.14 kg/ha/°C Day hour; HUE for Photothermal units (PTU) - 0.05 kg/ha/°C Day hour). The cultivar NRC 37 (4415 kg/ha) produced highest seed yield followed by GS 1 (3799 kg/ha) and GS 2 (3670 kg/ha). Heat unit requirement of cultivar NRC 37 (GDD - 1952°C Day; HTU – 9894°C Day hour; PTU-25974°C day hour) was more as compared to GS 2 (GDD - 1951°C day; HTU – 9893°C day hour; PTU-25973°C day hour) and GS 1 (GDD - 1931°C day; HTU – 9809°C day hour; PTU-25681°C day hour), respectively. The radiation use efficiency (RUE) for seed yield and biomass are more in 45 x 5 cm geometry.
Disease Activity Score (DAS) Correlation to Serum Prolidase as a Collagen Turnover Marker in Comparison to Some Pro-inflammatory Markers in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients: Clinical and Sonographic Study
Authors: Ahmed Riham , Soliman Nema
Published: February 2023

Objectives: Disease activity score (DAS) correlation to serum prolidase in comparison to other pro-inflammatory markers in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) cases.

Method: Forty RA cases and 40 age and sex matched controls were studied in this case-control study. Cases fulfilled the 2010 American college of rheumatology (ACR)/ European League Against rheumatism (EULAR) RA classification criteria. Disease activity was assessed by the disease activity score 28 (DAS 28). Ultrasound (US) scanning of synovitis in pre-selected joint was done in both gray scale (GS) and power doppler US (PDUS) modes.

Results: The cases’ mean age was 50.05 ± 7.99 years, 52 females and 28 males participated in this study. The mean disease duration was 6.10 ± 3.89 years and the mean for the DAS-28 score was 4.85 ± 1.04. There was a significant correlation between CRPM and DAS 28 score (r=0.323, p=0.042). IL-6 correlated with GS synovitis in the wrist (r=0.376, p= 0.017), MCP (r=0.430, p= 0.006) and PIP (r=0.653, p=<0.001) joints. Serum prolidase correlated with both GS synovitis in the wrist (r= 0.486, p=0.001) and MCP (r=0.604, p=<0.001) and PDUS synovitis in the wrist (r=0.334, p=0.035), and MCP joints (r=0.456, p=0.003). Regression analysis showed that IL-6 level had a greater impact on GS synovitis (p= <0.001), compared with serum prolidase.

Conclusions: Serum IL-6 and prolidase has significant correlations with disease activity parameters compared with other markers. Serum prolidase is evidence on increased collagen turnover in RA cases and might be a useful tool in the assessment of joint inflammation and predicting future damage.
Identifikasi dan Evaluasi Faktor-Faktor Kompetensi Sosial Manajer Proyek
Authors: Tanjaya Danny , Arijanto Lie , Andi Andi
Published: February 2023

Kompetensi manajer proyek memiliki pengaruh kritikal terhadap kesuksesan proyek. Menurut Ahadzie (2008) kompetensi manajer proyek dikatagorikan menjadi dua yaitu soft skills dan  hard skills, menurut Boyatzis (2004) soft skills lebih kritikal untuk memprediksi performa manajer proyek daripada hard skills. Kompetensi sosial adalah bagian penting dari soft skills. Kompetensi sosial terdiri dari 8 variabel yaitu, manajemen konflik, kerja tim dan kerja sama, manajemen perubahan, dampak dan pengaruh, pemahaman interpersonal, kepemimpinan yang menginspirasi, kesadaran organisasi, dan hubungan personal. Faktor-faktor tersebut diteliti dengan kuisioner, respondennya adalah orang yang berpengalaman menjadi manajer proyek kontraktor dan anggota tim yang sedang atau pernah bekerja dalam tim yang dipimpin manajer proyek kontraktor di proyek konstruksi bangunan di Surabaya. Analisis yang digunakan adalah analisa deskriptif, t-test, serta analisa faktor. Kesimpulannya adalah faktor manajemen konflik manajer proyek dipersepsikan sangat penting oleh responden. Kompetensi sosial manajer proyek juga dapat dikelompokkan menjadi 2 faktor yaitu dampak  pengaruh dan manajemen konflik.
Gelatin‐Based Ingestible Impedance Sensor to Evaluate Gastrointestinal Epithelial Barriers
Authors: Balakrishnan Gaurav , Bhat Arnav , Naik Durva , Kim Julie Shin , Marukyan Sona , Gido Lily , Ritter Mia , Khair Aditya S. , Bettinger Christopher J.
Published: February 2023

Low‐profile and transient ingestible electronic capsules for diagnostics and therapeutics can replace widely used yet invasive procedures such as endoscopies. Several gastrointestinal diseases such as reflux disease, Crohn's disease, irritable bowel syndrome, and eosinophilic esophagitis result in increased intercellular dilation in epithelial barriers. Currently, the primary method of diagnosing and monitoring epithelial barrier integrity is via endoscopic tissue biopsies followed by histological imaging. Here, a gelatin‐based ingestible electronic capsule that can monitor epithelial barriers via electrochemical impedance measurements is proposed. Toward this end, material‐specific transfer printing methodologies to manufacture soft‐gelatin‐based electronics, an in vitro synthetic disease model to validate impedance‐based sensing, and tests of capsules using ex vivo using porcine esophageal tissue are described. The technologies described herein can advance next generation of oral diagnostic devices that reduce invasiveness and improve convenience for patients.
Correlation between Surface Reactions and Electrochemical Performance of Al2O3‐ and CeO2‐Coated NCM Thin Film Cathodes
Authors: Hemmelmann Hendrik , Ruess Raffael , Klement Philip , Schörmann Jörg , Chatterjee Sangam , Sann Joachim , Elm Matthias T.
Published: February 2023

Depositing ultrathin oxide coatings has been proven a successful approach to stabilize the surface of LiNixCoyMnzO2active cathode material in lithium‐ion batteries (LIB). The beneficial effect of Al2O3coatings arises at least partly from spontaneous reactions between coating and liquid electrolyte. However, it remains unclear if comparable surface reactions occur for other oxide coatings. One difficulty is the characterization of reaction products at the cathode–electrolyte interface due to the multi‐phase properties of composite cathodes. Here, thin films are utilized as model systems to correlate surface reactions with the performance of Al2O3‐ and CeO2‐coated nickel cobalt manganese oxides (NCM). Electrochemical characterization confirms that an Al2O3coating improves long‐term cycling stability, while CeO2‐coated thin films perform even worse than uncoated counterparts. The analysis of the surface reaction products using X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy shows that both coatings are fluorinated upon contact with liquid electrolyte in agreement with thermodynamic considerations. The fluorinated Al2O3coating is stable during cycling, resulting in the improved cell performance. In contrast, the fluorinated CeO2coating changes chemical composition, facilitating corrosion of the NCM surface. The results demonstrate the importance of a detailed analysis of surface reactions to evaluate the suitability of ultrathin oxide layers as protective coatings for LIBs.
Enhanced Imaging Using Inverse Design of Nanophotonic Scintillators
Authors: Shultzman Avner , Segal Ohad , Kurman Yaniv , Roques‐Carmes Charles , Kaminer Ido
Published: February 2023

Converting ionizing radiation into visible light is essential in a wide range of fundamental and industrial applications, such as electromagnetic calorimeters in high‐energy particle detectors, electron detectors, image intensifiers, and X‐ray imaging. These different areas of technology all rely on scintillators or phosphors, i.e., materials that emit light upon bombardment by high‐energy particles. In all cases, the emission is throughspontaneous emission. The fundamental nature of spontaneous emission poses limitations on all these technologies, imposing an intrinsictrade‐offbetween efficiency and resolution in all imaging applications: thicker phosphors are more efficient due to their greater stopping power, which however comes at the expense of image blurring due to light spread inside the thicker phosphors. Here, the concept of inverse‐designed nanophotonic scintillators is proposed, which can overcome the trade‐off between resolution and efficiency by reshaping the intrinsic spontaneous emission. To exemplify the concept, multilayer phosphor nanostructures are designed and these nanostructures are compared to state‐of‐the‐art phosphor screens in image intensifiers, showing a threefold resolution enhancement simultaneous with a threefold efficiency enhancement. The enabling concept is applying the ubiquitous Purcell effect for the first time in a new context—for improving image resolution. Looking forward, this approach directly applies to a wide range of technologies, including X‐ray imaging applications.
Understanding of Degradation Mechanism by Exciton Dynamics and Enhancement of Operational Lifetime by Exciton Management in Blue Fluorescent OLEDs Based on Hybridized Local and Charge‐Transfer Molecule
Authors: Guo Kaiwen , Lin Chengwei , Wu Yibing , Xiao Shu , Qiao Xianfeng , Yang Dezhi , Dai Yanfeng , Sun Qian , Chen Jiangshan , Hu Dehua , Ying Lei , Ma Yuguang , Ma Dongge
Published: February 2023

The operational lifetime of blue organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs) is still insufficient for practical applications in lighting and display. One type of blue organic emitting materials with hybridized local and charge‐transfer (HLCT) process are beneficial in achieving high‐efficiency OLEDs through “hot exciton” channel by harnessing high‐lying triplet (Tn) excitons. However, the operational lifetime of the resulting blue OLEDs is rarely studied and understood. In this article, the aging properties of blue fluorescent OLEDs based on an HLCT material (2‐(4‐(10‐(3‐(9H‐carbazol‐9‐yl)phenyl)anthracen‐9‐yl)phenyl)‐1‐phenyl‐1H‐phenanthro[9,10‐d]imidazole) (PAC) are systematically investigated by exciton dynamics calculation and transient EL experiments. It is experimentally and theoretically revealed that whether the reverse intersystem crossing (hRISC) process from high‐lying excited triplet to singlet in HLCT materials is completely effective determines the device degradation. A fluorescent emitter is doped into PAC host to accelerate the hRISC process, thus enhancing device operational lifetime to reach T75 = 110 ± 2 h (time to 75% of initial luminance) under 1000 cd m−2. This work provides inspirations to investigate the stability of blue fluorescent OLEDs based on HCLT materials and further enhance the operational lifetime.
Portable Paper‐Based Nucleic Acid Enrichment for Field Testing
Authors: Mei Junyang , Wang Dandan , Zhang Yiheng , Wu Dan , Cui Jinhui , Gan Mingzhe , Liu Peifeng
Published: February 2023

Point‐of‐care testing (POCT) can be the method of choice for detecting infectious pathogens; these pathogens are responsible for not only infectious diseases such as COVID‐19, but also for certain types of cancers. For example, infections by human papillomavirus (HPV) or Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) are the main cause of cervical and stomach cancers, respectively. COVID‐19 and many cancers are treatable with early diagnoses using POCT. A variety of nucleic acid testing have been developed for use in resource‐limited environments. However, questions like unintegrated nucleic acid extraction, open detection systems increase the risk of cross‐contamination, and dependence on expensive equipment and alternating current (AC) power supply, significantly limit the application of POCT, especially for on‐site testing. In this paper, a simple portable platform is reported capable of rapid sample‐to‐answer testing within 30 min based on recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) at a lower temperature, to detect SARS‐CoV‐2 virus and H. pylori bacteria with a limit of detection as low as 4 × 102 copies mL−1. The platform used a battery‐powered portable reader for on‐chip one‐pot amplification and fluorescence detection, and can test for multiple (up to four) infectious pathogens simultaneously. This platform can provide an alternative method for fast and reliable on‐site diagnostic testing.
Hydrogen Intercalation‐Induced Crystallization of Ternary PdNiP Alloy Nanoparticles For Direct Formic Acid Fuel Cells
Authors: Cheng Hongfei , Zhou Jun , Xie Huiqing , Zhang Songlin , Zhang Jintao , Sun Shengnan , Luo Ping , Lin Ming , Wang Shijie , Pan Zhenghui , Wang John , Loh Xian Jun , Liu Zhaolin
Published: February 2023

Direct formic acid fuel cells (DFAFCs) are among the promising energy sources in the future low‐carbon economy. A key challenge hindering their scale‐up and commercialization is the lack of efficient electrocatalysts for anodic formic acid oxidation (FAO). Very recently, the FAO performance of palladium hydrides (PdHx) has been found to be superior to the pristine Pd that is well known for its high intrinsic FAO activity. However, there is enormous space for the controlled synthesis and electrocatalytic behaviors of PdHx‐based nanomaterials awaiting to be explored. Herein, the hydrogen intercalation‐induced crystallization of PdNiP alloy nanoparticles is reported, and the obtained PdNiP‐H nanoparticles exhibit excellent FAO performance. Of particular note, the FAO stability of PdNiP‐H is much better than that of pristine Pd‐H. Furthermore, the PdNiP‐H nanoparticles are used as the anode catalyst in a prototype DFAFC, which demonstrate much higher power density than commercial Pd/C. Density functional theory calculations show that the synergistic effect of alloying Ni and P endows the PdNiP‐H with a higher preference toward FAO via the direct pathway and better anti‐CO* poisoning capability. This work shines new light on the development of PdHx‐based nanoalloys with good activity and stability for DFAFC applications.
TELO2‐related syndrome (You‐Hoover‐Fong syndrome): Description of 14 new affected individuals and review of the literature
Authors: Albokhari Daniah , Pritchard Amanda Barone , Beil Adelyn , Muss Candace , Bupp Caleb , Grange Dorothy K. , Delplancq Geoffroy , Heeley Jennifer , Zuteck Melissa , Morrow Michelle M. , Kuentz Paul , Palculict Timothy Blake , Hoover‐Fong Julie E.
Published: February 2023

You‐Hoover‐Fong syndrome (YHFS) is an autosomal recessive condition caused by pathogenic variants in the TELO2 gene. Affected individuals were reported to have global developmental delay, intellectual disability, microcephaly, dysmorphic facial features, ocular involvement including cortical visual impairment, strabismus, cataract and rotatory nystagmus, movement disorder, hypertonia and spasticity, balance disturbance and ataxia, and abnormal sleep pattern. Other features reported include poor growth, cleft palate, cardiac malformations, epilepsy, scoliosis, and hearing loss. To date, 12 individuals with YHFS have been reported in the literature. Here we describe 14 new individuals with YHFS from 10 families. Their clinical presentation provides additional support of the phenotype recognized previously and delineates the clinical spectrum associated with YHFS syndrome. In addition, we present a review of the literature including follow‐up data on four previously reported individuals with YHFS.
The impact of attending historically Black colleges and universities on cognitive decline in Black adults: A longitudinal analysis in the KHANDLE and STAR cohorts
Authors: Thomas Marilyn D. , Calmasini Camilla , Khela Harmon , Mobley Taylor M. , Mayeda Elizabeth Rose , Mangurian Christina , Barnes Lisa L. , Gilsanz Paola , Whitmer Rachel A. , Glymour M. Maria
Published: February 2023

INTRODUCTION

Black students attending predominantly White institutions (PWIs) versus historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) report more harmful discrimination and develop worse mental health outcomes, potentially offsetting the established benefits of college for lowering dementia incidence.

METHODS

Black participants in two cohorts (the Kaiser Healthy Aging and Diverse Life Experiences [KHANDLE] and the Study of Healthy Aging in African Americans [STAR]) who had attended college (N = 716) self‐reported the college name (classified as HBCU vs. PWI) and completed three waves of executive function (EF) and verbal episodic memory (VEM) assessments. HBCU effects on cognitive level and decline were estimated using adjusted linear mixed‐effects models.

RESULTS

HBCU (vs. PWI) attendees averaged better EF (β = 0.05 [−0.22, 0.32]) and VEM (β = 0.21 [−0.06, 0.46]) at age 70 though neither association was statistically significant. HBCU attendance was associated with slightly faster VEM decline (β = −0.03 [−0.05, 0.00]).

DISCUSSION

Harmonized analyses with larger studies are needed to estimate important effects of HBCU attendance.

Highlights

Higher education is robustly linked to lower dementia risk, yet Black–White inequities persist among college‐educated adults.

Black students attending predominantly White institutions (PWIs) versus historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) report more harmful discrimination and develop worse mental health outcomes, which may offset the established benefits of college for lowering dementia incidence.

HBCU (vs. non‐HBCU) attendees averaged better executive function and verbal episodic memory (VEM) at average age 70, though confidence intervals were wide and associations were not statistically significant, and averaged slightly faster decline in VEM.

Harmonized analyses using larger nationally representative studies are likely needed to avoid underestimating the health effects of HBCU attendance.
Synergistic Photocatalytic and Photothermal Antibacterial Activity of (In, Nb) and (Al, Nb) Co‐Doped TiO2 Ceramics
Authors: Yang Minggang , Zhang Yuan , Alexander Revathi , Liu Jinqiu , Wu Wenwen , Wang Guocheng
Published: February 2023

Photodynamic and photothermal therapies are promising approaches to deal with implant‐associated infection. However, the efficacy of monotherapy is often insufficient, posing the importance of combinatory therapies. Herein, the AlNbTiO2 and InNbTiO2 ceramics are prepared by (In, Nb) and (Al, Nb) co‐doping into TiO2 ceramics via a solid‐phase reaction. The co‐doping enhances the visible/ near infrared (NIR) light adsorption and endows the TiO2 with excellent photocatalytic and photothermal properties, which is likely due to the formation of large defect‐dipole clusters and oxygen vacancies. The antibacterial efficacy of AlNbTiO2/InNbTiO2 ceramics is 99.04%/98.56% against E. coli and 95.06%/93.68% against S. aureus within 10 min under 808 nm NIR light irradiation, which is ascribed to the synergistic action of enhanced photocatalytic and photothermal effects. Cell culture experiments using MC3T3‐E1 cells prove that the viability and proliferation of MC3T3‐E1 cultured on TiO2 and AlNbTiO2/InNbTiO2 ceramics are comparable, emphasizing their excellent biocompatibility as well. This study suggests that AlNbTiO2/InNbTiO2 has potential application as an antibacterial bioceramic or coating for orthopedic implants.
A Parallelable 3D Microfluidic Chip for Circulating‐Tumor‐Cell Capture at Ultra‐High Throughput and Wide Flow Rate Range
Authors: Shi Jialin , Xu Jian , Yu Yaojun , Wu Chengyuan , Chen Jiangnan , Li Shuangshuang , Ouyang Qi , Yang Wei , Luo Chunxiong
Published: February 2023

Isolation and characterization of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) provide the possibility for early diagnosis and personalized treatment of cancer. Due to the complexity of blood composition and the rarity of CTCs, existing technologies still have issues in balancing the sample throughput, separate efficiency, and operation convenience. Here, a concept is proposed to improve CTCs capture performance by reforming the separation unit and rearranging functionally independent modules into 3D configuration based on the previous microfluidic chip. In this way, the novel 3D‐CTC chip can significantly decrease to a smaller size with enhanced capture efficiency (>89%) at an ultra‐high throughput (70 mL h−1 with whole blood sample) over a wide range of flow rates (5–70 mL h−1). The capability of the developed chip can be improved manyfold by paralleling single chips whether the samples are injected by pump or manually. The clinical experiments of colorectal cancer (CRC) patients on these chips demonstrate a positive correlation between CTCs counts (5–34 CTCs per 2 mL whole blood) and cancer stages. In general, the proposed compact 3D‐CTC chip provides high performance with low requirements of experiment conditions, which implies an enormous potential for industrial production and handy clinical test.
Molecular Engineering To Enhance Reactivity and Selectivity in an Ultrafast Photoclick Reaction
Authors: Fu Youxin , Simeth Nadja A. , Toyoda Ryojun , Brilmayer Robert , Szymanski Wiktor , Feringa Ben L.
Published: February 2023

Light‐induced 9,10‐phenanthrenequinone‐electron‐rich alkene (PQ‐ERA) photocycloadditions are an attractive new type of photoclick reaction, featuring fast conversions and high biocompatibility. However, the tunability of the reaction was hardly investigated up to now. To this end, we explored the influence of substituents on both reaction partners and the reaction rate between the PQs and ERAs. We identified new handles for functionalization and discovered that using enamines as ERAs leads to drastically enhanced rates (>5400 times faster), high photoreaction quantum yields (ΦP, up to 65 %), and multicolor emission output as well as a high fluorescence quantum yield of the adducts (ΦF, up to 97 %). Further investigation of the photophysical and photochemical properties provided insights to design orthogonal reaction systems both in solution and on nanoparticle surfaces for ultrafast chemoselective functionalization by photoclick reactions.
A Dual‐Metal‐Catalyzed Sequential Cascade Reaction in an Engineered Protein Cage**
Authors: Ebensperger Paul , Zmyslia Mariia , Lohner Philipp , Braunreuther Judith , Deuringer Benedikt , Becherer Anita , Süss Regine , Fischer Anna , Jessen‐Trefzer Claudia
Published: February 2023

Herein, we describe the creation of an artificial protein cage housing a dual‐metal‐tagged guest protein that catalyzes a linear, two‐step sequential cascade reaction. The guest protein consists of a fusion protein of HaloTag and monomeric rhizavidin. Inside the protein capsid, we established a ruthenium‐catalyzed allylcarbamate deprotection reaction followed by a gold‐catalyzed ring‐closing hydroamination reaction that led to indoles and phenanthridines with an overall yield of up to 66 % in aqueous solutions. Furthermore, we show that the encapsulation stabilizes the metal catalysts against deactivation by air, proteins and cell lysate.
Harnessing the Structure‐Performance Relationships in Designing Non‐Fused Ring Acceptors for Organic Solar Cells
Authors: Mishra Amaresh , Sharma Ganesh D.
Published: February 2023

The prerequisite for commercially viable organic solar cells (OSC) is to reduce the efficiency‐stability‐cost gap. Therefore, the cost of organic materials should be reduced by minimizing the synthetic steps, yet maintaining the molecular planarity and efficiencies achieved by the fused ring acceptors (FRA). In this respect, developing non‐fused ring acceptors (NFRA) with suitable functionalization to favor conformational planarity and effective molecular packing is beneficial and cost‐effective. Presently, the power conversion efficiency (PCE) for NFRAs is around 16 %, yet lower than the 19 % achieved for FRAs. Despite their potential, a thorough understanding of the effective structural design of NFRAs is necessary for developing efficient OSCs. This article pays special attention to the molecular design concept for NFRAs developed in the last years and analyzed the approach toward materials design and efficiency improvement, an important step toward technological application.
The quantification of anisotropy in graphene/natural rubber nanocomposites: Evaluation of the aspect ratio, concentration, and crosslinking
Authors: Strommer Bettina , Schulze Dietmar , Schartel Bernhard , Böhning Martin
Published: February 2023

In the processing of nanocomposites, high shear stresses at elevated temperatures orient two‐dimensional nanoparticles like graphene. This orientation leads to anisotropic mechanical, thermal or barrier properties of the nanocomposite. This anisotropy is addressed in this study by comparing graphene (few‐layer graphene, FLG) with a nanoscaled carbon black (nCB) at a filler content of 3 phr, by varying the vulcanization, and by comparing different FLG contents. Transmission electron microscopy gives insight into the qualitative orientation in the nanocomposite with FLG or nCB. The storage moduli parallel and normal to the orientation reveal the direction dependency of reinforcement through dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). Dimensional swelling measurements show a restriction of the expansion parallel to the FLG orientation, and an increased expansion normal to the orientation. The vulcanization system and crosslinking determine the respective level of property values, and higher crosslinking densities increase the anisotropy in DMA resulting in values of up to 2.9 for the quantified anisotropy factor. With increasing FLG content, the anisotropy increases. A comparison of the results reveals swelling measurements as the most suitable method for the determination of anisotropy. Compared to recent literature, the presented processing induces higher anisotropy, leading to higher reinforcing effects in the direction of orientation.
An integral‐differential combined type event‐triggered model predictive control for perturbed linear systems
Authors: He Ning , Bai Botao , Xu Zhongxian , Li Yuxiang
Published: February 2023

An integral‐differential combined (IDC) type event‐triggered model predictive control (ET‐MPC) strategy is constructed for linear time‐invariant (LTI) systems in this paper. Compared with the standard ET‐MPC method, the proposed MPC algorithm is developed based on an IDC type event‐triggering mechanism (ETM), which takes both the integral and change rate of the error between the optimal prediction and the real state into the consideration for the construction of the triggering condition. In this way, the dynamic performance can be considered more comprehensively, for effectively reducing the calculation and communication burdens of the ET‐MPC method. In addition, an improved robust constraint is used to deal with additive disturbances, and the dual‐mode control method is employed in the development of the strategy. Then the parameter conditions guaranteeing the iterative feasibility of the proposed algorithm, the closed‐loop stability of the LTI system, and the avoidance of Zeno behavior are given. Finally, two simulation examples demonstrate the effectiveness of the algorithm.
The evolution of the UV/optical lag spectrum of NGC 7469 seen by the Liverpool Telescope
Authors: Vincentelli F. M. , Beard M. , Hardy I. Mc , Cackett E. , Horne K. , Pahari M.
Published: February 2023

We present the results regarding the analysis of an intensive monitoring of the Active Galactic Nucleus (AGN) NGC 7469. We observed the source for 4 months with almost daily cadence in the ugriz bands, using the IO:O on the Liverpool Telescope. We measured the lags with respect to the u band and found a clear change in the lag spectrum between the first and the second half of the campaign. Given that the source varies on different timescales during these two segments, it is likely that different components are dominating the variability at different times. This result further confirms that reverberation models require a more complex geometry than a static illuminating point source and that particular attention has to be given in the interpretation of these delays.
Mixed reality technology enhances teaching of spinal blockade procedures
Authors: Wu Liulei , Lin Jiehui , Liu Yaqi , Wei Zhujun , Chen Chunmei , Zhuang Yuandong
Published: February 2023

To investigate the efficacy of utilizing mixed reality technology‐assisted teaching of a spinal medial branch nerve block. Twenty undergraduate students from a 5‐year clinical medicine program in Fujian Medical University were selected. They were divided into group A and group B using a random number generator, with 10 students in each group. Group A used the traditional teaching method and Group B used the mixed reality technology‐assisted teaching method. At the end of the teaching period, both groups were assessed on the blocking operation, number of punctures required, puncture time, and final error value (distance between the final position and the reference position). A questionnaire was administered to both groups to assess teaching satisfaction. The number of punctures required was 7.40 ± 1.26 and 2.10 ± 0.74 for groups A and B, respectively. The puncture time in group A was 297.80 ± 50.95 s and 65.60 ± 22.02 s in group B. All differences were significant p < 0.01. The final error of the puncture in group A was 2.24 ± 0.35 mm and 1.96 ± 0.26 mm in group B—not significant. Group B had (p < 0.01) higher evaluation scores than group A for teaching effectiveness, learning interest, initiative, and teaching satisfaction. The application of mixed reality technology in the teaching of posterior medial branch blocks of the spinal nerve is superior to previous methods. This method should be adopted wherever possible to enhance learning of this difficult technique.