bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Protection effect of cis 9, trans 11-conjugated linoleic acid on oxidative stress and inflammatory damage in bovine mammary epithelial cells
Authors: Zhang Hang , Ni Dan , Wang Yu-Qiong , Gou Chang-Long
Published: September 2024

The present study was conducted to observe the protective effects of c9, t11- conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) on oxidative stress and inflammation in bovine mammary epithelial cells (BMECs) exposed to H2O2. The BMECs were treated with different concentrations of H2O2 for 8 h to determine damage concentration and different c9, t11-CLA concentrations for 24 h to determine the effective concentrations. H2O2 of 600 μmol/L and c9, t11-CLA of 50 μmol/L and 100 μmol/L were selected for subsequent analyses. Thus, four BMEC groups were established: Control group; H2O2 group; c9, t11-CLA (50) + H2O2 group; and c9, t11-CLA (100) + H2O2 group. We observed that the H2O2 group exhibited significantly lower total antioxidant activity (T-AOC), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activities and significantly higher secretions of malondialdehyde (MDA), interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, IL-8, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and expressions of IL-1β, IL-6, and IL-8 than the control group (p > 0.05). Pretreatment with c9, t11-CLA enhanced SOD, CAT, and GPx activities and mRNA expression and repressed IL-6 and IL-8 secretion and expression in H2O2-treated BMECs (p > 0.05). In conclusion, c9, t11-CLA treatment efficiently enhanced antioxidant capacity and decreased inflammation induced by H2O2 in BMECs.
Double and single stranded detection of 5-methylcytosine and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine with nanopore sequencing
Authors: Halliwell Dominic , Honig Floris , Bagby Stefan , Roy Sandipan , Murrell Adele
Published: September 2024

5-methylcytosine (5mC) and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) are modified versions of cytosine in DNA with roles in regulating gene expression. Using whole genomic DNA from mouse cerebellum, we have benchmarked 5mC and 5hmC detection by Oxford Nanopore Technologies sequencing against other standard techniques. In addition, we assessed the ability of duplex base-calling to study strand asymmetric modification. Nanopore detection of 5mC and 5hmC is accurate relative to compared techniques and opens new means of studying these modifications. Strand asymmetric modification is widespread across the genome but reduced at imprinting control regions and CTCF binding sites in mouse cerebellum. This study demonstrates the unique ability of nanopore sequencing to improve the resolution and detail of cytosine modification mapping.
WITHDRAWN: Insights into microbial contamination in paddy field ecology: matagenomic analysis of the abundances, diversity, and distribution of antibiotic resistance genes, virulence factors, and their potential bacterial hosts
Authors: Chen Yan , Chu Shanshan , Xu Zhuoqun , Zhou Jie , Li Keyu , Li Sisi , Zhang Yaru , Han Jianzhong , QU DAOFENG
Published: September 2024

Rice cultivation, a vital component of agricultural production, often presents a "high-risk" environment for bacterial antibiotic resistance contamination. This study aims to compare the similarities and differences in antibiotic resistance genes, virulence factors, and the abundance of potential bacterial hosts in the rice cultivation environments of traditional monoculture, rice-frog co-culture, and rice-fish co-culture models. Samples of field water, field soil, and the intestinal contents of frogs or fish were collected from the rice cultivation bases of the three models. Metagenomic sequencing technology was used for analysis and comparison. At the phylum level of microbial communities, both Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes were abundant in all three models. At the genus level, Acinetobacter, Massilia, and Enterococcus were the dominant genera in traditional cultivation, rice-frog co-culture, and rice-fish co-culture, respectively. In terms of antibiotic resistance, the models of traditional cultivation, rice-frog co-culture, and rice-fish co-culture respectively contained higher abundances of oleC, ropB2, and tetA(58). Plasmids significantly outnumbered transposons, insertion sequences, and integrons, suggesting that plasmids may be the primary carriers of horizontal gene transfer in paddy field environments. Network analysis revealed that the most complex correlations between ARGs, MGEs, and bacterial genera in the traditional model. Traditional cultivation had a high abundance of VFGs, with a significantly higher relative abundance of aggressive VFGs compared to defensive VFGs. Based on co-occurrence results, multiple subtypes of ARGs co-occurred with VFGs, and various bacteria were considered potential ARG hosts, indicating that the host bacteria of VFGs in traditional cultivation have a stronger offensive capability.
Polyphosphate accumulation induced by overexpression of polyphosphate kinase in Synechocystis sp. PCC6803 without phosphate deficiency
Authors: Kang Mi-Jin , Ryu Han-Bin , Park Hyun Seong , Choi Jung Hyun , Han Chan-Woo , Kim Z-hun , Hong Seong-Joo , Lee Choul-Gyun
Published: September 2024

Phosphorus is a major building block for life and is used as an essential fertilizer in modern agriculture. With the recent depletion of phosphate rocks, the main source of phosphorus, cyanobacteria have attracted attention as valuable alternatives for phosphate production. They exhibit “luxury phosphorus uptake” and accumulate excess phosphate as polyphosphate within their cells. This study aimed to enable the model cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. to produce polyphosphate without experiencing phosphate deficiency. Mutant strains PP and PS were constructed using psbA2 and psbA2 small promoters, respectively, to overexpress the polyphosphate kinase proteins that elongate the polyphosphate chain. Upon the addition of excess phosphate without phosphate deficiency, the fresh cell weight of the mutant strains PP and PS increased by 233% and 73%, respectively, compared to the fresh cell weight of the wild type. At 30 μmol photons/m2/s, no accumulation of polyphosphate was observed in the wild type, whereas PP and PS accumulated 0.92 mmol/g DCW and 0.5 mmol/g DCW of polyphosphate, respectively. Under 500 μmol photons/m2/s, PP and PS accumulated 0.84 mmol/g DCW and 0.63 mmol/g DCW, respectively, which were not significantly different from those obtained under 30 μmol photons/m2/s. In this study, it was possible to induce the accumulation of polyphosphate without phosphate deficiency, and faster cell growth was observed compared to the control. These results provide a microalgae-based approach for the sustainable use of phosphorus, with potential applications as a biofertilizer.
Effective removal of heavy metal ions (Pb, Cu, and Cd) from contaminated water by limestone mine wastes
Authors: T.Fathy Aya , Moneim Mohamed A. , A.Ahmed Ezzat , Ayaat Abdalla M.El , M.Da Fatma
Published: September 2024

Limestone mining waste and its derived CaO were checked as an adsorbents of pb+ 2, Cu+ 2, and Cd+ 2 ions from water solution. The characterization of Limestone and CaO was studied by using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). The optimum conditions of sorbent dosage, pH, initial concentration, and contact time factors were investigated for pristine limestone and CaO absorbents. The results indicate that the optimum initial concentrations of (Ci) were 1200, 500, and 300 ppm for Pb, Cu, and Cd, respectively, using CaO adsorbent, while using the pristine limestone adsorbent, the corresponding optimum initial concentrations were 700, 110, and 50 ppm. In the ternary system sorption, the results indicated that the selectivity sequence of the studied metals by CaCO3 can be expressed as Pb+ 2 > Cd+ 2 > Cu+ 2, while CaO exhibits a higher selectivity for Pb+ 2 compared to Cu+ 2 and Cd+ 2. Hence, various adsorption isotherm and kinetic models were examined to explore different patterns and behaviors of adsorption. So, the results indicate that CaO has great potential for eliminating cationic heavy metal species from industrial water solutions.
The mediating effect of activities of daily living (ADL) disability on the association between depressive symptoms and cognitive impairment in older adults: a national study
Authors: Yao Xuemei , Han Dongfang , Lu Qinrui
Published: September 2024

Background
Numerous studies have demonstrated a correlation between depressive symptoms and a higher likelihood of cognitive impairment among older adults. Little is known about the underlying pathway connecting these two conditions.
Objective
This study aimed to investigate whether functional ability potentially mediates the relationship between depressive symptoms and cognitive impairment.
Methods
A total of 6623 Chinese older adults aged 60 years and above from the 2018 China Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS) were included in this study. Binary logistic regression was conducted to examine the relationships among cognitive impairment, depressive symptoms, and ADL disability while accounting for all confounding factors. Mediation analyses were performed to examine whether activities of daily living (ADL) disability mediate the relationship between depressive symptoms and cognitive impairment via PROCESS macro version 4.0.
Results
The results indicated that the relationship between depressive symptoms and cognitive impairment was significantly mediated by ADL disability (estimated indirect effect = 0.024, bootstrapped SE = 0.011, bootstrapped standard 95% CI = 0.004–0.050). When stratified by gender, the mediating effect of ADL ability was observed only in men (estimated indirect effect = 0.034, bootstrapped SE = 0.019, bootstrapped standard 95% CI = 0.002–0.075).
Conclusion
This study revealed that ADL disability could partially mediate the relationship between depressive symptoms and cognitive impairment in older adults. Furthermore, there may be a gender difference in this mediating role, indicating that enhancing physical function in men experiencing depressive symptoms potentially help prevent cognitive decline.
Exploring the barriers and facilitators of asthma patient education: perspective of physicians in a pediatric emergency department setting
Authors: Kong Kar Yee Catrin , Sim Jie Min Jasmine , Ganapathy Sashikumar
Published: September 2024

Introduction
The rising global prevalence of asthma warrants an imminent need for appropriate intervention methods to reduce burden caused. Limited research has explored physician perspectives on asthma patient education, especially in the context of an Asian setting. We aim to understand experiences and perceptions about quality of current asthma patient education provided amongst physicians in the pediatric emergency department (ED).
Methods
We employed a qualitative, individual interview methodology. From January to March 2021, 14 physicians working in the pediatric ED were enrolled. Semi-structured interviews were conducted, audiotaped, and transcribed in verbatim. Themes were identified and data analysed using qualitative and iterative data analysis.
Results
Four overarching themes emerged from data analysis. Overall, participants reported confidence in administering asthma patient education. However, we recognised how lack of training, experience or availability of guidelines contributed to gaps between knowledge and practice making it challenging to provide asthma patient education. Secondly, perspectives or attitudes of both patients and physicians shaped by experiences and culture influence the delivery of patient education. Thirdly, therapeutic patient-physician relationships were protective in delivering successful asthma care. Finally, extrinsic factors including time constraints, availability of resources and culture of interprofessional management may support or impede asthma management.
Conclusion
Asthma control can be optimised by being aware of barriers that exist to patient education and developing interventions to overcome them. Collaborative efforts in the ED should be encouraged to shift beliefs and individual behaviours to improve asthma health literacy and maintain therapeutic patient-physician relationships hence delivering effective asthma patient education.
Check list of Synodontella spp. (Monopisthocotylea, Dactilogyridae) gill parasites of Synodontis spp. (Pisces, Mochokidae), with the description of a new species
Authors: Mbondo Jonathan Armel , Bayiha Étienne Didier Bassock , Bahanak Dieu ne dort
Published: September 2024

A new Monopisthocotylea, Synodontella extensiocirrus n. sp. (Monopisthocotylea: Ancyroceaphalidae), is described based on specimens collected from the gills filament of Synodontis obesus (Pisces: Mochokidae) from downstream of Sanaga River and Dibamba River, Littoral-Cameroon. Fish specimens were caught by gills net. Parasites were dislodged from the gill filaments and mounted between slide and cover slide in a drop of GAP mixture (Glycerin Ammonium-Picrate). Drawings of the sclerotized pieces were carried out using Coral Draw X4 Software. The new species is distinguished from all congeners mainly by the morphology of the MCO, penis widely open at its distal extremity with particular shapes of accessory piece (cape-shaped) and one of the penis wall. The present new species which is described and herein illustrated brings to 18 the number of known species of Synodontella. Host specificity of Synodontella species is discussed, these parasites seem specific to their host. Key to Synodontella species is proposed.
Heat transfer and weight enhancements for traditional finned tube heat exchangers using various needle fin shapes
Authors: Sabri Ali , Nabil Rand , Yehia Noor
Published: September 2024

Finned-tube heat exchangers with low weight and good thermal characteristics are required to meet new heat transfer issues and rising application demand. Fins increase the flow mixture, lower the recirculating zone, and distribute heat to the environment to preserve system thermal efficiency. This research explores thermo-hydraulic characteristics, weight reduction, and performance parameter for 17 examples with 0.5 mm needle fin thickness with 10 mm altitude and diverse forms, including six angles (80°, 70°, 60°, 50°, 40°, and 30°) and three vertices (6, 8, and 10 Each is compared to equal-sized circular fins. SOLID WORK 2021 generated 3D geometry and heat exchanger weight reduction values. At 4,300 Reynold number, ANSYS FLUENT 2020 R2 estimated heat transfer effect of each air-water heat exchanger form. All needle fins outperformed solid fins in heat transfer. By decreasing the number of vertices (N) and their angles (Ɵ), thermal characteristics have improved. For instance, lowering (N) from 10 to 6 and (Ɵ) from 80° to 30° leads to increased Nusselt number (Nu) by 40.76% -154.78%, 26.27% -76.29%, 29.24% -202.37%, and heat flow rate per unit area (Q/m^2) by 26%-76%, 25%-62%, and 14.33-49% Heat exchangers using proposed needle designs saved 37% in weight (w) and 37%-15%, 12%-15%, and 9%-10% in friction factor (f) for 80°-30°.
Effects of Human Perception Dimensions Constituting Individual Temperament and Experience on Indoor Space Composition Decision-making Presented in a Mixed-reality Environment
Authors: Lee Kyung-Tae , Im Jin-Bin , Kim Ju-Hyung
Published: September 2024

Due to the increased time spent indoors as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, individuals have become more engaged in personalising their indoor environments and actively participating in related decision-making process. This decision-making is influenced by how people perceive spaces, as shaped by their knowledge, characteristics, and experiences. This study aims to explore the dimensions of human perception based on temperament and experience to determine preferred indoor space compositions using mixed-reality technology. Temperament was assessed using the Holland Occupational Themes RIASEC (Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional) test, whereas experience was analysed using a theoretical framework incorporating text mining and PageRank centrality. The findings revealed variations in spatial preferences across RIASEC categories: conventional individuals preferred beige, carpet, and PVC flooring, whereas enterprising individuals favoured marble. This study uniquely examines the human perception system and how individuals form and act on memories of indoor spaces.
Migrating subaqueous dunes capture clay flocs
Authors: de Lange Sjoukje , Wilk Anne van der , Chassagne Claire , Ali Waqas , Born Maximilian , Brodersen Kristian , Hoitink Antonius , Waldschläger Kryss
Published: September 2024

Recent research highlights the abundance of floccule (flocs) in rivers, formed by the aggregation of clay particles with organic matter. These flocs affect the transport and eventual fate of clay. Flocs exhibit distinct behaviour from their unflocculated sedimentary counterparts: they can deform and break, and have higher settling velocities, which may in turn cause flocs to have the potential to deposit and possibly interact with the riverbed. Systematic experiments in a laboratory flume were conducted. Flocs showed a saltating (bouncing) behaviour, and were incorporated in the sediment bed as single flocs, clusters, or strings, via deposition and burial in the lee of a dune. The dune geometry was negligibly impacted by the presence of flocs. This study is the first to highlight interactions between flocs and bedforms. In natural systems, the burial of flocculated clay particles can affect contaminant spreading, aquatic ecology, the interpretation of deposition patterns, and clay transport.
Improving service quality parameters using the ant colony algorithm in MANTE network
Authors: ziaei mahdi
Published: September 2024

mobile ad hoc network (MANET) are a number of devices such as mobile phones, personal digital devices or laptops that wirelessly form a network together without the use of centralized components such as routers. One of the existing protocols for routing in MANET is the Ad hoc On-Demand Distance Vector Routing (AODV), in which the nodes have the status of the neighboring nodes in the form of a routing table. The AODV protocol has features such as creating a route when needed, as well as good performance in MANETcase. But this protocol does not scale well for large networks where the number of nodes and the traffic volume are large. The mentioned problem causes quality of service parameters such as bandwidth, delay, end-to-end delay, throughput, routing overhead, and Packet loss in this protocol do not work well. One of the solutions to solve the problems is to use meta-heuristic algorithms. Among the meta-heuristic algorithms, Ant Colony Algorithm is considered because the nature of routing can be seen in it. We continued to improve the quality of service parameters by using the ant colony algorithm, which has improved the performance of MANET. According to the results of the conducted researches, it is possible to use the ant colony meta-heuristic algorithm to improve service quality parameters in MANET. This method can improve the performance and satisfaction of users and in finally lead to the overall improvement of MANET.
Surrogate-based Sensitivity Analysis of Facet Optical Coatings Produced without and with in-situ Design Re-optimization
Authors: Poitras Daniel , Ma Penghui
Published: September 2024

Optoelectronic and photonic waveguide-based devices often require the control of the exit/entrance facet reflectance to a high degree of precision on a relatively large wavelength range. Fabricating facet optical coatings for that purpose can be challenging due to detrimental effects of thickness errors. In this work, a surrogate approach using the polynomial chaos expansion method is used to evaluate the robustness of optical coating designs to experimental errors, and the Sobol' sensitivity indices of their individual layers. The effect of a fabrication strategy involving successive {\it in-situ} design re-optimizations after completion of each individual layer deposition is simulated and shown to reduce significantly the detrimental effect of thickness errors on the yield and performance of coatings.
A finite-deformation anisotropic non-associative viscoplasticity/damage coupled thermodynamic model for ductile fracture of thick adhesive composite joint
Authors: Pengfei Liu , Chen H.Y. , Sun J. , Xia. S.F.
Published: September 2024

This paper develops a finite-deformation anisotropic non-associative (visco)plasticity/ damage coupled model for thick adhesive composite joints within the framework of irreversible thermodynamics. First, a four-order damage tensor that is composed of a two-order damage tensor is introduced into the elastic constitutive model, the Drucker-Prager’s type yielding function and plastic potential function by considering the variable hydrostatic pressure and non-associative plasticity. The spectral decomposition of the second-order damage tensor is performed to derive the fourth-order damage tensor. Second, a damage potential function is also introduced to describe the coupled relationship between plastic deformation and damage evolution. Since the two-order damage tensor is related to the elastic strain tensor, plastic anisotropy and damage-induced anisotropy after plastic deformation interact. Third, both isotropic hardening and kinematic hardening are considered, represented by the back stress and the hardening stress as well as their conjugate relationships with the corresponding internal variables. They are derived by the Helmholtz free energy, and their evolved relationships are derived by the plastic potential function according to the Kuhn-Tucker loading-unloading consistency conditions for the rate-independent plasticity/damage coupled model. Fourth, an extended version of the Perzyna’s type model by introducing an over-stress function is developed to derive the consistency plasticity factor for the viscoplasticity/damage coupled model, regardless of the Kuhn-Tucker plastic loading-unloading consistency conditions. It is shown that the rate-independent plasticity model is just a particular case of the viscoplasticity model as viscous parameters tend to be zero. Fifth, all the thermodynamic forces and internal variables as well as the tangent modulus for the two models above are updated under the corotated configuration for finite deformation in the consistent integration procedure by implicit FEA. In order to simplify numerical computation, the stress and strain at time n + 1 are first updated using the frozen damage tensor and back stress tensor at time n, and then the latter two tensors are updated individually at time n + 1. Finally, the developed model and numerical algorithm by FEA are used to predict the stress, strain, and damage features of the dog-bone MMA ductile adhesive specimens under tensile loads and the thick MMA adhesive joint specimens under shear loads. It should be emphasized that numerical convergence and parameter identification in FEA should be addressed properly in order to lead to accurate and robust predictions of mechanical responses of structures.
Photocatalyst Design Principles for Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production and Benzyl Alcohol Oxidation with CdS Nanosheets
Authors: Kim Ryun Na , Kim Jihun , Kim Gui-Min , Lee Doh C. , Kim Whi Dong
Published: September 2024

To produce hydrogen using photocatalysts while maintaining environmentally friendly characteristics, research has focused on using benzyl alcohol (BzOH) as a hole scavenger to convert it into the valuable compound benzaldehyde. However, due to the relatively slow oxidation rate of BzOH compared to conventional hole scavengers, tailored photocatalyst designs are necessary. In this study, we prepared CdS nanosheets (NSs) and introduced Na2SO4-Na2SO3 and BzOH as hole scavengers to adjust the oxidation half-reaction rate (OHR) during the photocatalytic reaction. Various co-catalysts were introduced to examine how changes in the reduction half-reaction (RHR) and OHR rates influence hydrogen production. The results reveal that the selection of co-catalyst and hole scavenger significantly influences the rate-determining step (RDS) in the photocatalytic reaction. For bare CdS NSs, the slow RHR results in the RDS being the RHR, leading to similar hydrogen production rate regardless of the scavenger type. However, with Pt as a co-catalyst, the RDS shifts to the OHR due to the accelerated RHR, inducing hydrogen production rate highly sensitive to the type of scavenger. Consequently, hydrogen production is significantly reduced when using BzOH, which has a slower oxidation rate. These findings suggest that achieving high hydrogen yields is fundamentally challenging with BzOH due to its slow oxidation rate, even with the introduction of excellent co-catalysts. Therefore, it is imperative to develop photocatalyst materials with lower valence band level for high oxidation power.
Kernel ridge regression improving based on golden eagle optimization algorithm for multi-class classification
Authors: Mahmood Shaimaa Waleed , Algamal Zakariya Yahya
Published: September 2024

Kernel Ridge Regression is a supervised machine-learning approach that merges concepts from ridge regression and the kernel trick. It is especially beneficial for addressing regression problems characterized by a nonlinear relationship between the input and output variables. Kernel Ridge Regression (KRR) involves utilizing the kernel trick to implement ridge regression. The approach can acquire knowledge of a non-linear function in a space with more dimensions while taking advantage of ridge regression's regularization. However, the hyper-parameter settings that define the kernel type influence KRR's effectiveness. Significant processing costs, memory expenses, and low accuracy burden the current approaches for collecting these hyper parameter values. This study introduces a substantial enhancement to the golden eagle optimization method. The enhancement entails implementing elite opposite-based learning (EOBL) to increase population diversity in the search space. We do this to choose the optimal hyper parameters effectively. We used ten publicly available multi-class datasets to verify and authenticate the effectiveness of the suggested enhancement to Kernel Ridge Regression. Based on several assessment criteria, the results clearly showed that the suggested enhancement outperforms all other basic procedure techniques in terms of categorization efficacy.
Developing a Novel Aging Assessment Model to uncover heterogeneity in Organ Aging and Facilitates Screening of Aging-related Drugs
Authors: Xu Yingqi , Li Maohao , Hu Congxue , Luo Yawen , Gao Xing , Li Xinyu , Li Xia , Zhang Yunpeng
Published: September 2024

Background: The decline in organ function due to aging significantly impacts the health and quality of life of the elderly. Assessing and delaying aging has become a major societal concern. Previous studies have largely focused on differences between young and old, often overlooking the complexity and gradual nature of aging.
Methods: We annotated the aging trajectories of 16 organs to reveal functional specificity and identify organ-specific aging trend genes. Through inter-organ correlation analysis, we identified a set of global aging trend genes and constructed a multi-organ aging assessment (2A) model, which was validated using gene expression and pharmacogenomic data from mice and humans. Additionally, we used a random walk algorithm and GSEA enrichment analysis to screen for drugs that could improve multi-organ aging.
Results: The 2A model, constructed using aging trend genes, effectively evaluates the aging status in human and mouse tissues and predicts the clearance of senescent cells. The model scores exhibit a strong correlation with actual age, highlighting its robustness and reliability. Functional annotation indicated that the lungs and kidneys are particularly sensitive to aging, with immune function and cell death playing key roles. Notably, single-cell data confirmed that plasma cell accumulation and naive-like cell reduction showed linear changes during organ aging. The aging trend genes of each organ are significantly enriched with aging-related functions, allowing for precise assessment of the aging process and identification of specific aging milestones for each organ. In addition, drug screening pinpointed Fostamatinib, Ranolazine, and Metformin as influential in multi-organ aging. Enrichment analysis further elucidated their impact on critical aging-related pathways, including longevity regulation and circadian rhythm.
Conclusion: This study elucidated functional changes during organ aging and developed the 2A model as a robust method for monitoring aging. Additionally, our research provides a foundation for anti-aging drug screening and establishes a scientific framework for intervening in organ aging.
Structure of Molecular Nitrogen Nanoclusters Containing Stabilized Nitrogen Atoms
Authors: Wetzel Cameron , Lee David , Khmelenko Vladimir
Published: September 2024

Impurity-helium condensates (IHCs) formed by injecting the discharge products of gaseous mixtures of helium atoms and nitrogen molecules into bulk superfluid \(^{4}\) He at temperature 1.5 K, were studied by X-band electron spin resonance (ESR). IHCs consists of collections of N \(_2\) nanoclusters which form aerogel-like structure inside bulk HeII. It was found that N$_2$ nanoclusters have a two shell structure, an outer shell which contains high concentration of stabilized N atoms and an interior shell with lower concentrations of N atoms. In this paper we have studied the dependence of the shell structure of the N$_2$ nanoclusters which compose the IHCs by varying the ratio of nitrogen to helium in the prepared gas mixture from 0.06% to 1%. The highest local concentration of N atoms in nanoclusters (1.2 \(\cdot\) 10 \(^{21}\) cm \(^{-3}\) ) was observed in the sample prepared from the gas mixture containing the lowest nitrogen admixture (0.06%). Additionally, the evolution of nanocluster structure was studied as the samples were drained of liquid helium (T \(\le\) 3.5 K) and warmed beyond the point of explosive recombination (3.5 K $\le$ T $\le$ 6.5 K).
Health risks associated with trace elements and macrominerals in cultivars grown on Yamuna floodplain using various soil amendments: a correlation analysis
Authors: Sharma Pooja , Mahongnao Sophayo , Nanda Sarita
Published: September 2024

This study addresses the contamination challenges in the agricultural sector of the Yamuna Floodplain, a vital region for supplying vegetables to the National Capital Region (NCR). The research involved cultivating spinach, green amaranth, and red amaranth over two consecutive seasons, with various waste compost amendments applied to the soil, while groundwater was used for irrigation. The quality of these organically grown vegetables was assessed by analyzing macro-minerals and trace elements using Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS). Results indicated that the mean concentrations (mg/100g) of phosphorus, sulfur, manganese, and potassium were significantly enhanced in compost-amended crops, leading to improvements in their respective percentages of Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) and Estimated Average Requirement (EAR) compared to those grown with chemical fertilizers. Health risk assessments revealed that both the hazard quotient (HQ) and the health index (sum of Target Hazard Quotients, THQ) were below 1, indicating minimal non-carcinogenic risk. Furthermore, compost amendments were found to significantly reduce the non-carcinogenic risks associated with manganese, iron, copper, zinc, and selenium, compared to conventional chemical fertilizers. Notably, trace elements such as zinc and molybdenum exhibited a significant negative correlation with macro-minerals like magnesium and calcium in compost-amended crops. Based on these findings, we recommend the use of urban organic compost in cultivating vegetables on the Yamuna Floodplain, combined with groundwater irrigation, as a sustainable approach to producing high-quality crops with minimal health risks for human consumption.
An Efficient Prediction of Sustainable Concrete Properties of Hybrid Steel Fiber-Reinforced Self-Compacting Concrete Using the Novel JO-mSigmoid-ANN Model
Authors: B Ramkumar K , R Kannan Rajkumar P , J Baskara Sundararaj , M Jegan
Published: September 2024

Sustainable and renewable energy has gained global prominence because of the alarming depletion of natural resources and rise in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. With the increasing utilisation of supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) in concrete, it has become necessary to accurately predict the properties of concrete. In the construction field, the development of artificial intelligence-based prediction models has received remarkable attention. As a result, developing a model to predict the properties of SCC with regards to sustainability concerns is essential to save time, cost and energy. However, models for the prediction of fresh properties of concrete is scarce. To carry out this assessment in an automated manner, this research work proposes a novel jellyfish optimiser-based modified sigmoid-activated artificial neural network (JO-mSigmoid-ANN) model for the prediction through the regression analysis of the flow and mechanical properties of the 60 and 80 MPa SCC, in which 0.5% and 0.75% of hybrid steel fibres (hooked steel and micro steel) were added. The ANN results were compared with the experimental results obtained in this research as well as the results available in the existing literature. The proposed model effectively predicts the flow and mechanical properties of SCC blended with hybrid steel fibres in comparison with the experimental data set with R2 values of 0.9679 and 0.9931. Similarly, the R2 value obtained for four existing data sets are 0.9868, 0.9164, 0.9338 and 0.74619, respectively.
Research of quality during drilling of CFRP with ultrasonic-assisted machining
Authors: Gong Yuxuan , Zhu Baiwei , Zhuang Bailiang , Liu Erliang
Published: September 2024

In this study, an ultrasonic tool holder was designed and improved based on traditional tool holder designs to process the difficult-to-machine materials, such as carbon fiber composite materials. The design incorporated a variable cross-section ultrasonic horn and a core-clamped piezoelectric transducer with dimensions calculated by MATLAB R2021b based on the equivalent circuit method. Focusing on the longitudinal vibration ultrasonic knife handle, ANSYS 2022R1 was used to conduct finite element modal and harmonic response simulations to determine the resonant frequency of the tool holder. After the assembling of the tool holder, the experimental testing was conducted to determine the resonant frequency, resistance, effective electromechanical coupling coefficient, etc. The experimental results are compared with the simulation outcomes to validate the accuracy of the design. The amplitude of the ultrasonic tool holder was measured using a Doppler laser vibrometer, revealing a resonant frequency of 20260 Hz and a front-end amplitude of 10 μm, which aligned with the simulations. the ultrasonic tool holder was then connected to the spindle interface of the machine tool and installed on the ultrasonic combined machine tool. Power and cutting force testing were performed on a carbon fiber reinforced polymer/plastic (CFRP) composite plate using a force measuring instrument. The experimental results show that the amplitude of the ultrasonic knife increases linearly with ultrasonic power, and the force on the composite plate gradually decreases at constant speeds and feeds. When the reference powers were set at 40%, 60%, and 80%, the axial force exerted by the ultrasonic tool holder during drilling was lower compared to concentional tool holders,yielding favorable machining results. Moreover, results demonstrate that the ultrasonic-assisted processing enhances the cutting efficiency and quality of CFRP composite materials.
Distinct management units for the Critically Endangered angelshark (Squatina squatina) revealed in the Canary Islands
Authors: Meyers Eva KM , Faure Nadia , Jimenez-Alvarado David , Barker Joanna , Toledo-Padilla Hector , Tuya Fernando , Pike Charlotte , Mead Lucy R , Sealey Michael J , Caro Maria Belen , Jacoby David MP , Olivares Felipe Ravina , Bañeras Tomas , Guerra-Marrero Airam , Espino-Ruano Ana , Castro Jose Juan , Bousquet Caroline , Giovos Ioannis , Rödder Dennis , Manel Stéphanie , Deter Julie , Feldheim Kevin A
Published: September 2024

The angelshark, Squatina squatina, is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and remaining populations are highly fragmented throughout its historical distribution range. The Canary Islands archipelago in the North East Atlantic has been identified as a uniquely large stronghold for the species. In the present study, we compared the population genetic structure of S. squatina across different islands of the Canary Island archipelago using both microsatellite and single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers. Both markers revealed significant differentiation of angelsharks between islands in the archipelago, with three main genetic units at: (1) Tenerife, (2) Gran Canaria and (3) a third one that included La Graciosa, Lanzarote and Fuerteventura. Our results imply a connectivity barrier between some adjacent islands, most likely driven by abyssal depths, and varying geological history and oceanographic patterns. Therefore, we suggest that in the Canary Islands, S. squatina populations should be managed locally, with conservation and research priorities designed and implemented specifically for each of the three genetic units.
KI im Kontext von Kunst und Kunstunterricht
Authors: Spengler Stefan
Published: September 2024

Künstliche Intelligenz im Kontext des maschinellen Erstellens von algorithmusbasierten Bildern oder Texten begegnet uns inzwischen sowohl in spezifischen digitalen Systemen als auch integrativ in routinemäßigen Computeranwendungen und sozialen Netzwerken. Daraus erwachsen die Fragen, wie sich aktuelle Entwicklungen der KI-basierten Möglichkeiten der Bild-, Film- bzw. Animationserstellung auf den Schöpfungs- bzw. Kreativitätsbegriff auswirken und welche Schlussfolgerungen sich daraus für die Kunst und Fotografie sowie für die Bildung und insbesondere für den Kunstunterricht ergeben. Der Beitrag erörtert ebendiese Fragen und schließt mit einem von KI erstellten Fazit ab.
Künstliche Intelligenz und das Ende des Romans?
Authors: Watanabe Alice
Published: September 2024

Generative KI (genKI) revolutioniert derzeit die Möglichkeiten und Wege des professionellen Schreibens. In diesem Zusammenhang wird in vielen Disziplinen über die Zukunft des Schreibens nachgedacht und perspektivenreich diskutiert. Der Beitrag knüpft an diese Überlegungen an und geht der Frage nach, inwieweit die Kunstform des Romans im Sinne des Romanciers Milan Kundera mit genKI vereinbar ist oder nicht und welche qualitativen Unterschiede zwischen dem menschlichen und dem künstlichen Schreiben von Geschichten bestehen. Dazu werden zentrale Merkmale des Romanverständnisses Kunderas herausgearbeitet und im Hinblick auf genKI analysiert. Ziel des Beitrags ist es, die Grenzen von KI-generierten Texten aufzuzeigen und die medienpädagogische Bedeutung des Romans zu verdeutlichen. Darüber hinaus wird untersucht, inwiefern genKI auch Potentiale für die Entstehung von Romanen im Sinne Kunderas bietet.
Auf dem Weg zur Singularität
Authors: Autenrieth Daniel
Published: September 2024

Dieser Beitrag untersucht die Auswirkungen der Fortschritte in der Entwicklung von Künstlicher Intelligenz und insbesondere von Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) auf den Bildungskontext (Schule, Hochschule und außerschulische Bildung). Es wird beleuchtet, ob und inwieweit Large Language Models (LLMs) wie GPT-4 bereits erste Anzeichen einer solchen AGI zeigen und inwieweit KI menschliche Kreativität erreichen oder sogar übertreffen kann. Vor diesem Hintergrund wird insbesondere die Bedeutung von Bildung für die Förderung der aktiven Teilhabe an der Gestaltung einer von KI geprägten Zukunft hervorgehoben. Drei zentrale Bildungsziele werden definiert: die qualifikatorische Dimension, die die Entwicklung eines kritischen Bewusstseins für die Potenziale und Risiken von KI umfasst, die partizipative Dimension, die auf die Förderung kritisch-reflexiver Denkprozesse, Diskurskompetenz und ethischer Urteilsfähigkeit abzielt, sowie die transformative Dimension, die die Persönlichkeitsentwicklung und Selbstreflexion einbezieht.
Anhand des Projekts „DoingKI – Visionen und Strategien für eine KI-geprägte Zukunft“, das im Sommersemester 2023 an der Pädagogischen Hochschule Schwäbisch Gmünd durchgeführt wurde, werden praktische Ansätze zur Umsetzung dieser Ziele vorgestellt und Einblicke in die Ergebnisse einer empirischen Studie gegeben, die die Rolle von Reflexionsprozessen im Kontext transformativer Lern- und Bildungsprozesse analysiert. Der Beitrag argumentiert, dass Bildungsziele, die auf die Transformation von Selbst- und Weltverhältnissen ausgerichtet sind, zentral für die Gestaltung einer menschenfreundlichen Zukunft sind und fordert eine umfassende Auseinandersetzung mit den Implikationen der Entwicklung von AGI für Individuum und Gesellschaft.
Thomas Knaus im Gespräch mit Caroline Grabensteiner
Authors: Knaus Thomas , Grabensteiner Caroline
Published: September 2024

In Wien und in Frankfurt am Main fand dieses Gespräch statt – in den jeweiligen Heimatstädten und Wirkungsorten der beiden Medienpädagog*innen: Thomas Knaus lehrte als Gastprofessor an der Universität Wien, der akademischen Heimat seiner Gesprächspartnerin, und Caroline Grabensteiner erhielt im letzten Herbst einen Ruf an die Goethe-Universität in Frankfurt am Main, der Homebase ihres Gesprächspartners. Im Laufe des Gesprächs entdecken die Professorin und der Professor weitere Gemeinsamkeiten neben ihrer Begeisterung für medienpädagogische Themen in Lehre und Forschung. Möglicherweise ist es auch kein so weiter Schritt von qualitativ-rekonstruktiven Methoden, der konstruktivistischen Grounded Theory Methodology und der kreativen Mediengestaltung zur nachhaltigen Renovierung alter Häuser? Immerhin sind sich beide Gesprächspartner*innen darin einig, dass Medienbildung am besten im (Medien-)Handeln gelingt. In der verschriftlichten Unterhaltung besprechen sie Fragestellung, Methode sowie die Erkenntnisse der qualitativ-rekonstruktiven Studie zum Medienhandeln von Schüler*innen, für die Caroline Grabensteiner den Dissertationspreis der Sektion Medienpädagogik der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Erziehungswissenschaft – DGfE erhalten hat. Dabei finden die Erziehungswissenschaftlerin und der Erziehungswissenschaftler weitere Parallelen und Querverbindungen ihrer Arbeiten und Forschungsinteressen. In einer Sache unterscheiden sich die beiden Kolleg*innen aber: Während Caroline Grabensteiner gerade in ihr 22. Semester startet, befindet sich Thomas Knaus bereits in seinem 59. Semester. Das Schönste an dem herausfordernden Beruf, den die beiden Gesprächspartner*innen gewählt haben, ist, dass das Studieren bis zum Ruhestand andauern darf – was ein Privileg.
Frontal Cortical Activity during Care Farming Activities of Adults Using Electroencephalogram
Authors: Kim Seon-Ok , Wu YuTong , Lee Sang-Mi , Park Sin-Ae
Published: September 2024

The underlying therapeutic mechanisms of care farming activities have not been addressed using psychophysiological data. We aimed to understand frontal cortex activation in adults during care farming activities and to explore the psychophysiological effects. Using a randomized crossover study method, 20 adults (average age, 31.3 ± 9.8 years) participated in 10 care farming activities, (four gardening activities, three animal-mediated activities, and three off-farming activities) for 3 minutes each at an actual care farm. Electroencephalography (EEG) was performed during the activity, and emotional states were assessed using subjective emotional questionnaires after each activity. The EEG results revealed that alpha activity increased during gardening activities, such as organizing garden plots and planting plants. Spectral edge frequency 50, which predicts the degree of arousal, increased during interaction with dogs. The results of the subjective emotional questionnaire revealed that participants experienced positive emotions, such as vigor, comfort, naturalness, and relaxation, when participating in care farming activities compared with those while resting. Therefore, this study suggests that care farming activities can induce changes in the frontal cortex activation and positive emotional states in participants. This study elucidates the use of such activities to address mental health-related issues.
Nuclear DNA Markers to Distinguish between Salix caprea, Salix gracilistyla, and Their Interspecific Hybrids
Authors: Seo Han-Na , Lim Hyo-In , Lee Jei-Wan
Published: September 2024

The Salix genus of the Salicaceae family has advantages such as rapid initial growth, a high germination rate, and asexual reproduction; therefore, it is used as a short-rotation energy crop for biomass production. The National Institute of Forest Science created new interspecific hybrid cultivars with superior biomass production by artificially interbreeding Salix caprea L. and Salix gracilistyla Miq. Identifying these hybrids during the seedling stage is challenging because their separate reproductive and vegetative growth stages necessitate prolonged observation of their morphological characteristics. Consequently, a reliable identification method is required to overcome these limitations. This study aimed to develop nuclear DNA markers to distinguish between S. caprea, S. gracilistyla, and their interspecific hybrids. An evaluation of 35 nuclear simple-sequence repeat (nSSR) markers in the Salix genus revealed two markers that distinguish these parent species and their hybrids. A sequence analysis confirmed the presence of insertion-deletion (InDel) regions within the nSSR markers that differed between S. caprea and S. gracilistyla. To effectively identify hybrids, a primer set comprising the InDel region, which exhibited only interspecies differences and no intraspecies differences, was developed. The results of this study will facilitate the genetic resource management of interspecific hybrids between S. caprea and S. gracilistyla, thus allowing for early identification and improved management of hybrids.
Effects of Photoperiod Treatments on Stock Plants and Cutting Rooting of Winecups
Authors: Koski Ronda D. Conner , Klett James E. , Davis Colten V.A. , Burcham Daniel C.
Published: September 2024

Production of attractive and water-efficient plants native to the plains and prairies of central North America can sometimes be limited because of problems associated with successful rooting of vegetative cuttings. Winecups (Callirhoe involucrata) is an attractive native plant, valued for its long period of bloom, drought tolerance, and winterhardiness, but can be difficult to propagate from seeds and vegetative cuttings. Seed dormancy issues can result in unreliable germination and seedling variations, which reduces crop uniformity. Although propagation from rooted cuttings maintains crop uniformity, cuttings often fail to root or root poorly. Manipulating the growing conditions of stock plants to suppress reproductive growth may improve rooting success of vegetative cuttings. Based on research conducted earlier with other ornamental perennials and programmed photoperiods, winecups plants were grown under three programmed photoperiods to determine if a particular photoperiod could be used to suppress reproductive growth and promote vegetative growth. The study consisted of three experiments, all conducted in similar fashion but at different times during the year. Results indicate that plants grown under 10-hour and 8-hour photoperiods remained vegetative longer when compared with plants grown under 12-hour photoperiod. Vegetative cuttings harvested from plants grown under 8-hour photoperiod had higher percent rooting when compared with vegetative cuttings harvested from plants grown under 10-hour and 12-hour photoperiods. Based on the findings from this research, plant propagators may be able to increase production of winecups by growing stock plants under 8-hour photoperiod.