bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Visible light-mediated synthesis of α-alkoxy/hydroxy diarylacetaldehydes from terminal alkynes
Authors: Kumar Jaswant , Ahmed Ajaz , Kumar Sourav , Raheem Shabnam , Rizvi Masood Ahmad , Shah Bhahwal Ali
Published: May 2022

A visible light-mediated approach enabling the use of alcohols as nucleophiles in a one-step synthesis of α-alkoxy/hydroxy diarylacetaldehydes is reported.
Adsorption–desorption nano-aptasensors: fluorescent screening assays for ochratoxin A
Authors: Ranganathan Velu , Boisjoli Spencer , DeRosa Maria C.
Published: May 2022

A fluorescent-enhancement biosensor was developed for the mycotoxin ochratoxin A using aptamer-modified quantum dots noncovalently immobilized on carbon nanotubes.
Cobalt doped graphitic carbon nitride as an effective catalyst for peracetic acid to degrade sulfamethoxazole
Authors: Zhou Runyu , Zhou Gaofeng , Liu Yiqing , Wang Shixiang , Fu Yongsheng
Published: May 2022

An efficient advanced oxidation process (AOP) for sulfamethoxazole (SMX) removal: peracetic acid activated with cobalt doped graphitic carbon nitride.
Turn-on fluorescent sensors for Cu-rich amyloid β peptide aggregates
Authors: Huang Yiran , Sun Liang , Mirica Liviu M.
Published: May 2022

A series of Cu-activatable sensors is reported which can be used for the fluorescence imaging of Cu-rich amyloid-β peptide aggregates.
Two isostructural metal–organic frameworks with unique nickel clusters for C2H2/C2H6/C2H4 mixture separation
Authors: Wang Hao-Tian , Chen Qiang , Zhang Xin , Zhao Yan-Long , Xu Ming-Ming , Lin Rui-Biao , Huang Hongliang , Xie Lin-Hua , Li Jian-Rong
Published: May 2022

Two isostructural MOFs BUT-150 and BUT-151 with unique nickel clusters have been synthesized. The presence of open metal sites, large pi conjugation and appropriate pore size lead to efficient separation of the ternary C2H2/C2H6/C2H4 mixture.
Type-II Weyl fermion induced hydrogen adsorption in a two-dimensional electride [Ca2N]+·e−
Authors: He Zeqing , Meng Weizhen , Liu Ying , Zhang Xiaoming , Liu Guodong
Published: May 2022

Electrides, in which excess electrons are weakly bounded by the lattice interstitial position, are suitable for achieving topological states.
Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Hearing Loss Among Physicians in Jordan
Authors: Zaitoun Maha , Alqudah Safa , Nuseir Amjad
Published: May 2022

Purpose:

The aim of this study is to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice of physicians regarding hearing loss and its management among children in Jordan as an example of developing countries.

Method:

The cross-sectional survey composed of 18 questions was used to fulfill the aim of the study. The study population consisted of 335 physicians working in Jordan, with different specialties. The data were collected through site visits to a variety of health care facilities, as well as an online version of the survey to facilitate data collection and ensure participants' comfort.

Results:

The majority of physicians (30.7%) were general practitioners or family doctors, followed by pediatricians (12.8%). Most of the physicians (88.7%) had experience ranging from 1 to 10 years; the majority of physicians (60.3%) were younger than 30 years of age. Most of the physicians identified the importance of newborn hearing screening. Physicians showed limited knowledge about the management and intervention of infants with permanent hearing loss. Only 11.5% of respondents would refer a child with confirmed hearing loss to an audiologist, and 1.9% of them would refer to a speech therapist. Even though the majority of the physicians (69.0%) reported not receiving any training to deal with deaf and hard of hearing children, they felt confident in talking with parents about hearing loss and its management.

Conclusions:

This study revealed that physicians have limited knowledge regarding hearing loss in children as well as its management and intervention. Furthermore, this study illustrates the need for more ongoing medical education programs regarding hearing loss in children.
Study of the optimal active control of a trombone
Authors: Cavaillès Colas , Gazengel Bruno , Melon Manuel , Ayrault Christophe
Published: May 2022

In the brass instrument family, the sound can be modified or attenuated using a mute, which is usually inserted in the bell of the instrument. The objective of this paper is to study the principle and the technological feasibility of an active mute using loudspeakers placed in front or around the instrument bell. This mute must reduce the acoustic power emitted by the instrument while avoiding any impact on its playability. At this stage, an optimal control is considered and no real-time controller is implemented. Results show that an active control placed outside the trombone is theoretically feasible and can be efficient to reduce the acoustic power up to 2000 Hz by placing a ring of sources around the bell and a source in front of the trombone. The instrument input impedance is very slightly affected by the control. In accordance with numerical simulations, the experiment showed that placing a control speaker very close in front of the bell of the instrument modifies the pressure field of the instrument in such a way that it allows to obtain a power attenuation greater than the predicted one. The control is technologically achievable but requires a high power for the closest source.
Biochar Amendment in the Green Roof Substrate Improve Air Quality
Authors: Hu Yishu , Chen Haoming
Published: May 2022

In this paper, biochar was added to the green roof in order to study the effect of biochar amendment on improving the air quality. Simulation experiments showed that biochar treatments can reduce the concentration of CO2 by 7.3-28.8%, CO by 10.6-20.7%, SO2 by 9.8-21.6%, and NO2 by 2.1-11.5% in the micro-environment. Outdoor monitoring experiments showed that biochar can reduce 24.0-46.6% of PM2.5, 3.7-23.3% of PM1.0, and 17.3-38.4% of PM10. In addition, the high temperature is the main factor affecting the adsorption of small particles. Structural equation analysis showed that biochar mainly absorbed the particulate matters and harmful gases by reducing the surface temperature, increasing the humidity and promoting the plants growth.
Effects of Smoothed BRDF on Multi-angle Albedo Retrievals
Authors: Shuai Yanmin , Yang Jian , Duan Junbo , Tuerhanjiang Latipa , Wang Chongyang , Ma Yu
Published: May 2022

BRDF as the intrinsic feature of surface targets, is an important parameter required by albedo inversion from multi-angle observations, especially for satellite data suit with less directional measurements. Several studies have shown up to introduce BRDF priori knowledge into albedo retrievals at different scale by spatial or temporal smoothing. Thus, it is necessary to further understand what’s the influence induced by BRDF smoothing on albedo retrieval. This work investigated effects of smoothed BRDF on albedo magnitude through case studies over North America region using operational MCD43A&C BRDF products respectively smoothed in spatial and temporal scales. Our results show that BRDF of seasonal DBF samples smoothed from daily to monthly can lead to apparent relative difference to smoothed values of 10.97%, 9.42%, 8.24% and detectable absolute differences of 0.0172, 0.0095 and 0.0035 on related albedo respectively at Near Infrared, Short Wave and Visible broadband. The spatial smoothing of BRDF from 500m to 5600m results in relative differences to smoothed values of 17.38%, 14.38%, 27.23% and absolute differences of 0.0250, 0.0139, 0.0052 for the inversed albedo at above three broadbands.
Comprehensive Geochemical Evaluation of Land Quality in Strawberry Plant Area and Geoscience Suggestions in Chengde
Authors: Li Xia , Wei Xiaofeng , Wu Jin , Wan Liqin , Zhu Yutong , Ding Yuning
Published: May 2022

Strawberry Plant Area in Chengde is located in the Jingcheng Golden Tour Corridor. The main plantings in the area are strawberries, however in recent years, there have been problems such as insufficient supply of surrounding land and specialization of pesticide formulations. In this study, through testing and analysis of 30 nutrients and total metal elements, 7 efficient statuses of elements, pH and soil organic matter in surface soil samples, status of soil nutrients, soil environment and soil quality are comprehensive evaluated in the region. Based on the complete water quality analysis of irrigation water, the directional fertilization formula for the Quaternary accumulation area and the geological suggestion for the replacement of other high-quality soil for melioration are put forward to provide support for the sustainable development of Strawberry Plant Area.
Influence Factors on Removal of 2, 4-DCP by Sulfided Nanoscale Zerovalent Iron
Authors: Li Yajun , Zhang Yongxiang , Wang Jinhao
Published: May 2022

2, 4-Dichlorophenol (2, 4-DCP) has been extensively applied for chemical and pharmaceutical production, resulting in severe environmental pollution. In this paper, the sulfided nanometer zero-valent iron (S-nZVI) was synthesized and applied to remove 2, 4-DCP. The experimental tests displayed that when the sulfur iron mole ratio was 0.129, the elimination rate for 2.4-DCP was 91.9%, and the removal rate declined when the sulfur-to-iron proportion increased. As the initial concentration of 2, 4-DCP improved from 10 to 40mgL-1, the elimination rate of 2, 4-DCP declined from 92.6% to 65.3%. The elimination effect of S-nZVI on 2, 4-DCP increased with rising temperature. The removal rate of 2, 4-DCP varied under various pH conditions. The removal efficiencies were reduced from 75.5% to 48.8% when the initial pH ranged from 5 to 3. When pH is 11, the removal rate is 97.9%. Kinetics of degradation reaction of 2, 4-DCP under different conditions were conducted. The process for removing 2, 4-DCP was in accord with the pseudo-first-order kinetics model. The initial pH and sulfur mole ratio played a decisive role, which determined the removing rate of 2, 4-DCP. The findings can guide more efficient S-nZVI reactivity towards the target contaminants in water remediation.
Seasonal and Spatial Variation of Nitrogen Distribution for Leaves of Phyllostachys Pubescens and Its Response to Precipitation Exclusion
Authors: Cao Yong-hui , Zhou Ben-zhi , Wang Xiao-ming
Published: May 2022

The leaf nitrogen content in different canopy position for different ages of individuals for Phyllostachys pubescens was studied systematically with the season change in the experiment of precipitation exclusion in the bamboo field. The results showed that under different treatments (natural growth and precipitation exclusion treatment), the leaf nitrogen content of bamboo varied with seasons and in the decreasing order of spring, autumn, summer and winter. The change of leaf nitrogen content with bamboo age was also affected by the growing season. Precipitation exclusion treatment changed the seasonal and age difference of leaf nitrogen content in bamboo. In spring, the age differences in leaf nitrogen content of bamboo were significant (p<0.05). The leaf nitrogen content of bamboo varied with the height of the canopy, and the vertical distribution gradient was affected by the growing season. It increased with the increase of canopy height in summer and autumn, which also proved the applicability of the “light-nitrogen” hypothesis to the bamboo. Under two treatments, the leaf nitrogen content was linearly positively correlated with bamboo age. It changed with the change of soil water content in different growing seasons under treatments. Under precipitation exclusion, it was more sensitive to soil water content. This study confirmed the existence of the vertical distribution gradient of nitrogen in the leaves of P. pubescens and its variation with the growing season.
Analysis of Rainstorm Flood Induced Flash Flood in Wende River Basin
Authors: Ma Meihong , Zhou Yue , Bi Shiyao , He Bingshun , Li Qing , Li Ting
Published: May 2022

Due to the joint influence of climate and topography, flash flood disasters in the Wende River Basin of Jilin Province occurred repeatedly, causing serious casualties and huge economic losses; in July 2017, three floods with large rainfall intensity and profound influence occurred in a row in the main stream of Wende River. Based on official measured data of the Wende River basin, three typical rainfall processes (“July 13”, “July 20” and “, “August 3 “) are selected to discuss the rainfall characteristics. The triggered characteristics, induced factors and the disaster mechanism of the basin are preliminarily explored from the aspects of rainfall weather system, temporal and spatial distribution of rainstorm and flood, geographical factors to analyze the best countermeasures for flash flood prevention. The above will provide reference for the non-engineering measure project of flash flood prevention currently under construction.
Applicability Analysis of Different Runoff Schemes of the Gulang River Basin in Arid Region of Gansu Province, China
Authors: Wang Xiaojing , Zhao Lianguo , Zhang Jingnan , Zou Tianyuan , Zhang Nan
Published: May 2022

[Background] Mountain torrent disasters are one of the deadliest weather-related natural disasters in the world, often causing extremely serious economic and property losses and casualties; in recent years, due to heavy rainfall and complex geological and geomorphological conditions, mountain torrent disasters have occurred frequently in Gansu Province. An effective rainfall-runoff model is the key to prevent them. There are still many problems about how to establish suitable hydrological models in the arid basin of China. [Methods] Therefore, the Gulang River Basin in Gansu Province was selected as the research area to construct the HEC-HMS rainfall-runoff model; through the screening of different runoff methods, different runoff schemes were established to explore the optimal runoff algorithm for the arid basin; there are mainly SCS-CN method, initial and constant method, Green and Ampt method and exponential loss method in runoff generation; SCS unit hydrograph and Clark unit hydrograph methods are selected for slope transform, kinematic wave and lag algorithms for channel routing, totally 16 different runoff schemes. Three floods in the Gulang River Basin are selected to analyze the simulation effect of different runoff schemes in Gulang River Basin. [Results]1) If the Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency coefficient is selected as the evaluation index, the best simulation results are schemes 1 and 16 in the 20180826 flood, schemes 2 and 1 in the 20190626 flood and schemes 1 and 3 in the 20190911 flood. If the percentage of flood peak error is selected as the evaluation index, the best simulation results are schemes 16 and 1 in the 20180826 flood, schemes 9 and 6 in the 20190626 flood and schemes 13 and 4 in the 20190911 flood.If the percentage of runoff depth error is selected as indicator, the best simulation results are schemes 1 and 8 in the 20180826 flood, schemes 7 and 8 in the 20190626 flood and schemes 6 and 13 in the 20190911 flood. 2)The mean value of Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency coefficient obtained by the SCS-CN method for runoff generation, the SCS unit hydrograph for slope transform and the lag algorithm for channel routing are 0.8, 0.65 and 0.65, respectively; the mean absolute percentage errors of flood peak are 9.29%, 9.71% and 8.47%, respectively; the mean absolute percentage errors of runoff depth are 6.07%, 7.17% and 7.74%, respectively; the mean time difference of flood peak of SCS unit hydrograph for slope transform and lag algorithm for channel routing are 1.21 hour and 1.5 hour, respectively.[Conclusion]The most suitable scheme is the combination of the SCS-CN method for runoff generation, SCS unit hydrograph for slope transform, and lag algorithm for channel routing. The results can provide a certain reference for the prevention of flood disasters in the arid region of Gansu Province.
Flood Forecasting with Merged Satellite Precipitation and Hydrologic Model
Authors: Dong Ningpeng , Yang Mingxiang , Li Jianqiu , Hao Shaokui
Published: May 2022

Flood forecasting has been an effective way to reduce the potential flood hazards for a sustainable socio-economy. However, the lack of in-situ precipitation records has limited the applicability of flood forecasting with hydrologic models in poorly gauged basins. To address this problem, we aim to develop a flood forecasting framework based on the merged satellite precipitation and a hydrologic model. The framework was then applied to a small basin in the upper Lequan River Basin, Hainan, China for flood forecasting experiments. Results indicate that the combination of merged satellite precipitation and hydrologic model can generally well reproduce the past major flood events occurred in the basin. Our approaches are expected to provide new insights into the flood forecasting in small and poorly gauged basins and can be used to support the sustainable development of the socio-economy.
Life Cycle Assessment of Biochar Preparation of Chinese Traditional Medicine Residue by Low-temperature Pyrolysis
Authors: Deng Qian , Li Aijun , Wu Yangwei , Sun Lushi
Published: May 2022

This study aimed to evaluate the environmental impacts of the biochar production process through low-temperature pyrolysis of Chinese medicine residue via life cycle assessment (LCA). An LCA model consisting of biomass pretreatment, pyrolysis, separation and cooling was developed. The results indicated that the low-temperature pyrolysis process has the highest environmental impact on AP and GWP. The consumption and direct emission of pyrolysis process were the primary sources of environmental impact. In addition, by comparing to the traditional landfill process of Chinese medicine residue, it turns out that the low-temperature pyrolysis process has improved environmental protection performance.
Synthetic Effects and Economic Accounting of Low-temperature Pyrolysis Process of Typical Medical Waste based on Kinetics Analysis
Authors: Wu Yangwei , Li Aijun , Lei Su , Deng Qian , Yao Hong
Published: May 2022

The thermogravimetric (TG) analysis was adopted to study the pyrolysis characteristics of two typical medical wastes at different heating rates (10, 20, and 50 °C/min), and the kinetic parameters were analyzed by the Coats-Redfern method. Finally, the economic evaluation of the technology was carried out. The results showed that the two typical medical wastes both have only one weight loss peak. The syringes and bamboo sticks pyrolysis ranged from 264.80 to 554.07 °C and from 205.66 to 487.05 °C, respectively. With the increase of the heating rate, the initial, final and peak temperatures of the two raw materials shifted to higher values. The pyrolysis reaction mechanisms of the syringes and bamboo sticks were summarized as the nucleation growth model (A2.5) and the second-order model (F2). The total investment of medical waste pyrolysis project is 59 million yuan, and the annual net gain is 11.85 million yuan. The investment recovery period of the project takes five years.
Retraction Note: Techno-economic analysis and modelling of the feasibility of wind energy in Kuwait
Authors: Kaboli Seyed Amir , Nazmabadi Reyhaneh
Published: May 2022

The original Article was published on 06 January 2022.

The Editors have retracted this article because the authors have used data from a study without permission and without citing the source. The Editors received this information after the publication of the paper.

The authors have already responded to the correspondence from the editor/publisher about this retraction and confirm understanding our position.
Uric Acid and Cognitive Impairment in Patients with Acute Ischemic
Stroke: A Meta-Analysis
Authors: Yan Xue , Ren Zhong , Wen Quan , Jin Xi , Wang Ying , Zhang Weimin
Published: May 2022

Serum uric acid (UA) has been suggested to be correlated with outcomes after
stroke. We performed a meta-analysis to evaluate the association between serum
UA and post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) in patients with acute ischemic
stroke (AIS). Relevant observational studies were identified by search of
electronic databases including PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science. A
randomized-effect model incorporating the possible between-study heterogeneity
was used to pool the results. Overall, eleven studies with 4246 patients of AIS
were included, 2073 (48.8%) of them had PSCI. Pooled results showed that
patients with PSCI had significantly higher level of serum UA as compared to
those without PSCI (mean difference: 35.70 μmol/l,
95% confidence interval (CI): 8.36 to 63.01, p=0.01;
I2=95%). Subgroup analysis showed significant higher level of
serum UA in patients with PSCI evaluated during follow-up of 3 months to 3
years, but not for those evaluated during hospitalization (p for subgroup
difference=0.01). In addition, results of meta-analysis also showed that
compared to patients with lower serum UA, AIS patients with higher serum UA had
increased risk of PSCI (odds ratio: 1.33, 95% CI: 1.02 to 1.73,
p=0.04; I2=72%). Higher level of serum UA after disease
onset may be a marker of increased risk of PSCI in patients with AIS. Although
these findings need to be validated in large-scale prospective studies, the
possible mechanisms underlying the association between UA and PSCI should be
also investigated.
Influence of sublimation surface on mass transport in AlN crystal growth by physical vapor transport process
Authors: Fu Danyang , Wang Qikun , Zhang Gang , Li Zhe , Huang Jiali , Wang Jiang , Wu Liang
Published: May 2022

A series of numerical experiments were performed to investigate the influence of the sublimation surface on mass transport during the aluminum nitride (AlN) growth process. The distribution of Al partial pressure is strongly affected by the cover of the sublimation interface. The morphology of the growth interface can be controlled by the cover of the sublimation interface to achieve the growth of a specific crystal shape. Based on the same temperature field, the influence of sublimation interface cover on the growth rate indicates that temperature and temperature gradient are not the main limiting factors of the growth rate and further verifies that Al partial pressure gradient is the rate-limiting step. Under the growth system and specific growth conditions, a smooth growth interface can be obtained by using [0, 2/6] sublimation interface cover, so as to realize the rapid growth of high quality AlN crystals.
Reduced global fire activity due to human demography slows global warming by enhanced land carbon uptake
Authors: Wu Chao , Sitch Stephen , Huntingford Chris , Mercado Lina M. , Venevsky Sergey , Lasslop Gitta , Archibald Sally , Staver A. Carla
Published: May 2022

Significance

Fire is an increasing climate-driven threat to humans. While human demography can strongly modulate fire ignition rates or fire suppression, changes in CO
2
released by fires feed back to climate. We show that human demography could reduce future fire activity, which would in turn attenuate global warming via an enhanced land carbon sink. This mitigation is strongest in a low–CO
2
-emission world, corresponding to ∼5 to 10 y of global CO
2
emissions at today's levels by 2100. We highlight the strong role of human demography in global fire reduction and the potential for climate change mitigation by enhanced land carbon sequestration. We also note possible trade-offs, including loss of biodiversity in fire-dependent ecosystems and increases in severe fire events.
Microstructural evolution in CoCrFeNi and CoCrCuFeNi alloys processed by autogenous fusion welding
Authors: Verma A. , Thangaraju Shanmugasundaram
Published: May 2022

In this work, CoCrFeNi and CoCrCuFeNi multi-principal element alloys were welded using an autogenous gas tungsten arc welding process. Tensile testing, microhardness, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, electron back scattered diffraction techniques were used to study the mechanical properties, crystal structure and microstructures of the base metals (BMs) and welds. It was found that CoCrFeNi alloy was easily weldable while CoCrCuFeNi alloy produced transverse cracks. Only 13.5% decrease in ultimate tensile strength as compared to its BM was observed in CoCrFeNi alloy. Whereas poor tensile properties were observed in CoCrCuFeNi alloy due to Cu segregation and micro-cracks. Fractography analysis of the BM and weld specimen shows ductile failure in both the alloys.
Special cosmological models derived from the semiclassical Einstein equation on flat FLRW space-times
Authors: Gottschalk Hanno , Rothe Nicolai R , Siemssen Daniel
Published: May 2022

This article presents numerical work on a special case of the cosmological semiclassical Einstein equation (SCE). The SCE describes the interaction of relativistic quantum matter by the expected value of the renormalized stress–energy tensor of a quantum field with classical gravity. Here, we consider a free, massless scalar field with general (not necessarily conformal) coupling to curvature. In a cosmological scenario with flat spatial sections for special choices of the initial conditions, we observe a separation of the dynamics of the quantum degrees of freedom from the dynamics of the scale factor, which extends a classical result by Starobinski (1980Phys. Lett.B9199–102) to general coupling. For this new equation of fourth order governing the dynamics of the scale factor, we study numerical solutions. Typical solutions show a radiation-like Big Bang for the early Universe and de Sitter-like expansion for the late Universe. We discuss a specific solution to the cosmological horizon problem that can be produced by tuning parameters in the given equation. Although the model proposed here only contains massless matter, we give a preliminary comparison of the obtained cosmology with the ΛCDM standard model of cosmology and investigate parameter ranges in which the new models, to a certain extent, is capable of assimilating standard cosmology.
Negative thermal expansion of group III-Nitride monolayers
Authors: Sarikurt Sevil , Abdullahi Yusuf Zuntu , Durgun Engin , Ersan Fatih
Published: May 2022

Materials with a negative thermal expansion coefficient have diverse potential applications in electronic engineering. For instance, mixing two materials with negative and positive thermal expansion coefficients can avoid changing volume with temperature. In this study, we investigate the variation of linear thermal expansion coefficients (LTECs) of group III-Nitride monolayers (h-XN, where X = B, Al, Ga, In) with temperature using quasi-harmonic approximation. We also explore phonon thermal properties of h-XN monolayers, including specific heat, entropy, and free energy. These systems are revealed to exhibit considerably high negative LTEC values below the room temperature. To understand the origin of negative thermal expansion, we analyze the contribution of individual phonon branches to the LTEC, and it is found that the highest contribution is originating from ZA (out-of-plane acoustic) phonon mode. While h-BN and h-AlN monolayers exhibit negative LTEC values in the studied temperature range (0–800 K), unlike their bulk counterparts, the negative LTEC values converge to the zero for h-GaN and h-InN monolayers above room temperatures. These findings can be crucial in designing h-XN based nanoscale heat devices.
Multi-frequency ultrasound tomography based on modified matrix regularization method and wavelet fusion
Authors: Hou Wenxiu , Tan Chao , Bao Yong , Dong Feng
Published: May 2022

Ultrasound tomography (UT) is a promising sensing technique for industrial processes owing to its advantages non-invasive, low cost, implement flexibility. Traditional UT may lack the distinguishability to resolve the flow with the complicated distribution. We propose a method that exploits the multi-frequency information to improve spatial resolution and resolve different inclusions. Firstly, multi-frequency ultrasound attenuation measurement information was collected and demodulated for tomographic reconstruction. Secondly, a hybrid reconstruction algorithm is proposed consisting of the modified matrix regularization and wavelet fusion methods. The proposed method can effectively reduce the artefact for the inclusion and sharpen the boundary, and detailed information can be reserved from the wavelet fusion. Thirdly, a multi-frequency experimental UT system is established to accomplish the 32 channels ultrasound signal excitation and reception. The performance of the proposed method is validated through numerical simulation and experimental study. The results show that the reconstruction metrics have been improved compared with the linear back projection and Tikhonov algorithms. We believe the proposed method can be used in the flow process prediction and diagnosis for industrial applications.
Impact of ambient temperature and thermal resistance on device performance of junctionless silicon-nanotube FET
Authors: Kumar Nitish , Kaushik Pragyey Kumar , Gupta Ankur , Singh Pushpapraj
Published: May 2022

In this article, a comprehensive analysis of the impact of electrothermal characteristics in the junctionless silicon-nanotube (Si-NT) field-effect-transistors is carried out using the Sentaurus TCAD. The combined study of the variation in thermal contact resistance (1 × 10−9 to 1 × 10−8 m2 W K−1), ambient temperature (300–400 K), and spacer length (5–20 nm) are performed. Significant improvements are observed in carrier temperature by 14%, lattice temperature by 13.7%, and gate leakage current from 0.787 nA to 0.218 fA due to the change in the spacer length. Further, a change in the drain current of 25.6% for thermal resistance (R
th) and of 11.62% due to ambient temperature is observed. We also show that the junctionless device suffers significantly less from self-heating effects because of the electric field intensity, which is much lower in the channel region.
Free-streaming and coupled dark radiation isocurvature perturbations: constraints and application to the Hubble tension
Authors: Ghosh Subhajit , Kumar Soubhik , Tsai Yuhsin
Published: May 2022

Dark radiation (DR) appears as a new physics candidate in various scenarios beyond the Standard Model. While it is often assumed that perturbations in DR are adiabatic, they can easily have an isocurvature component if more than one field was present during inflation, and whose decay products did not all thermalize with each other.
By implementing the appropriate isocurvature initial conditions (IC), we derive the constraints on both uncorrelated and correlated DR density isocurvature perturbations from the full Planck 2018 data alone, and also in combination with other cosmological data sets.
Our study on free-streaming DR (FDR) updates and generalizes the existing bound on neutrino density isocurvature perturbations by including a varying number of relativistic degrees of freedom, and for coupled DR (CDR) isocurvature, we derive the first bound. We also show that for CDR
qualitatively new physical effects arise compared to FDR. One such effect is that for isocurvature IC, FDR gives rise to larger CMB anisotropies compared to CDR — contrary to the adiabatic case.
More generally, we find that a blue-tilt of DR isocurvature spectrum is preferred. This gives rise to a larger value of the Hubble constant H
0 compared to the standard ΛCDM+Δ N
eff cosmology with adiabatic spectra and relaxes the H
0 tension.
Spatio–temporal evolution dynamics of ultrashort Laguerre–Gauss vortices in a dispersive and nonlinear medium
Authors: Singh Shakti , Mishra Akhilesh Kumar
Published: May 2022

The additional degree of freedom as introduced by the orbital angular momentum (OAM) of light has revolutionized the various technological applications. Optical pulses with OAM have applications in the generation of twisted attosecond pulses, ultrafast spectroscopy, telecommunication, high harmonic generation and in many other areas of physics as well. In this paper, we present a numerical investigation of the propagation dynamics of ultrashort Laguerre Gauss (LG) vortices using nonlinear envelope equation in a dispersive and nonlinear medium. Asymmetric splitting of ultrashort LG vortices in time at its bright caustic are observed above a certain pulse power. The asymmetric splitting owes its origin to space- time focussing. We also observe that spatial evolution at pulse center (t = 0 in pulse frame) and temporal evolution at bright caustic of the ultrashort LG vortex are quite similar. In the spectral domain, oscillatory structures are formed and above a certain peak power, we observe the generation of new frequency components with more intense lower frequency components.
Fabrication of a durable anti-icing composite coating based on polyurethane elastomer and silica nanoparticles
Authors: Yu Mingming , Liang Lu , Zhang Yi , Wang Zhiyong
Published: May 2022

In order to design and fabricate hydrophobic, durable and anti-icing coating for aircraft, a polyurethane elastomer matrix was hydrophobically modified and incorporated with fluorinated SiO2 nanoparticles to prepare a micro/nanostructured coating. The micro/nanostructured coating with low surface energy displayed significantly improved mechanical properties and hydrophobicity, which exhibited the water contact angle of 162° as well as the sliding angle of 2°. The coating is highly stretchable, which could sustain large-scale extension, and exhibits tensile strength and elongation at break up to 16.22 MPa and 385%, respectively. Furthermore, the coating exhibited a remarkably weak ice adhesion strength of 14.33 kPa, on which the accumulative ice is prone to fall off under natural wind and its own weight. The coating sustained long-term superhydrophobic properties and anti-icing performance even after 1000 abrasion cycles. The proposed method for the production of scalable superhydrophobic coating is cost-effective and can be applied in aerospace and automotive anti-icing systems.
Nonconscious information can be identified as task-relevant but not prioritized in working memory
Authors: Pedale Tiziana , Fontan Aurelie , Grill Filip , Bergström Fredrik , Eriksson Johan
Published: May 2022

Two critical features of working memory are the identification and appropriate use of task-relevant information while avoiding distraction. Here, in 3 experiments, we explored if these features can be achieved also for nonconscious stimuli. Participants performed a delayed match-to-sample task in which task relevance of 2 competing stimuli was indicated by a cue, and continuous flash suppression was used to manipulate the conscious/nonconscious visual experience. Experiment 1 revealed better-than-chance performance with nonconscious stimuli, demonstrating goal-directed use of nonconscious task-relevant information. Experiment 2 demonstrated that the cue that defined task relevance must be conscious to allow such goal-directed use. In Experiment 3, multi-voxel pattern analyses of brain activity revealed that only the target was prioritized and maintained during conscious trials. Conversely, during nonconscious trials, both target and distractor were maintained. However, decoding of task relevance during the probe/test phase demonstrated identification of both target and distractor information. These results show that identification of task-relevant information can operate also on nonconscious material. However, they do not support the prioritization of nonconscious task-relevant information, thus suggesting a mismatch in the attentional mechanisms involved during conscious and nonconscious working memory.
Brain and behavioral contributions to individual choices in response to affective–cognitive persuasion
Authors: Di Plinio Simone , Aquino Antonio , Haddock Geoffrey , Alparone Francesca R , Ebisch Sjoerd J H
Published: May 2022

Affective and cognitive information conveyed by persuasive stimuli is evaluated and integrated by individuals according to their behavioral predispositions. However, the neurocognitive structure that supports persuasion based on either affective or cognitive content is poorly understood. Here, we examine the neural and behavioral processes supporting choices based on affective and cognitive persuasion by integrating 4 information processing features: intrinsic brain connectivity, stimulus-evoked brain activity, intrinsic affective–cognitive orientation, and explicit target evaluations. We found that the intrinsic cross-network connections of a multimodal fronto-parietal network are associated with individual affective–cognitive orientation. Moreover, using a cross-validated classifier, we found that individuals’ intrinsic brain-behavioral dimensions, such as affective–cognitive orientation and intrinsic brain connectivity, can predict individual choices between affective and cognitive targets. Our findings show that affective- and cognitive-based choices rely on multiple sources, including behavioral orientation, stimulus evaluation, and intrinsic functional brain architecture.
Influence of magnetic cycles on stellar prominences and their mass loss rates
Authors: Faller Sarah J , Jardine Moira M
Published: May 2022

Observations of rapidly-rotating cool stars often show coronal “slingshot” prominences that remove mass and angular momentum when they are ejected. The derived masses of these prominences show a scatter of some two orders of magnitude. In order to investigate if this scatter could be intrinsic, we use a full magnetic cycle of solar magnetograms to model the coronal structure and prominence distribution in a young Sun, where we scale the field strength in the magnetograms with angular velocity according to B∝Ω−1.32. We reproduce both the observed prominence masses and their scatter. We show that both the field strength and the field geometry contribute to the prominence masses that can be supported and to the rate at which they are ejected. Predicted prominence masses follow the magnetic cycle, but with half the period, peaking both at cycle maximum and at cycle minimum. We show that mass loss rates in prominences are less than those predicted for the stellar wind. We also investigate the role of small-scale field that may be unresolved in typical stellar magnetograms. This provides only a small reduction in the predicted total prominence mass, principally by reducing the number of large magnetic loops that can support slingshot prominences. We conclude that the observed scatter in prominence masses can be explained by underlying magnetic cycles.
When the trusts come back to San Marino
Authors: Mazzola Giada , Cone Geoffrey
Published: May 2022

San Marino i s the world’s oldest and smallest republic with a law system based on the ius commune directly deriving from the Roman law. San Marino has ratified the Hague Convention on the Law applicable to Trust and on their Recognition of 1 July 1985 and with the Trust Act of 2010 the internal trust law has been totally revised. Although the use of the San Marino trust has so far been limited, the innovative features of the legislation make the San Marino trust very competitive in the international context.
The MMAAS Project: An Observational Human Study Investigating the Effect of Anabolic Androgenic Steroid Use on Gene Expression and the Molecular Mechanism of Muscle Memory
Authors: Lima Giscard , Kolliari-Turner Alexander , Wang Guan , Ho Patrick , Meehan Lyra , Roeszler Kelly , Seto Jane , Malinsky Fernanda Rossell , Karanikolou Antonia , Eichhorn Gregor , Tanisawa Kumpei , Ospina-Betancurt Jonathan , Hamilton Blair , Kumi Paulette Y.O. , Shurlock Jonathan , Skiadas Vasileios , Twycross-Lewis Richard , Kilduff Liam , Guppy Fergus M. , North Kathryn , Pitsiladis Yannis , Fossati Chiara , Pigozzi Fabio , Borrione Paolo
Published: May 2022

Objective:

It remains unknown whether myonuclei remain elevated post anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) usage in humans. Limited data exist on AAS-induced changes in gene expression.

Design:

Cross-sectional/longitudinal.

Setting:

University.

Participants:

Fifty-six men aged 20 to 42 years.

Independent Variables:

Non–resistance-trained (C) or resistance-trained (RT), RT currently using AAS (RT-AS), of which if AAS usage ceased for ≥18 weeks resampled as Returning Participants (RP) or RT previously using AAS (PREV).

Main Outcome Measures:

Myonuclei per fiber and cross-sectional area (CSA) of trapezius muscle fibers.

Results:

There were no significant differences between C (n = 5), RT (n = 15), RT-AS (n = 17), and PREV (n = 6) for myonuclei per fiber. Three of 5 returning participants (RP1-3) were biopsied twice. Before visit 1, RP1 ceased AAS usage 34 weeks before, RP2 and RP3 ceased AAS usage ≤2 weeks before, and all had 28 weeks between visits. Fiber CSA decreased for RP1 and RP2 between visits (7566 vs 6629 μm2; 7854 vs 5677 μm2) while myonuclei per fiber remained similar (3.5 vs 3.4; 2.5 vs 2.6). Respectively, these values increased for RP3 between visits (7167 vs 7889 μm2; 2.6 vs 3.3).

Conclusions:

This cohort of past AAS users did not have elevated myonuclei per fiber values, unlike previous research, but reported AAS usage was much lower. Training and AAS usage history also varied widely among participants. Comparable myonuclei per fiber numbers despite decrements in fiber CSA postexposure adheres with the muscle memory mechanism, but there is variation in usage relative to sampling date and low numbers of returning participants.
Co-isolates of Acinetobacter baumannii complex in polymicrobial infections: a meta-analysis
Authors: Karakonstantis Stamatis , Ioannou Petros , Kritsotakis Evangelos I.
Published: May 2022

Background.

Acinetobacter baumannii

complex (ABC) infections are commonly polymicrobial. Examining which pathogens are most commonly co-isolated with ABC is an important first step for assessing disease potential due to pathogen-pathogen interactions.

Methods. Based on a systematic search of PubMed, Scopus and CENTRAL, we estimated percent proportions of co-isolates in polymicrobial pulmonary and bloodstream ABC infections using random-effects meta-analysis.

Results. Twenty-eight eligible studies were analysed reporting 575 polymicrobial bloodstream and 290 polymicrobial pulmonary infections. Common co-isolates in pulmonary infections were

P. aeruginosa

(36%, 95% CI 24–49%, I2 71%), S. aureus (28%, 95% CI 19–38%, I2 44%) and

Klebsiella

spp. (11%, 95% CI 6–20 %, I2 56%), while the prevalence of other co-pathogens did not exceed 5%. Most common co-isolates in bloodstream infections were coagulase-negative Staphylococci (21%, 95% CI 12–34 %, I2 84%), Enterococci (15%, 95% CI 9–26%, I2 73%),

P. aeruginosa

(12%, 95% CI 6–22%, I2 74%),

Klebsiella

spp. (10%, 95% CI 6–16%, I2 42%),

Enterobacter

spp. (10%, 95% CI 6–16 %, I2 38%) and S. aureus (8%, 95% CI 4–15%, I2 58%).

Conclusion. The common co-isolation of certain pathogens (especially

P. aeruginosa

) with ABC suggests potential beneficial between-pathogen interactions, which may have treatment implications for polymicrobial infections and requires further study.
Structural variants in the barley gene pool: precision and sensitivity to detect them using short-read sequencing and their association with gene expression and phenotypic variation
Authors: Weisweiler Marius , Arlt Christopher , Wu Po-Ya , Van Inghelandt Delphine , Hartwig Thomas , Stich Benjamin
Published: May 2022

In human genetics, several studies have shown that phenotypic variation is more likely to be caused by structural variants (SV) than by single nucleotide variants (SNV). However, accurate while cost-efficient discovery of SV in complex genomes remains challenging. The objectives of our study were to (i) facilitate SV discovery studies by benchmarking SV callers and their combinations with respect to their sensitivity and precision to detect SV in the barley genome, (ii) characterize the occurrence and distribution of SV clusters in the genomes of 23 barley inbreds that are the parents of a unique resource for mapping quantitative traits, the double round robin population, (iii) quantify the association of SV clusters with transcript abundance, and (iv) evaluate the use of SV clusters for the prediction of phenotypic traits. In our computer simulations based on a sequencing coverage of 25x, a sensitivity>70% and precision>95% was observed for all combinations of SV types and SV length categories if the best combination of SV callers was used. We observed a significant (P<0.05) association of gene-associated SV clusters with global gene-specific gene expression. Furthermore, about 9% of all SV clusters that were within 5kb of a gene were significantly (P<0.05) associated with the gene expression of the corresponding gene. The prediction ability of SV clusters was higher compared to that of single nucleotide polymorphisms from an array across the seven studied phenotypic traits. These findings suggest the usefulness of exploiting SV information when fine mapping and cloning the causal genes underlying quantitative traits as well as the high potential of using SV clusters for the prediction of phenotypes in diverse germplasm sets.
Structure of C. elegans TMC-1 complex illuminates auditory mechanosensory transduction
Authors: Jeong Hanbin , Clark Sarah , Goehring April , Dehghani-Ghahnaviyeh Sepehr , Rasouli Ali , Tajkhorshid Emad , Gouaux Eric
Published: May 2022

The initial step in the sensory transduction pathway underpinning hearing and balance in mammals involves the conversion of force into the gating of a mechanosensory transduction (MT) channel. Despite the profound socioeconomic impacts of hearing disorders and the fundamental biological significance of understanding MT, the composition, structure and mechanism of the MT complex has remained elusive. Here we report the single particle cryo-EM structure of the native MT TMC-1 complex isolated from C. elegans. The 2-fold symmetric complex is composed of 2 copies each of the pore-forming TMC-1 subunit, the calcium-binding protein CALM-1 and the transmembrane inner ear protein TMIE. CALM-1 makes extensive contacts with the cytoplasmic face of the TMC-1 subunits while the single-pass TMIE subunits reside on the periphery of the complex, poised like the handles of an accordion. A subset of particles in addition harbors a single arrestin-like protein, ARRD-6, bound to a CALM-1 domain. Single- particle reconstructions and molecular dynamics simulations show how the MT complex deforms the membrane bilayer and suggest crucial roles for lipid-protein interactions in the mechanism by which mechanical force is transduced to ion channel gating.
MorphoFeatures: unsupervised exploration of cell types, tissues and organs in volume electron microscopy
Authors: Zinchenko Valentyna , Hugger Johannes , Uhlmann Virginie , Arendt Detlev , Kreshuk Anna
Published: May 2022

Electron microscopy (EM) provides a uniquely detailed view of cellular morphology, including organelles and fine subcellular ultrastructure. While the acquisition and (semi-)automatic segmentation of multicellular EM volumes is now becoming routine, large-scale analysis remains severely limited by the lack of generally applicable pipelines for automatic extraction of comprehensive morphological descriptors. Here, we present a novel unsupervised method for learning cellular morphology features directly from 3D EM data: a convolutional neural network delivers a representation of cells by shape and ultrastructure. Applied to the full volume of an entire three-segmented worm of the annelid Platynereis dumerilii, it yields a visually consistent grouping of cells supported by specific gene expression profiles. Integration of features across spatial neighbours can retrieve tissues and organs, revealing, for example, a detailed organization of the animal foregut. We envision that the unbiased nature of the proposed morphological descriptors will enable rapid exploration of very different biological questions in large EM volumes, greatly increasing the impact of these invaluable, but costly resources.