bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Computationally-efficient rendering of diffuse reflections for geometrical acoustics based room simulation
Authors: Ewert Stephan D. , Gößling Nico , Buttler Oliver , van de Par Steven , Hu Hongmei
Published: January 2025

Geometrical acoustics is well suited for real-time room acoustics simulation and is often implemented using the image source model (ISM). One drawback of the ISM is its limitation to specular reflections, while sound scattering plays an important role in real environments. Here, computationally-efficient, digital-filter approximations are proposed to account for effects of non-specular scattered reflections in the ISM. For scattering at large surfaces such as room boundaries, each reflection is energetically split into a specular and a scattered part, based on the scattering coefficient. The scattered sound is coupled into a diffuse reverberation model. Temporal effects of the underlying surface scattering for an infinite ideal diffuse (Lambertian) reflector are derived and the resulting monotonic decay is simulated using cascaded all-pass filters. Effects of scattering and multiple (inter-) reflections caused by larger geometric structures at walls, and by objects in the room are accounted for in a highly simplified manner. A single parameter is used to quantify deviations from an empty shoebox room. The cumulated temporal effect of scattering along a reflection path is mimicked using cascaded all-pass filters adjusted to obtain a gamma-distribution-shaped envelope. The proposed method was perceptually evaluated with both music and pulse stimuli against dummy head recordings of real rooms. The results show a better agreement between the recording and the simulation for transient stimuli. In a technical evaluation, the temporal evolution of echo density showed a comparable profile for the suggested method and real rooms.
Digestate plus chlorella: Important alternative biotechnologies for soils and agricultural production in the context of climate change
Authors: Vozhehova Rayisa , Petrenko Svіtlana , Kholmurodova Dilafruz , Tursunova Gulmira
Published: January 2025

Over the past decade, the topic of climate change has become an integral part of our everyday life. Significant anthropogenic impact on the environment contributes to the acceleration of this process and leads to catastrophic consequences in some regions. This directs the views of scientists in many industries to the development and implementation of environmentally friendly technologies, waste-free production and the use of non-traditional approaches to the ecology of production, including agriculture. One of the areas that has recently attracted the attention of scientists from many countries around the world is the use of microalgae, among which Chlorella vulgaris is becoming increasingly popular, having a wide range of applications. The paper presents the results of the effect of a suspension culture of living cells of the microalga Chlorella vulgaris, as well as a suspension preparation of Chlorella vulgaris grown on digestate, on changes in the chemical composition of sand and on the sowing qualities of winter wheat seeds of the Shestopalovka variety. A high positive correlation was established between the length of roots and coleoptiles of winter wheat seedlings of the Shestopalovka variety (r = 0.86) in the variant with an aqueous concentration of the suspension “Chlorella with Digestat”.
Effect of Fertilizers on The Productivity of Plants Under Different Ecological Conditions
Authors: Bagirova Bahruyya , Eyubova Svetlana , Bagirov Hasil , Hashimova Arzu
Published: January 2025

In order to obtain a high and stable yield of wheat, corn, potato and sugar beet plants in different regions of Azerbaijan, it is necessary to select high-quality seed material, study the biological characteristics of these plants, soil and climatic conditions, and carry out timely and high-quality agrotechnical measures. The application of the results and recommendations from experiments conducted in our republic on farms demonstrates that it is possible to grow high-quality wheat, corn, potatoes, and sugar beets in various regions of Azerbaijan, thereby meeting the population's year-round demand for these crops. The purpose of the research is to improve the fertilization system based on calculations of soil fertility and the balance of nutrients of various agricultural plants in various zones of the country, taking into account the ecological balance. The methodology of the work consisted of field, laboratory experiments and analytical work. In field experiments, plant care and agrotechnical measures (except for seeding) were carried out in accordance with the adopted agrotechnical rules for experimental plants. Organic, mineral and micro fertilizers were used in the research. In order to eliminate the lack of nutrients in the soil, the effect of various rates and ratios of mineral, organic and micro fertilizers on plant productivity was studied. As a result, the preservation of environmental conditions, soil fertility, increased crop yields and improved quality indicators were achieved.
Genetic Diversity of Bread Wheat Genotypes Grown in Different Landscapes Using SSR Marker Analysis
Authors: Babayeva Sevda , Rustamov Khanbala , Abbasov Mehraj
Published: January 2025

Azerbaijan, a primary gene center, contains a rich diversity of wheat at different altitudes. Studying this diversity is crucial for improving adaptability and resilience to climate change in high altitude regions. A total of 158 bread wheat accessions were analyzed using SSR markers, following CTAB and PCR-based DNA extraction, fragment analysis on an ABI 3130xl Genetic Analyzer and subsequent statistical evaluation. Thirty- five alleles were identified, ranging from 4 to 16 per primer, with an average value of 8.8. The expected heterozygosity (He) ranged from 0.453 to 0.858, with barc212 showing the highest value, while the polymorphism information content (PIC) ranged from 0.392 to 0.846. Var. ferrugineum showed the highest genetic variability, while var. albidum showed the least. The accessions were grouped into three main clusters in the dendrogram. Three accessions from Hajikend (collected from 1258 m) formed distinct clusters with genetic distances ranging from 0.33 to 0.5. Similarly, accessions from Kankendi (700-800 m) showed a genetic distance of 0.67 between clusters. Overall, SSR marker analysis of local bread wheat revealed significant polymorphism, with accessions from high altitude contributing to the diversity. These results provide valuable information for selecting different parental combinations in breeding programs and hybridization efforts, enhancing crop sustainability and food security.
Genetic Diversity Analysis of Mulberry Silkworm (Bombyx Mori L.) Hybrids and Breeds in Azerbaijan Using RAPD Markers
Authors: Mammadov Ayaz , Aghayeva Saltanat , Bakırov Guduret , Gulubeyova Mahpuba , Ismayılova Gular
Published: January 2025

In order to study the genetic diversity of silkworms (Bombyx mori L.) breeding in Azerbaijan, the following breeds and hybrids were analyzed: SHZEM 4 x GE 143, Chingiz x Yagub, Yagub x Chingiz, GE 143, Yagub, SHZEM 4 belted, Chingiz, GE 143 x SHZEM 4 using RAPD molecular markers. For this purpose, silkworm larvae were taken for DNA extraction and nuclear genome DNA was isolated from various parts of the silkworm (silk gland, epidermis, etc.). Four RAPD primers (BGN 04, BGL 02, BGY 06, BGA 02) were used in the study, resulting in 200-1200 bp 34 dots representing fragments. The average number of amplicons for each primer was 6-11, and 82-100% of the amplicons were polymorphic. The study found that RAPD markers do not fully reflect the similarity between the local breed and hybrids.
The “Sanitary” Role of the Necrophagous Birds in the Ecosystems
Authors: Karimov Tahir , Ahmadli Leyla , Rajabova Sevinj , Mammadov Ayaz
Published: January 2025

The objective of the research work was to study the “sanitary” role of necrophagous birds (Gyps fulvus, Aegypius monachus, Gypaetus barbatus, Neophron percnopterus) in the Azerbaijani part of the Lesser Caucasus. For this purpose, monitoring was conducted in the Korchay State Nature Reserve and adjacent territories in June 2013. During this period, we identified carcasses of animals that had died from various causes, including those carrying infectious diseases. In total, 28 carcasses of domestic (n=5) and wild (n=5) mammals were found. Among these, 13 carcasses were associated with six infectious diseases: rabies (five cases), toxoplasmosis (one case), brucellosis (two cases), equine adenitis (two cases), tuberculosis (one case), and canine disease (two cases). Echinococcus was identified in four animals. Notably, the number of sick animals included eight domestic and nine wild specimens. The primary causes of death for sick domestic animals were predation by mammals in pastures, old age, weakness, and hunger. Among wild animals, mortality was predominantly observed in young individuals, attributed to their inexperience and underdeveloped adaptive responses, which led them to venture into populated areas for food, making them vulnerable to hunting, traps, and transportation hazards.
Research on inhibiting properties of new schale deposition reagents
Authors: Aga-Zade A. D. , Cavadova L. A. , Kholmurodova Dilafruz , Ungalov Sanjar
Published: January 2025

New compositions for inhibiting scale deposits on oil-field equipment and pipelines have been developed based on a nitrogen- containing compound, inhibited hydrochloric acid, anionic polymer and water. The efficiency of inhibiting scale deposits was assessed using artificially prepared mineral waters of carbonate and sulfate types, simulating formation waters. It was found that the introduction of the prepared compositions into calcium sulfate and calcium carbonate solutions at a rate of 50 mg/l provides a high protective effect compared to an inhibitor consumption of 30 mg/l. The content of the active substance in the compositions is 14.5 – 18.5%.
Critical Development of Electric Fixed-Wing Manned Civil Aircraft
Authors: Yu Yifei
Published: January 2025

This paper briefly introduces the current role of civil aviation in the emission of greenhouse gases and the history of electric aviation, pointing out the necessity of developing electric civil aircraft to reach strict environmental policies such as the EU flightpath 2050. The four common architectures for electric airplanes, which are the all-electric, series hybrid electric, parallel hybrid electric and turboelectric, are briefly explained. This paper explains their respective construction, advantages and disadvantages, and technical feasibility and gives some examples of developing projects of all-electric and turboelectric architecture. The major problem for large commercial e-aircraft, energy density, is also discussed and the energy density required for various structures to achieve the highest efficiency is given. For several small business and regional aircraft that have been put into use or completed test flights, this paper explores their economics and whether their current cost is competitive with similar conventional gas turbine aircraft.
HCCI Engines: Benefits, Challenges and Future Advancements
Authors: Fei Yifan
Published: January 2025

Homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) engines represent a significant advancement in internal combustion engine technology. This study examines the main advantages of HCCI engines, such as increased fuel flexibility, decreased pollution from nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter, and enhanced thermal efficiency. However, HCCI technology also faces challenges, such as controlling the combustion process and achieving stable ignition across diverse operating conditions. With rapid advancements in information technology and scientific methods, the automotive engine industry has made significant strides in recent years. In response to stricter environmental regulations and the growing popularity of electric vehicles, HCCI engines have gained increasing attention. Despite existing challenges, continued technological improvements are expected to enhance the feasibility and performance of HCCI engines. This paper reviews current research and technological developments, emphasizing the potential of HCCI engines to revolutionize the automotive industry while addressing critical issues that need resolution. Vital potential chances regarding this exciting field is highlighted.
A Review on Element Doping in Li-Rich Cathode Materials for Lithium-Ion Batteries
Authors: Luo Zhenyu
Published: January 2025

With the growing demand for clean energy, lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have become essential in applications like electric vehicles due to their high energy density and efficiency. However, conventional cathode materials such as LiCoO₂ and LiFePO₄ are limited by relatively low specific capacities. To address this, Li-rich Mn-based cathode materials (LRMs) have been proposed as promising alternatives, offering greater specific capacity. Despite their potential, LRMs suffer from challenges like voltage decay, poor rate performance, and safety problems during cycling. This review discusses the use of element doping, such as the introduction of Al, Cr, and Ti, to improve the structural stability and electrochemical properties of LRMs. While significant progress has been made in enhancing capacity and cycle life, issues like voltage fade and long-term stability persist. Future research should focus on optimizing doping strategies, enhancing structural integrity, and reducing costs to facilitate the widespread use of LRMs in energy storage and electric vehicle systems.
The prevalence of gas exchange data processing methods: a
semi-automated scoping review
Authors: Hesse Anton , White Manix , Lundstrom Christopher
Published: January 2025

Cardiopulmonary exercise testing involves collecting variable breath-by-breath
data and sometimes requiring data processing of outlier removal, interpolation,
and averaging before later analysis. These data processing choices, such as
averaging duration, affect calculated values such as ˙VO2max.
However, assessing the implications of data processing without knowing popular
methods worth comparing is difficult. In addition, such details aid study
reproduction. We conducted a semi-automated scoping review of articles with
exercise testing that collected data breath-by-breath from three databases. Of
the 8,344 articles, 376 (mean: 4.5% and 95% confidence interval: 4.1–5.0%) and
581 (mean: 7.0% and 95% confidence interval: 6.4–7.5%) described outlier removal
and interpolation, respectively. A random subset of 1,078 articles revealed
(mean: 60.9% and 95% confidence interval: 57.9–63.7%) the reported averaging
methods. The commonly documented outlier cutoffs were±3 or 4 SD (39.1 and 51.6%,
respectively). The dominating interpolation duration and procedure were 1 s
(93.9%) and linear interpolation (92.5%). Averaging methods commonly described
were 30 (30.9%), 60 (12.4%), 15 (11.6%), 10 (11.0%), and 20 (8.1%) second bin
averages. This shows that studies collecting breath-by-breath data often lack
detailed descriptions of data processing methods, particularly for outlier
removal and interpolation. While averaging methods are more commonly reported,
improved documentation across all processing steps will enhance reproducibility
and facilitate future research comparing data processing choices.
Reduction of singularities in Fuchsian equations, and Heun equations for perturbations of Kerr–Newman–de Sitter and anti-de sitter spacetimes
Authors: Couch W. E.
Published: January 2025

For Fuchsian differential equations with N singularities at finite points we display two simply expressed conditions on coefficients which guarantee equivalence, under a certain inversion transformation, to a differential equation with N−1 singularities at finite points. For the radial and angular differential equations that govern perturbations of Kerr–Newman–de Sitter and anti-de Sitter spacetimes we find that these two conditions are satisfied identically for arbitrary values of all the parameters in the differential equations, including pole locations, with regular singularities and non-zero cosmological constant. From this we generalize the results of Suzuki, Tarasugi, and Umetsu, Prog. Theor. Phys. 100, 491 (1998) and find 128 Heun equations which are equivalent to the equations which govern the perturbations of the KN(A)dS spacetimes.
Invariant discovery of features across multiple length scales: Applications in microscopy and autonomous materials characterization
Authors: Raghavan Aditya , Pratiush Utkarsh , Valleti Mani , Liu Richard (Yu) , Emery Reece , Funakubo Hiroshi , Liu Yongtao , Rack Philip , Kalinin Sergei
Published: January 2025

Physical imaging is a foundational characterization method in areas from condensed matter physics and chemistry to astronomy and spans length scales from atomic to universe. Images encapsulate crucial data regarding atomic bonding, materials microstructures, and dynamic phenomena such as microstructural evolution and turbulence, among other phenomena. The challenge lies in effectively extracting and interpreting this information. Variational Autoencoders (VAEs) have emerged as powerful tools for identifying the underlying factors of variation in image data, providing a systematic approach to distilling meaningful patterns from complex data sets. However, a significant hurdle in their application is the definition and selection of appropriate descriptors reflecting local structures. Here, we introduce the scale-invariant VAE approach (SI-VAE) based on the progressive training of the VAE with the descriptors sampled at different length scales. The SI-VAE allows the discovery of the length scale-dependent factors of variation in the system. Here, we illustrate this approach using the ferroelectric domain images and generalize it to the movies of the electron-beam induced phenomena in graphene and topography evolution across combinatorial libraries. This approach can further be used to initialize the decision making in automated experiments including structure–property discovery and can be applied across a broad range of imaging methods. This approach is universal and can be applied to any spatially resolved data including both experimental imaging studies and simulations, and can be particularly useful for exploration of phenomena such as turbulence and scale-invariant transformation fronts.
Interface enhancement effect: SnO2/CsPbBr3 hetero-junction for improve nuclear radiation detection performance and stability
Authors: Zhang Mingzhi , Zhan Tong , Xia Guotu , Huang Chentao , Tian Fang , Deng Wenjuan , Zou Jijun , Tang Bin
Published: January 2025

The CsPbBr3 single crystal detector emerges as a highly promising candidate among semiconductor nuclear radiation detectors, which exhibits an extensive potential application across a multitude of critical domains, particularly in nuclear physics, nuclear energy, nuclear medicine, etc. However, the polarization problem has limited the application and development of CsPbBr3 detectors and has even posed a significant hindrance to their practical implementation. In this paper, a pre-designed SnO2/CsPbBr3 hetero-junction was meticulously engineered at the interface of the Ti/CsPbBr3/Ti detector, aiming to solve the polarization problem. This paper investigates the effects of the SnO2/CsPbBr3 hetero-junction on the electrical characteristics, detection performance, and long-term stability of the detector. The final results demonstrated that the SnO2/CsPbBr3 hetero-junction had multiple beneficial effects on the CsPbBr3 detector. On the one hand, the SnO2/CsPbBr3 hetero-junction exhibited superior electron extraction efficiency when compared to the Ti/CsPbBr3 interface. On the other hand, the SnO2 layer played a crucial role in preventing the migration of ions from the CsPbBr3 crystal to the interface, as well as in blocking the permeation of atmospheric and moisture elements from the detector surface to the interface. Consequently, the SnO2/CsPbBr3 hetero-junction detector exhibited superior detection performance and enhanced long-stability when compared to the Ti/CsPbBr3/Ti detector. After the interface enhancement, the SnO2/CsPbBr3 hetero-junction detector achieved an improved energy resolution of 13.59% at an electric field of 6000 V/cm and maintained a stable energy resolution of approximately 24 ± 5% at 3000 V/cm for over 12 h. The study of the SnO2/CsPbBr3 hetero-junction detector in this work provided a new perspective for enhancing the detection performance and ensuring the long-term stability of CsPbBr3-based detectors.
Design of a release-free piezo-optomechanical quantum transducer
Authors: Burger Paul , Frey Joey , Kolvik Johan , Hambraeus David , Van Laer Raphaël
Published: January 2025

Quantum transduction between microwave and optical photons offers the potential to merge the long-range connectivity of optical photons with the deterministic quantum operations of superconducting microwave qubits. A promising approach to achieving this uses an intermediary mechanical mode along with piezo-optomechanical interactions. Traditionally, these transducers are suspended to confine mechanical fields, but this complicates manufacturing and comes with the major challenge of poor thermal anchoring and a trade-off between noise and efficiency. To overcome these issues, we introduce the—to our knowledge—first design of a release-free electro-optomechanical quantum transducer. Our release-free, i.e., non-suspended, design leverages a silicon-on-sapphire platform. It combines release-free lithium niobate electromechanical crystals with silicon optomechanical crystals on a sapphire substrate, optimizing thermal anchoring and microwave and mechanical coherence. Despite departing from the traditional suspended transducer paradigm, our release-free design achieves coupling rates sufficient for quantum-level interactions between microwave photons, phonons, and optical photons. Unconventionally, it utilizes high-wavevector mechanical modes tightly confined to the chip surface. Beyond quantum science and engineering, this platform and its design principles could also propel low-power acousto-optic systems in integrated photonics.
Prospects for cosmological research with the FAST array: 21-cm intensity mapping survey observation strategies
Authors: Pan Jun-Da , Wu Peng-Ju , Du Guo-Hong , Li Yichao , Zhang Xin
Published: January 2025

Precise cosmological measurements are essential for understanding the evolution of the universe and the nature of dark energy. The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST), the most sensitive single-dish radio telescope, has the potential to provide the precise cosmological measurements through neutral hydrogen 21 cm intensity mapping sky survey. This paper primarily explores the potential of technological upgrades for FAST in cosmology. The most crucial upgrade begins with equipping FAST with a wide-band receiver (0 < z < 2.5). This upgrade can enable FAST to achieve higher precision in cosmological parameter estimation than the Square Kilometre Array Phase 1 Mid-Frequency Array. On this basis, expanding to a FAST array (FASTA) consisting of six identical FASTs would offer significant improvements in precision compared to FAST. Additionally, compared with the current results from the data combination of cosmic microwave background, baryon acoustic oscillations (optical galaxy surveys), and type Ia supernovae, FASTA can provide comparable constraints. Specifically, for the dark-energy equation-of-state parameters, FASTA can achieve σ(w
0) = 0.09 and σ(wa
) = 0.33.
High-redshift cosmography with a possible cosmic distance duality relation violation
Authors: Jesus José F. , Gomes Mikael J.S. , Holanda Rodrigo F.L. , Nunes Rafael C.
Published: January 2025

In this study, we used geometric distances at high redshifts (both luminosity and angular) to perform a cosmographic analysis with the Padé method, which stabilizes the behaviour of the cosmographic series in this redshift regime. However, in our analyses, we did not assume the validity of the Cosmic Distance Duality Relation (CDDR), but allowed for potential violations, such as d

L
(z) = η(z)(1+z)2
d

A
(z), where three different functional forms of η(z) are considered. By incorporating updated data from supernovae (SN), baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO), and cosmic chronometers (CC), we obtained observational constraints on cosmographic models alongside possible CDDR violations. Interestingly, we found that potential CDDR violations introduce new statistical correlations among cosmographic parameters such as H
0, q
0, and j
0. Nonetheless, within this framework, we did not observe significant deviations from the CDDR, and our results remain consistent with the predictions of the ΛCDM model. In the same time, this work provides a novel and straightforward method for testing the CDDR by fixing the background evolution through cosmographic techniques, paving the way for new geometric observational tests of possible deviations from standard cosmology.
Hybrid summary statistics: neural weak lensing inference beyond the power spectrum
Authors: Lucas Makinen T. , Heavens Alan , Porqueres Natalia , Charnock Tom , Lapel Axel , Wandelt Benjamin D.
Published: January 2025

Cosmological inference relies on compressed forms of the raw data for analysis, with traditional methods exploiting physics knowledge to define summary statistics, such as power spectra, that are known to capture much of the information. An alternative approach is to ask a neural network to find a set of informative summary statistics from data, which can then be analysed either by likelihood- or simulation-based inference. This has the advantage that for non-Gaussian fields, they may capture more information than two-point statistics. However, a disadvantage is that the network almost certainly relearns that two-point statistics are informative. In this paper, we introduce a new hybrid method, which combines the best of both: we use our domain knowledge to define informative physics-based summary statistics, and explicitly ask the network to augment the set with extra statistics that capture information that is not already in the existing summaries. This yields a new, general loss formalism that reduces both the number of simulations and network size needed to extract useful non-Gaussian information from cosmological fields, and guarantees that the resulting summary statistics are at least as informative as the power spectrum. In combination, they can then act as powerful inputs to implicit inference of model parameters. We use a generalisation of Information Maximising Neural Networks (IMNNs) to obtain the extra summaries, and obtain parameter constraints from simulated tomographic weak gravitational lensing convergence maps. We study several dark matter simulation resolutions in low- and high-noise regimes. We show that i) the information-update formalism extracts at least 3× and up to 8× as much information as the angular power spectrum in all noise regimes, ii) the network summaries are highly complementary to existing 2-point summaries, and iii) our formalism allows for networks with extremely lightweight architectures to match much larger regression networks with far fewer simulations needed to obtain asymptotically optimal inference.
Optimal probe states for phase estimation with a fixed mean particle number
Authors: Qin Jinfeng , Liu Bo
Published: January 2025

Quantum phase estimation reveals the power of quantum resources to beat the standard quantum limit and has been widely used in many fields. To improve the precision of phase estimation, we discuss the optimal probe states for phase estimation with a fixed mean particle number. By searching for the maximum quantum Fisher information, we optimize the probe states, which are superior to the path-entangled Fock states. Compared the mean particle number $(\bar{n})$ with the dimension of the probe states in Fock space $(N+1)$, when $\bar{n}\leq N$, our optimal probe states can provide better performance than the $\bar{n}00\bar{n}$ states; When $\bar{n}> N$, our optimal probe states can also remain optimal if the dimension of the probe states is large enough.
Direct ink writing of nickel oxide-based thin films for room temperature gas detection
Authors: Thakur Neha , Murthy Hari , Arumugam Sudha , Thomas Neethu , Koshy Aarju Mathew , Swaminathan Parasuraman
Published: January 2025

The rapid industrial growth and increasing population have led to significant pollution and deterioration of the natural atmospheric environment. Major atmospheric pollutants include NO2 and CO2. Hence, it is imperative to develop NO2 and CO2 sensors for ambient conditions, that can be used in indoor air quality monitoring, breath analysis, food spoilage detection, etc. In the present study, two thin film nanocomposite (nickel oxide-graphene and nickel oxide-silver nanowires) gas sensors are fabricated using direct ink writing. The nano-composites are investigated for their structural, optical, and electrical properties. Later the nano-composite is deposited on the interdigitated electrode (IDE) pattern to form NO2 and CO2 sensors. The deposited films are then exposed to NO2 and CO2 gases separately and their response and recovery times are determined using a custom-built gas sensing setup. Nickel oxide-graphene provides a good response time and recovery time of 10 and 9 s, respectively for NO2, due to the higher electron affinity of graphene towards NO2. Nickel oxide-silver nanowire nano-composite is suited for CO2 gas because silver is an excellent electrocatalyst for CO2 by giving response and recovery times of 11 s each. This is the first report showcasing NiO nano-composites for NO2 and CO2 sensing at room temperature.
A smart finger patch with coupled magnetoelastic and resistive bending sensors
Authors: Dai Ziyi , Wang Mingrui , Wang Yu , Yu Zechuan , Li Yan , Qin Weidong , Qian Kai
Published: January 2025

In the era of Metaverse and virtual reality (VR)/augmented reality (AR), capturing finger motion and force interactions is crucial for immersive human-machine interfaces. This study introduces a flexible electronic skin for the index finger, addressing coupled perception of both state and process in dynamic tactile sensing. The device integrates resistive and giant magnetoelastic sensors, enabling detection of surface pressure and finger joint bending. This e-skin identifies three phases of finger action: bending state, dynamic normal force and tangential force (sweeping). The system comprises resistive carbon nanotubes (CNT)/polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) films for bending sensing and magnetoelastic sensors (NdFeB particles, EcoFlex, and flexible coils) for pressure detection. The inward bending resistive sensor, based on self-assembled microstructures, exhibits directional specificity with a response time under 120 ms and bending sensitivity from 0° to 120°. The magnetoelastic sensors demonstrate specific responses to frequency and deformation magnitude, as well as sensitivity to surface roughness during sliding and material hardness. The system’s capability is demonstrated through tactile-based bread type and condition recognition, achieving 92% accuracy. This intelligent patch shows broad potential in enhancing interactions across various fields, from VR/AR interfaces and medical diagnostics to smart manufacturing and industrial automation.
Graphene/F16CuPc synaptic transistor for the emulation of multiplexed neurotransmission
Authors: Xu Zhipeng , Ni Yao , Sun Mingxin , Yuan Yiming , Wu Ning , Xu Wentao
Published: January 2025

We demonstrate a bipolar graphene/F16CuPc synaptic transistor (GFST) with matched p-type and n-type bipolar properties, which emulates multiplexed neurotransmission of the release of two excitatory neurotransmitters in graphene and F16CuPc channels, separately. This process facilitates fast-switching plasticity by altering charge carriers in the separated channels. The complementary neural network for image recognition of Fashion-MNIST dataset was constructed using the matched relative amplitude and plasticity properties of the GFST dominated by holes or electrons to improve the weight regulation and recognition accuracy, achieving a pattern recognition accuracy of 83.23%. These results provide new insights to the construction of future neuromorphic systems.
Artificial sensory neurons and their applications
Authors: Shao Jiale , Ying Hongwei , Cheng Peihong , Hu Lingxiang , Wei Xianhua , Li Zongxiao , Lu Huanming , Ye Zhizhen , Zhuge Fei
Published: January 2025

With the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) technology, the demand for high-performance and energy-efficient computing is increasingly growing. The limitations of the traditional von Neumann computing architecture have prompted researchers to explore neuromorphic computing as a solution. Neuromorphic computing mimics the working principles of the human brain, characterized by high efficiency, low energy consumption, and strong fault tolerance, providing a hardware foundation for the development of new generation AI technology. Artificial neurons and synapses are the two core components of neuromorphic computing systems. Artificial perception is a crucial aspect of neuromorphic computing, where artificial sensory neurons play an irreplaceable role thus becoming a frontier and hot topic of research. This work reviews recent advances in artificial sensory neurons and their applications. First, biological sensory neurons are briefly described. Then, different types of artificial neurons, such as transistor neurons and memristive neurons, are discussed in detail, focusing on their device structures and working mechanisms. Next, the research progress of artificial sensory neurons and their applications in artificial perception systems is systematically elaborated, covering various sensory types, including vision, touch, hearing, taste, and smell. Finally, challenges faced by artificial sensory neurons at both device and system levels are summarized.
Stationary soap film bridge formed by a small electrostatic force
Authors: Schmitz Lina
Published: January 2025

We consider two models, a free boundary problem and a simplification thereof, which describe a soap film bridge subjected to an electrostatic force. For both models, we construct stationary solutions if the force is small, analyse their stability, and examine how their shape is influenced by small changes in the strength of the force.
Disparate Regimes
Authors: Shanahan Brendan A
Published: January 2025

Historians have well described how US immigration policy increasingly fell under the purview of federal law and national politics in the mid- to late nineteenth century. It is far less understood that the rights of noncitizen immigrants in the country remained primarily contested in the realms of state politics and law until the mid- to late twentieth century. Such state-level political debates often centered on whether noncitizen immigrants should vote, count as part of the polity for the purposes of state legislative representation, work in public and publicly funded employment, or obtain professional licensure. Enacted state alienage laws were rarely self-executing, and immigrants and their allies regularly challenged nativist restrictions in court, on the job, by appealing to lawmakers and the public, and even via diplomacy. Battles over the passage, implementation, and constitutionality of such policies at times aligned with and sometimes clashed against efforts to expand rights to marginalized Americans, particularly US-born women. By examining topics that are often considered separately or treated as having marginal importance, Disparate Regimes underscores the centrality of nativist state politics and alienage policies to the history of American immigration and citizenship from the late nineteenth to the mid-twentieth centuries. It argues that the proliferation of these debates and laws produced veritable disparate regimes of citizenship rights in the American political economy on a state-by-state basis. It further illustrates how nativist state politics and alienage policies helped to invent and concretize the idea that citizenship rights meant citizen-only rights in law, practice, and popular perception in the United States.
Disputing Disparate Regimes in Employment
Authors: Shanahan Brendan A
Published: January 2025

Lawmakers in at least ten states adopted policies restricting or outright barring noncitizen immigrants from public and/or publicly funded employment between 1889 and 1914. Such laws drew inspiration from West Coast anti-Chinese nativism, arose out of widespread anti–“temporary” immigrant sentiment among building trade unionists, and grew in number and in force following the Panic of 1893. In periods of recession (especially during the mid-1890s and the mid-1910s), these policies were often implemented with vigor. In good times, they were widely perceived to be “dead letters” by labor leaders, employers, and public commentators. Nevertheless, the US Supreme Court unambiguously upheld their constitutionality in 1915, rendering the employment rights of noncitizen public works laborers and public employees tenuous across many major immigrant-destination states. This chapter argues that disputes over the passage, implementation, and adjudication of such blue-collar nativist hiring laws created increasingly disparate regimes of citizenship rights in key domains of employment.
Making Voters Citizens
Authors: Shanahan Brendan A
Published: January 2025

Lawmakers and voters in six states repealed long-standing noncitizen voting rights laws via ballot measure during the late Gilded Age and Progressive Era; successful state constitutional amendment campaigns overturned similar provisions in the nation’s remaining seven alien suffrage states during and in the aftermath of World War I. The “standardization” of voting into a citizen-only right nationwide was a contingent development. National organizations—from immigration restrictionists and “patriotic” societies to the National American Woman Suffrage Association—increasingly argued that noncitizen voting rights weakened the nation and imperiled its security. But state partisan institutions and civic groups were the primary impetus behind anti-alien suffrage campaigns. State constitutional mechanics proved similarly critical to their outcome. This chapter shows how these successful campaigns transformed state politics and constitutional law, while compelling a retreat from the disparate regimes of citizenship rights in the polity common to the nineteenth century.
Who Counts in the Polity?
Authors: Shanahan Brendan A
Published: January 2025

This chapter explores debates over proposed and adopted nativist state legislative apportionment provisions—which counted some or all noncitizens out of the population—from World War I until the civil rights era. A lengthy dispute over similar (ultimately defeated) federal legislation became so heated that Congress failed to reapportion the House of Representatives at all during the 1920s. Immigrant rights–supporting lawmakers were sometimes able to defeat proposed anti-alien schemes when they benefited from high constitutional hurdles. But they generally proved unable to repeal extant laws in the early to mid-twentieth century amid widespread reapportionment gridlock and partisan, intraparty, and sectional rivalries over the subject. Supporters of decoupling citizenship from apportionment policy would finally succeed in the courtroom and at the ballot box during the civil rights era, as state anti-alien provisions became widely viewed by voters and jurists as inefficient and obsolete amid broader redistricting and reapportionment reforms.
Personality and Leadership: A Critical Review and Future Research Agenda From a Dynamic Perspective
Authors: Li Wendong , Zhang Huanxi , Zheng Yanglei
Published: January 2025

Organizational research on personality and leadership has been heavily influenced by the great man theory of leadership and predominantly assumed that personality traits, as well as other individual difference variables including abilities, values, and interests, cause leadership processes and outcomes, not vice versa. Thus, this literature has largely overlooked the possibility that leadership may also shape personality processes. Advancing this line of research from a dynamic perspective, the initial focus is reviewing research on the static relationship between personality (and related constructs) and leadership constructs. Subsequently, the limited research endeavors looking at how leadership processes and personality processes may reciprocally influence each other in dynamic fashions are taken stock. Finally, a neo-socioanalytic model of personality development and leadership processes is proposed, aiming to enhance the theoretical understanding of the complex interplays between leadership and personality. It is hoped that this may stimulate further research elucidating the dynamic nature of the relationship between leadership and personality.
International Conventions
Authors: Nurse Angus
Published: January 2025

International law provides a framework for dealing with crime and deviance of global significance and addressing issues that are common to many countries and jurisdictions. International criminal law in particular identifies those crimes considered to be threats to international peace and security. It also covers transnational crimes of significant concern to the international community and that have the potential to affect more than one country.

The key international law mechanisms are conventions; treaties or agreements between countries that can be of a general or specific nature and that are created between two or multiple states. Conventions are thought of as “hard law” as they are written agreements, the precise terms of which can be referred to in the event of a dispute.

For criminology and criminal justice study, international conventions provide for an examination of international justice, conceptualizing international crime priorities and conceptions on how justice systems can deal with crimes that transgress borders and fall outside the scope of domestic law. There are international conventions that codify priorities in international crime, specifying genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity as key international concerns for consideration by an international court, while arguably implying that some other major contemporary threats like cybercrime are of lesser importance. But there are also specific conventions on topics like organized crime, the trade in endangered species, and cybercrime that set out the obligations on states to deal with these issues.

Despite the existence of these international conventions, the extent to which states comply with international law mechanisms is largely a matter of choice. The concept of state sovereignty means that states may comply with an international convention only to the extent that they are willing to. Indeed, some states choose to opt out of enforcement and judicial mechanisms like the International Criminal Court (ICC), with the result that international criminal justice can apply to some states more than others. The ICC has also been accused of being skewed in favor of powerful Global North and colonial powers and representing an extension of colonial justice.

While on paper, international conventions create a legal framework for dealing with global crime issues, the lack of effective enforcement mechanisms and political and state sovereignty issues that restrict enforcement activity have the potential to undermine effective international justice.
Islamism in Somalia
Authors: Abdullahi (Baadiyow) Abdurahman
Published: January 2025

Islamism is a complex ideology based on Islamic principles, interpreted differently by various actors. Gaining prominence after the September 11 attacks and the global war on terrorism, the term is often viewed through a contentious lens in academic and political discourses. Secular perspectives tend to see Islamism as the politicization of Islam, aligning it with ideologies like communism and perceiving it as a threat to liberal democracy. In contrast, Islamists argue that secular views undermine Islamic principles, which they believe should govern Muslim societies. For many Muslims, including those in Somalia, Islamism represents more than a political agenda; it is a means to revive their faith and effect societal transformation. Somali Islamism is diverse, with some groups participating in democratic processes and advocating for peaceful reforms, while other factions reject the modern state system and use violence to topple it. The exploration of Islamism is framed by Somalia's colonial history and its effects on the Somali population, with a specific focus on the Somali Federal Republic to distinguish it from ethnic Somalis in the Horn of Africa.
Secret Knowledge, the Supernatural, and Slavery in Western Africa
Authors: Reuther Jessica Catherine
Published: January 2025

Slavery deeply impacted West and West Central Africans’ collective understandings of the structure of the universe and humans’ place within it. These societies widely accepted a supernatural realm that required secret knowledge to maintain health, prosperity, justice, and balance in the human world. Indigenous African religious systems engaged in a constant process of transregional spiritual exchanges in an effort to ensure survival, safety, and status in the context of the predatory environments created by the transatlantic and intra-African slave trades. The manifestations of slavery’s impact on Western Africans’ lived experiences of the supernatural are most prominent during the early modern period in their psychotherapeutic and judicial practices. After circa 1900, the focus shifts to how to appease slave deities and address the unresolved debts that Western African societies owed to those that they had enslaved. Traumatic pasts, such as those associated with trading and owning slaves, have surfaced in secret knowledge that posits supernatural explanations of phenomenon unfolding in the visible world. In these societies, the histories of the trauma of incorporating large numbers of enslaved persons in the 19th century intimately informed their interpretations of 20th century lived experiences.
Intelligence in Experimental Economics
Authors: Sofianos Andis
Published: January 2025

The economics literature has increasingly been studying how intelligence relates to economic decision-making. This has developed a large literature that aims to understand how cognitive abilities and processes relate to both individual decision-making and strategic interactions. Such studies in the economics literature have predominantly used pattern recognition style tests like the Raven test and measures of cognitive reflection, namely the Cognitive Reflection Test. The literature has uncovered some consistent results, for example, intelligence allows for more patient attitudes and is related to behavior closer to equilibrium play in strategic interactions. There has so far been some mixed evidence in studies that link intelligence with biased decision-making. Meanwhile, there is an ongoing lively debate on how intelligence influences risk attitudes. A theme that appears to resonate in several studies is the link between cognitive ability and error-prone behavior. The key studies across these topics are reviewed and some interesting future avenues for research are outlined.