bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Electron acceleration in supernova remnants
Authors: Bohdan Artem
Published: November 2022

Supernova remnants (SNRs) are believed to produce the majority of galactic cosmic rays (CRs). SNRs harbor non-relativistic collisionless shocks responsible for the acceleration of CRs via diffusive shock acceleration (DSA), in which particles gain their energy via repeated interactions with the shock front. Since the DSA theory involves pre-existing mildly energetic particles, a means of pre-acceleration is required, especially for electrons. Electron injection remains one of the most troublesome and still unresolved issues and our physical understanding of it is essential to fully comprehend the physics of SNRs. To study any electron-scale phenomena responsible for pre-acceleration, we require a method capable of resolving these small kinetic scales and particle-in-cell simulations that fulfill this criterion. Here, I report on the latest achievements made by utilizing kinetic simulations of non-relativistic high Mach number shocks. I discuss how the physics of SNR shocks depends on the shock parameters (e.g. the shock obliquity, Mach number, the ion-to-electron mass ratio) as well as the processes responsible for the electron heating and acceleration.
An effective solution to optimize the saddle-shape warpage in 3D IC applications by patterning laser treatment
Authors: Fan Dongyu , Xia Zhiliang , Xie Wei , Zhang Jing , Yang Yuancheng , Zhang Kun , Liu Lei , Yan Yuan , Zhou Wenxi , Huo Zongliang
Published: November 2022

The asymmetric saddle-shape warpage is one of the hardest limitations on the development of three-dimensional integrated circuits (3D ICs) as the vertical integration increases. To improve the product yield, an effective method for saddle-shape warpage reduction in 3D IC production by backside patterning laser annealing treatment with a multilayer structure is investigated in this work. The reduction of saddle-shaped warpage by patterning laser treatment is the first time in 3D NAND array wafer application and through simulations and experiments, the laser annealing pattern is determined. In addition, the materials of the multilayer structure are selected as amorphous Al2O3 and TiN according to experiments and theoretical analysis. As a result, a conformal 47.8 µm optimization of the saddle-shape warpage is successfully reached in a control wafer test by patterning laser annealing treatment.
A first principles study of structural, electronic, elastic, thermal and optical properties of SiZr

O3

and GeZr

O3
Authors: Ajay G , Alam Aftab , Sirajuddeen M Mohamed Sheik
Published: November 2022

In the present work, the full-potential linearized augmented plane wave method is implemented to study the structural, electronic, elastic, thermal, and optical properties of semiconductor-based cubic perovskite compounds of SiZr

O

3

and GeZr

O

3

. The magnetic phase stability calculations are performed to identify the most stable magnetic state. SiZr

O

3

and GeZr

O

3

are predicted to be stable in anti-ferromagnetic phase. The ground state properties such as lattice parameter, elastic constants, bulk modulus, and pressure derivative are calculated. From the band structure calculations, these compounds exhibit narrow band gaps, which are semiconducting in nature. From the values of bulk to shear modulus B/G ratio (Pugh’s ratio), the compounds are found to be ductile. The values of Poisson’s ratio and Zener’s anisotropic index suggest that these compounds show covalent bonding and weak isotropy. A larger Debye temperature implies that compounds have strong interatomic bonding, greater hardness, high melting temperature, and higher mechanical wave velocity. The optical properties such as optical conductivity, reflectivity, and absorption coefficient suggest that SiZr

O

3

could be a more suitable compound for solar cell applications.
Emergent thermophoretic behavior in chemical reaction systems
Authors: Liang (梁师翎) Shiling , Maria Busiello Daniel , De Los Rios Paolo
Published: November 2022

Exposing a solution to a temperature gradient can lead to the accumulation of particles on either the cold or warm side. This phenomenon is known as thermophoresis, and its microscopic origin is still debated. Here, we show that thermophoresis can be observed in any system having internal states with different transport properties, and temperature-modulated rates of transitions between the states. These internal degrees of freedom might be configurational, chemical or velocity states. We also derive an expression for the Soret coefficient, which decides whether particles accumulate on the cold or warm side. Our framework can be applied to any chemical reaction system diffusing in a temperature gradient. It also captures the possibility to observe a sign inversion of the Soret coefficient as the competition between chemical and velocity states. We establish thermophoresis as a genuine non-equilibrium effect, originating from internal microscopic currents consistent with the necessity of transporting heat from warm to cold regions.
Emittance self-compensation in blow-out mode
Authors: Shamuilov Georgii , Opanasenko Anatoliy , Pepitone Kévin , Tibai Zoltán , Goryashko Vitaliy
Published: November 2022

We report an unusual regime of emittance self-compensation in an electron bunch generated in the blow-out mode by a radio-frequency photocathode gun. This regime is observed for a strong space-charge field on the cathode reaching around 30%–35% of the accelerating field. Simulations clearly show an initial growth and a subsequent self-compensation of projected emittance in a divergent electron bunch originating from the effects of: (a) strong space-charge forces of mirror charges on the cathode, (b) an energy chirp in the bunch and (c) substantial re-shaping of the electron bunch. Furthermore, we show analytically and numerically how a complex interplay between these effects leads to emittance self-compensation at the gun exit—the effect that is normally observed only in the presence of focusing fields.
Mesoscopic simulation of MHD mixed convection of non-newtonian ferrofluids with a non-uniformly heated plate in an enclosure
Authors: Hossain Amzad , Nag Preetom , Molla Md Mamun
Published: November 2022

Mixed convective study has been popular in recent years because of its large applications, including the cooling of electronic devices, furnaces, lubrication technologies, high-performance building insulation, multi-shield structures used in nuclear reactors, food processing, glass manufacturing, solar power collectors, drying technologies, chemical processing equipment, and others involve mixed convection in a lid-driven cavity flow problems. Graphics process unit (GPU) based multiple-relaxation-time(MRT) lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) has been employed for investigating the numerical simulation of magnetohydrodynamic(MHD) mixed convection with a non-uniformly heated plate at the mid of an enclosure. The physical model consists of a two-dimensional square enclosure with the top wall moving at a constant speed. Thermally adiabatic conditions are imposed on the top and bottom walls, while the two vertical walls are cold. In the center of the enclosure, a plate has been placed that is non-uniformly heated. A magnetic field is applied with different angles of inclination. Numerical simulations were performed for various influential parameters such as Richardson number (Ri), Hartmann number (Ha), power-law index (n), ferroparticles volume fraction (ϕ), magnetic field angle (γ) to study the flow phenomena in terms of the velocity and temperature distributions as well as streamlines and isotherms, respectively. The present study also investigates entropy generation due to the convective heat transfer flow for industrial purposes. The results reveal that as the Richardson number rises, the average Nusselt number rises, and as the Hartmann number rises, the average Nusselt number reduces. Furthermore, it is found that the average Nusselt number is inversely proportional to the power-law index. Total entropy generation increases with the increase of the power-law index and Richardson number. Entropy due to fluid friction, heat transfer, and total entropy shows a maximum at γ = 90°. Previously, MHD natural convection of the ferrofluid has been studied in a square cavity with a non-uniformly heated plate for the Newtonian fluid using the finite volume method. The aim of the present investigation is to study the MHD mixed convection with non-Newtonian ferrofluid using the GPU-based lattice Boltzmann method, which provides quicker and more robust results.
Effect of interphase thickness and fiber diameter on elastic properties of composites using multi-scale modelling
Authors: Udatha Pavani , Sekhar A S , Velmurugan R
Published: November 2022

Composite materials are the largely used engineering materials in aerospace and automobile industries due to their high specific strength and high specific stiffness. The composites’ properties are essential for the design and development of the machine parts. They vary with fiber content, fiber properties, matrix properties, and type of manufacturing process. More experiments are required to obtain the properties and the best combination of fibers and matrices. However, several analytical methods are available to find the properties of the composite to avoid the number of experiments. In the present study, the properties of CFRP, GFRP, Amino-functional multi-walled carbon nano-tubes (CNT) added CFRP, CNT added GFRP composites have been calculated using the properties of fiber, interphase between fiber and matrix, matrix, and CNT. The properties of CNT added epoxy are obtained using the Halpin-Tsai equation in the first stage. In the second stage, the properties of interphase are calculated using the properties of CNT added epoxy and fiber properties. In the third stage, the properties of CFRP and GFRP are calculated using three phase constitutive model by considering the properties of fiber, interphase, and CNT added matrix. The properties are calculated at fiber diameters: 8 μm and 14 μm while varying the fiber volume fraction (%): 0 to 70%, interphase thickness: 50 nm to 500 nm, the weight fraction of CNT (%) added in epoxy: 0 to 5%. The addition of CNT has improved the elastic properties of CFRP and GFRP. The elastic properties of the composites are improved significantly with an increase in the interphase thickness.
Calorimetric studies of crystallization in Se76Te20Sn2Ge2 glass under heating/cooling mode
Authors: Pal Shiv Kumar , Sharma Dipti , Mehta Neeraj
Published: November 2022

In the liquid-solid phase transition analysis, it was observed that two phenomena namely crystallization and glass transition take place, whenever we cool a liquid or melt a solid. In the present endeavor, we have tried to analyze the comparative study of crystallization kinetics using comprehensive iso-conversional methods in both heating/cooling modes of quaternary Se76Te20Sn2Ge2 glassy material synthesized by a very simple and famous melt quenching technique. Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) was employed for this analysis. The effect of heating, as well as cooling rates on the crystallization kinetics, was investigated. Various kinetic parameters like activation energy using the iso-conversional approach, the reaction rate constant, the Avrami index, Meyer-Neldel energy, etc have been calculated for both heating and cooling modes.
Interplay between beam-driven chirping modes and plasma confinement transitions in spherical tokamak ST40
Authors: Bland J. , Varje J. , Gorelenkov N.N. , Gryaznevich M.P. , Sharapov S.E. , Wood J. , The ST40 Team
Published: November 2022

Experiments on the high field spherical tokamak ST40 have led to the recent observation of interplay between beam-driven modes of sweeping frequency (chirping modes) and transitions to the enhanced global confinement regime (H-mode) and back to the low confinement regime (L-mode). The H-modes of plasma confinement are identified from decreased intensity of Dα
signal and from clear distinctions in the edge gradients of the visible plasma boundary (observed as a sharp plasma edge in camera images). The beam-driven chirping modes, identified as ideal magnetohydrodynamics beta-induced Alfvén acoustic eigenmodes modes, are observed in Mirnov coil signals, interferometry, and soft x-ray diagnostics. A moderate amplitude ‘primer’ chirping mode usually precedes an H–L transition. This is followed by a ‘dominant’ chirping mode with higher amplitude during the L-mode. The L–H transition back to the improved confinement occurs on a longer time scale of tens of ms, consistent with the slowing down time scale of fast beam ions. A dramatic decrease in toroidal plasma rotation is systematically observed associated with chirping modes sweeping down to zero frequency. Resonance maps built for the beam-driven chirping modes with the ASCOT (accelerated simulation of charged particle orbits in torodoial devices) code show that the resonant beam ions have orbits near the trapped-passing boundary. The ASCOT modelling assesses how losses of the resonant fast ions caused by the chirping modes with high enough amplitude modify the torque, potentially affecting the plasma rotation.
Generalization error rates in kernel regression: the crossover from the noiseless to noisy regime*
Authors: Cui Hugo , Loureiro Bruno , Krzakala Florent , Zdeborová Lenka
Published: November 2022

In this manuscript we consider kernel ridge regression (KRR) under the Gaussian design. Exponents for the decay of the excess generalization error of KRR have been reported in various works under the assumption of power-law decay of eigenvalues of the features co-variance. These decays were, however, provided for sizeably different setups, namely in the noiseless case with constant regularization and in the noisy optimally regularized case. Intermediary settings have been left substantially uncharted. In this work, we unify and extend this line of work, providing characterization of all regimes and excess error decay rates that can be observed in terms of the interplay of noise and regularization. In particular, we show the existence of a transition in the noisy setting between the noiseless exponents to its noisy values as the sample complexity is increased. Finally, we illustrate how this crossover can also be observed on real data sets.
Asymptotics of representation learning in finite Bayesian neural networks*
Authors: Zavatone-Veth Jacob A , Canatar Abdulkadir , Ruben Benjamin S , Pehlevan Cengiz
Published: November 2022

Recent works have suggested that finite Bayesian neural networks may sometimes outperform their infinite cousins because finite networks can flexibly adapt their internal representations. However, our theoretical understanding of how the learned hidden layer representations of finite networks differ from the fixed representations of infinite networks remains incomplete. Perturbative finite-width corrections to the network prior and posterior have been studied, but the asymptotics of learned features have not been fully characterized. Here, we argue that the leading finite-width corrections to the average feature kernels for any Bayesian network with linear readout and Gaussian likelihood have a largely universal form. We illustrate this explicitly for three tractable network architectures: deep linear fully-connected and convolutional networks, and networks with a single nonlinear hidden layer. Our results begin to elucidate how task-relevant learning signals shape the hidden layer representations of wide Bayesian neural networks.
Analytical results for the distribution of first-passage times of random walks on random regular graphs
Authors: Tishby Ido , Biham Ofer , Katzav Eytan
Published: November 2022

We present analytical results for the distribution of first-passage (FP) times of random walks (RWs) on random regular graphs that consist of N nodes of degree c ⩾ 3. Starting from a random initial node at time t = 0, at each time step t ⩾ 1 an RW hops into a random neighbor of its previous node. In some of the time steps the RW may hop into a yet-unvisited node while in other time steps it may revisit a node that has already been visited before. We calculate the distribution P(T
FP = t) of first-passage times from a random initial node i to a random target node j, where j ≠ i. We distinguish between FP trajectories whose backbone follows the shortest path (SPATH) from the initial node i to the target node j and FP trajectories whose backbone does not follow the shortest path (¬SPATH). More precisely, the SPATH trajectories from the initial node i to the target node j are defined as trajectories in which the subnetwork that consists of the nodes and edges along the trajectory is a tree network. Moreover, the shortest path between i and j on this subnetwork is the same as in the whole network. The SPATH scenario is probable mainly when the length ℓ

ij
of the shortest path between the initial node i and the target node j is small. The analytical results are found to be in very good agreement with the results obtained from computer simulations.
Trichoid sensilla on honey bee proboscises as inspiration for micro-viscometers
Authors: Liao Caiying , Amador Guillermo J , Liu Xuhan , Wu Zhigang , Wu Jianing
Published: November 2022

Sensing physical properties of liquids, such as viscosity, is of great significance for both biological organisms and industrial applications. For terrestrial organisms feeding on liquids, such as honey bees that forage nectar, sensing viscosity may help to determine the quality of food sources. Previous experiments showed that honey bees exhibit strong preferences for less viscous nectar; however, the physical mechanism underlying how they perceive viscosity remains unexplored. In this study, we propose that the western honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) is capable of distinguishing viscosity using the slender trichoid sensilla emerging from a ball and socket-like joint on the proboscis. Observations of the trichoid sensilla using transmission electron microscopy reveal physical characteristics that are typical of mechanosensory structures. Additionally, we found that bees actively alter the rate at which they feed based on the liquid’s viscosity and not its sugar content, hinting at their sensing of viscosity. Through mathematical modeling, we found that the sensitivity of the biological viscometer was determined by its length, and the optimal sensitivity for a western honey bee occurs when the tongue interacts with nectar with a viscosity of 4.2 mPa·s, coinciding with the viscosities typically found in the wild. Our findings broaden insights into how honey bees adapt to varying-viscosity nectar from the perspective of mechanical sensing, and how the bee-flower partnership may be based around the optimal nectar viscosity for feeding. By understanding how bees may sense viscosity at the micrometer scale, we may motivate new technologies for micro-viscometers.
Climate adaptive rice planting strategies diverge across environmental gradients in the Indo-Gangetic Plains
Authors: Urfels Anton , Montes Carlo , Balwinder-Singh  , van Halsema Gerardo , Struik Paul C , Krupnik Timothy J , McDonald Andrew J
Published: November 2022

The timing of rice planting has a profound influence on the productivity of the rice-wheat cropping pattern in the Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP), a system that provides the foundation for food security in South Asia. Nevertheless, strategies for adaptive rice planting in a rapidly changing climate are not well established. In this ex-ante analysis, regional gridded crop model simulations are deployed to investigate the impact of different rice planting strategies on system level productivity, resilience, and environmental benefits. Our results suggest that synchronizing rice planting dates with the monsoon onset substantially outperforms farmer practice (+41%) and static state recommendations in the Eastern IGP. However, planting long-duration rice with the monsoon onset is ineffective in the Northwestern IGP since the later arrival of the monsoon increases the probability of cold damage to rice and terminal heat stress in wheat. Here, fixed planting dates (+12.5%) or planting medium duration varieties at monsoon onset (+18%) performed best. We conclude that resilient and productive rice planting strategies must account for interannual weather variability and divergent climate conditions across sub-regions in the IGP.
Hyperaccurate bounds in discrete-state Markovian systems
Authors: Busiello D M , Fiore C E
Published: November 2022

Generalized empirical currents represent a vast class of thermodynamic observables of mesoscopic systems. Their fluctuations satisfy the thermodynamic uncertainty relations (TURs), as they can be bounded by the average entropy production. Here, we derive a general closed expression for the hyperaccurate current in discrete-state Markovian systems, i.e. the one with the least fluctuations, for both discrete- and continuous-time evolution. We show that its associated hyperaccurate bound is generally much tighter than the one given by the TURs, and might be crucial to providing a reliable estimation of the average entropy production. We also show that one-loop systems (rings) exhibit a hyperaccurate current only for finite times, highlighting the importance of short-time observations. Additionally, we derive two novel bounds for the efficiency of work-to-work converters, solely as a function of either the input or the output power. Finally, our theoretical results are employed to analyze a six-state model network for kinesin, and a chemical system in a thermal gradient exhibiting a dissipation-driven selection of states.
Light festivals: Entertainment or urban renewal tool?
Authors: Bhatia M
Published: November 2022

This paper is part of the author’s thesis wherein she attempted to investigate the hypothesis that a light festival is not only an entertainment based light show but could also be a sustainable renewal strategy for dead urban spaces. ‘Public space is our open-air living room’ [1], where people meet, interact and replenish their body and mind away from work and home. However, due to various reasons, the current pandemic being one of them, has led to the present generation being seen as an indoor generation [2]. As a result, while a lot of urban spaces are tending to be ‘abandoned and left areas that have lost their function’ [3]. The author’s thesis is a qualitative study to check the feasibility of light festivals as a sustainable strategy to tackle the lifelessness of such dead urban spaces. This paper in particular, presents a qualitative case study of 4 light festivals. This was achieved through both primary sources in the form of personal interviews with organisers and systematic online desk study of the secondary sources of information available as reports by various national and international agencies, journals and peer reviewed papers published by researchers in various online journals of lighting and architecture. These festivals were chosen on the basis of their initial intentions of inception to match the impetus for this study. The success of the festivals is studied with respect to achievement of initial objectives. These are then qualitatively analysed under the categories of image regeneration, revenue generation and job generation to assess the holistic impact of light festivals at various locations in the world. The results of the study suggest that light festivals add playfulness and a sense of identity to public urban scape. The interventions, being temporary in nature, may disappear, but the memory of the event remains in collective memory. Through this, light festivals could potentially transform the views of inhabitants, so that they in turn, can transform their public spaces. The study also suggests that light festivals can be be socially and economically profitable. In conclusion, a light festival could be a successful contender as a sustainable urban renewal strategy.
Drivers’ experiences of presence sensitive roadway lighting match experiences of traditional road lighting – a case study in Finland
Authors: Pihlajaniemi H , Juntunen E , Luusua A
Published: November 2022

This research aimed to test and study presence sensitive roadway lighting in a housing area in Finland, and to evaluate drivers’ experiences and attitudes of it. The lighting adapted both to motor vehicles using the road and to the measured traffic density along it. The case study was conducted on a collector road in Salo, a town in southern Finland. New, controllable LED lighting with PIR (passive infrared) presence sensors was built along the road, and test scenarios were designed, programmed, and tested. Drivers’ experiences and attitudes of the lighting were collected in a three-phase evaluation with questionnaires from the community of about 1000 households using the road as part of their daily mobility. The results indicate that as an experience, presence sensitive lighting in a road environment was at least as positive as traditional, uncontrolled lighting. The experiences of presence sensitive lighting did not differ from the experiences of uncontrolled lighting regarding pleasantness, uniformity, glare, and road visibility. Most of the drivers (86 %) did not notice any dynamic change in lighting. When informed about the tested lighting strategies, most of the participants (72 %) would prefer either one of the intelligent lighting modes to be the permanent lighting solution. The results encourage the use of intelligent lighting in striving towards more sustainable lighting solutions while maintaining user comfort and safety.
Lean Thinking into the modular construction of industrial buildings. Identifying the role of daylight
Authors: Mavridou T , Doulos L , Nanos N
Published: November 2022

The necessity of energy equilibrium in industrial building stock must be addressed at design level in order to optimise use of materials without jeopardising the functional outcome. To do so effectively, the designer should incorporate a light use vs availability balance that will harness as much natural light resources as possible without creating unfavourable conditions due to over-exposure and thermal gains/losses. This work is an exploration between the relationship of sustainability with Lean thinking in the backdrop of sustainable and Lean construction. Exploring the benefits of lean and sustainable construction is about exploring how one can bring about great environmental, economic and social gains with the minimization of energy use, natural waste, environmental impacts as along with the creation of a healthy and productive work environment are the focus of sustainability in the construction industry. In effect answering how Daylight and Lean Thinking Principles can lead to optimizing Industrial buildings in terms of design and execution.
Sociological approach to the territorialization of night-time atmospheres
Authors: Nicolas Houel , Saïg Potard
Published: November 2022

This article presents a case study conducted in the metropolis of Brest, France in 2022, designed to support public policy decision-making by integrating the knowledge and needs of citizens during the different stages of a night-time urban planning project, around the notion of synchronization of the city’s rhythms. It presents three innovations: (1) Actors: coordination of public and private actors, common vocabulary, cartographic representations of assets, introduction of participatory approaches, activation of citizen knowledge in political expertise. (2) Sociology: participative modalities, objectification of citizens’ knowledge, definition of their decision-making perimeter, (3) Public lighting policies: territorial and social strategy of light sobriety, regularization and empowerment of the network of actors. The conclusion of this article will focus on the limits, added values and development axes of nocturnal urban sociology as a support for decision-making in public lighting management and renovation strategies, and will open up the mobilization of the rhythms and temporalities to be mobilized in order to restore balanced nocturnal ambiences between lighting, which is essential, and darkness, which is vital.
An examination of reflected glare prediction method based on luminance distribution
Authors: Sagawa M , Maeda A , Mizokami Y , Takashima M , Oe Y , Yoshizawa N
Published: November 2022

Explicit evaluation methods and suppression techniques for reflected glare have not been clarified in museum lighting. The purpose of this study is to elucidate the occurrence mechanism of reflected glare and to make use of its knowledge for future exhibitions in museums. In this paper, for the first step, we focused on the several factors, which were assumed to have an influence on the intensity of the reflected glare, such as the balance between ambient light levels for an exhibition room and target light levels for paintings, the Munsell value of paintings, and the amount of varnish coating. We conducted a subjective experiment in which the reflected glare on the replica paintings was evaluated by subjects aged in their 20s in an experimental room that was assumed to be an actual exhibit space. Based on the results of this experiment, we confirmed that the degree of reflected glare in museums could be roughly estimated from luminance distribution, reflectance, and glossiness of the paintings.
Light4Health eLearning Course: health research for interior lighting design. Re-thinking design approaches based on science
Authors: Zielinska-Dabkowska KM , Godley L , Kyriakidou F , Besenecker U C , Triantafyllidis G
Published: November 2022

This paper presents the results of ‘Light4Health’ (L4H), a three-year EU Erasmus+ Strategic Partnership grant project (2019-2021), which investigated, systematized and taught health-related research on the impact of natural and artificial light on human health and well-being relevant to indoor lighting design. The objective was to re-think evidence-based lighting design approaches for residential, working/educational, and healthcare spaces, in order to develop a novel cross-disciplinary eLearning platform, that intersects lighting design and current peer-reviewed health research through a select combination of the most relevant research, methods, and tools. The content was developed through teaching workshops with international researchers, teachers, and students. Participating students were introduced to the application of relevant research and new metrics, in order to produce creative lighting design proposals. Students were able to inform lighting design approaches that support health and well-being without compromising creativity via the tools and methods developed through the health sciences. With this project, participants and consortium members have narrowed the gap that exists between research and the practice/application of lighting, by translating research from complex scientific jargon into various tools for designers to use. The knowledge gained, was consolidated into an open-access online curriculum for international lighting design students, educators and professionals via the free eLearning Moodle platform (https://course.light4health.net/).
Dark Adaptation in Urban Environments: An Innovative Design Framework for Pedestrian Lighting
Authors: Amoruso Chiara Ester , Larsen Mette Hvam , Hvass Mette , Triantafyllidis Georgios , Hansen Ellen Kathrine
Published: November 2022

Outdoor lighting has mainly been approached as an engineering subject throughout its history. The current urban lighting requirements are established upon factors which mainly refer to motorised traffic dynamics. As a consequence, excessive lighting levels are found in the city environments with a negative impact on the human as well as the environmental sphere. By synthesising scientific knowledge on human visual system and outdoor lighting theories, this research seeks to formulate strong arguments to point at the lack of human scale in the contemporary practice and to question the adequacy of the standard requirements for human vision in nighttime settings. The knowledge gained from scientific studies and ongoing research shows how the nighttime visual experience of pedestrians is still an untapped dimension, unveiling the lack of defined guidelines and methods to approach the design of urban lighting through the lens of this target. With a focus on soft mobility, the aim of the study is to address dark adaptation as a human factor in the design of urban lighting and to provide evidence on the human eye’s ability to perform in dim conditions. Important findings from the literature review were used as requirements to formulate a methodology to approach the design of pedestrian lighting in urban environments. Strong conclusions could be drawn on the figure of dark adaptation and important lighting requirements were identified to facilitate this process in the condition of soft mobility. Even though further research and experimentation are required to implement dark adaptation in the design of urban lighting, this paper’s goal is to open up new perspectives in the field, shaping the vision for the future of cities with reduced urban illumination.
Dimming the Lights to Support the Overall Human Wellbeing In An Urban Context
Authors: Akanpinar Oktay
Published: November 2022

In modern times we are exposing ourselves to artificial light sources more than our ancestors were and it is conflicting with learned behaviours developed during the evolutionary process over thousands of years. In this review paper, the effect of this rapid change and possible effects on human wellbeing is questioned. Publications detailing, the health consequences of circadian disruptions and the current stage of global artificial light at night publications have been reviewed to see the level of intrusive lighting at night and to understand the possible connection. The current level of light pollution is mainly questioned as it is reported that the human circadian system and melatonin suppression is more sensitive to a lower level of light than has been previously reported [1]. During the time of review “Light at Night and Circadian” terms used in at Google Chrome search engine and, 24,557 publications were found on Science Direct [2], 17,500 publications were found on Google Scholar [3], and 1,240 free publications were found on PubMed [4] sites that are directly related to the circadian rhythm and light at night topics. Among those publications, recently published research papers (2010-2020) have been selected for review to narrow down the reviewed light sources to light emitting diodes (LEDs) as it is noted that the circadian system is susceptible to the blue wavelengths and LEDs are showing a peak in their spectrum at the same sensitivity area. At the end of the review, possible direct connections between the use of artificial light and adverse physiological and psychological effects with more severe health problems have been found. In addition, the current light pollution studies showed that vast majority of the global population is living under light polluted skies and possibly experiencing the negative effects of disrupted circadian system daily and therefore experiencing deteriorating effects of circadian disruptions and personal wellbeing. As the use of artificial light rapidly increases with global population, exposure to artificial light will increase exponentially in the near future and not only human beings but also the rest of the ecosystem will suffer from its negative effects. Because of this rapid change we should start implementing more stringent guidelines written with consideration for the health implications of artificial light while controlling the excessive use of it. Also, as the LED based lighting systems increase their popularity worldwide, we should start researching a possible modification to reduce the impact of the LED lighting on circadian system and its negative effects on human wellbeing.
Preliminary Screening and Comparison of Heavy Metal Pollution in Two Malaysia Class II River Using Acetylcholinesterase from Monopterus Albus
Authors: Khalidi Siti Aishah Muhammad , Sabullah Mohd Khalizan , Abdullah Rahmath , Hamdan Diana Demiyah Mohd , Ahmad Siti Aqlima , Shukor dan Mohd Yunus
Published: November 2022

Development in Malaysia is in line with positive economic growth. The situations have led to the improvement of industrial and agricultural activities that produce high-quality products of a global quality, which has a significant impact on the income of the local people. However, the activity also contributed to river pollution, where the industrial and agricultural wastes were discharged to nearby water sources, whether intentionally or not. The residues containing heavy metals are of concern because their concentration can negatively affect the environment. Furthermore, their ability to be treated or remedied is very limited. Biosensor acetylcholine, AChE extracted and purified from Monopterus albus brain, acts as an alternative biosensor to rapidly detect the presence of heavy metals with a simple application. The tests were conducted at ten different location points from the upstream to the downstream of Bentong River and Terengganu River, classified as a Class II river by the Department of Environment Malaysia. Bentong River and Terengganu River showed that five and two samples from different location points were able to inhibit AChE activity by more than 10%, respectively. The three samples with the highest inhibition were selected for the secondary screening through identification and the heavy metal concentrations determination using ICP-OES. All samples showed heavy metals such as copper, nickel, lead, arsenic, silver, chromium, and zinc at different concentrations and synergistically affected AChE activity. The use of AChE as a biosensor is able to detect and characterize pollution levels in both rivers that differ in the level of local development, such as industrial activities and population density.
Mapping the Groundwater Potential Zones in Kota Belud, Sabah and its surrounding areas by using the Geographical Information System (GIS) and Remote Sensing Techniques
Authors: Isnain Zulherry , Musta Baba
Published: November 2022

The increasing demand for groundwater sources is due to many reasons; increasing in population, increasing in agricultural area, pollution, industrialization and urbanization. The declining supply of clean water every year worsen this situation. This study aims to map the groundwater potential zones in Kota Belud, Sabah and its surrounding by using the Geographical Information System (GIS) and remote sensing techniques. Five parameters were studied that influence groundwater potential in the study area. The parameters are derived from existing maps, remote sensing imagery, and associated databases. The parameters are; rainfall distribution, drainage density, lineament density, elevation and slope steepness. All of these parameters will be used to create a thematic map based on a given weighting value. Finally, all the thematic maps will be integrated to produce the final groundwater potential map of the study area. The groundwater potential map is classified into five categories which are very low, low, moderate, high and very high. This study shows that three major factors that significantly affecting the occurrence of groundwater in study area are rainfall distribution, elevation, and slope steepness, and almost half of the study area was a high groundwater potential zone.
Fuzzy Interpolation Curve Modelling of Earthquake Magnitude Data
Authors: Zakaria R , Jifrin A N , Jaman S N , Roslee R
Published: November 2022

This research discussed on developing the fuzzy interpolation curve model which only used spline and B-spline functions in designing curve interpolation. The development of this model is used fuzzy set theory and more specifically fuzzy number concepts since the modeling problem is focused on modeling data. These data are known as uncertainty data and defined through fuzzy numbers which the properties of these data set belong to fuzzy numbers. There are also several steps to be implemented to obtain the crisp fuzzy model of crisp fuzzy data. These steps include fuzzification and defuzzification. For the fuzzification process which used alpha-cut triangular fuzzy numbers, an enhancement is also applied in process of determining the value of alpha based on the fuzzy data in triangular form. A numerical example is implemented to show the fuzzy interpolation curve modeling in which earthquake magnitude data are selected.
Applying Fuzzy Contrast Enhancement on Earthquake Impact Images
Authors: Zenian Suzelawati , Roslee Rodeano
Published: November 2022

In this paper, fuzzy contrast enhancement technique is applied on earthquake impact images in Ranau, Sabah. The aim is to highlight the visible differences between adjacent structures in the images. The brightness differences between objects and its background is enhanced to improve the visibility. In fuzzy approach, the gray plane is mapped into fuzzy plane by using membership function. The membership values represent the degree of brightness or darkness of the pixels.
Spray nebulization enables polycaprolactone nanofiber production in a manner suitable for generation of scaffolds or direct deposition of nanofibers onto cells
Authors: McKenna Eamonn , Futrega Kathryn , Klein Travis J , Altalhi Tariq A , Popat Amirali , Kumeria Tushar , Doran Michael R
Published: November 2022

Spray nebulization is an elegant, but relatively unstudied, technique for scaffold production. Herein we fabricated mesh scaffolds of polycaprolactone (PCL) nanofibers via spray nebulization of 8% PCL in dichloromethane (DCM) using a 55.2 kPa compressed air stream and 17 ml h−1 polymer solution flow rate. Using a refined protocol, we tested the hypothesis that spray nebulization would simultaneously generate nanofibers and eliminate solvent, yielding a benign environment at the point of fiber deposition that enabled the direct deposition of nanofibers onto cell monolayers. Nanofibers were collected onto a rotating plate 20 cm from the spray nozzle, but could be collected onto any static or moving surface. Scaffolds exhibited a mean nanofiber diameter of 910 ± 190 nm, ultimate tensile strength of 2.1 ± 0.3 MPa, elastic modulus of 3.3 ± 0.4 MPa, and failure strain of 62 ± 6%. In vitro, scaffolds supported growth of human keratinocyte cell epithelial-like layers, consistent with potential utility as a dermal scaffold. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy demonstrated that DCM had vaporized and was undetectable in scaffolds immediately following production. Exploiting the rapid elimination of DCM during fiber production, we demonstrated that nanofibers could be directly deposited on to cell monolayers, without compromising cell viability. This is the first description of spray nebulization generating nanofibers using PCL in DCM. Using this method, it is possible to rapidly produce nanofiber scaffolds, without need for high temperatures or voltages, yielding a method that could potentially be used to deposit nanofibers onto cell cultures or wound sites.
Solvent selection in membrane preparation from polyethylene terephthalate plastic waste: computational and experimental study
Authors: Ali Badrut Tamam Ibnu , Widiastuti Nurul , Kusumawati Yuly , Ivansyah Atthar Luqman , Jaafar Juhana
Published: November 2022

The selection of the solvent during the membrane preparation process significantly affects the characteristics of the resulting membrane. The large number of organic solvents available for dissolving polymers renders this experimental approach ineffective. A computational approach can select a solvent using the solvation energy value approach. In addition, no organic waste is generated from the computational approach, which is a distinct advantage. A computational approach using the DFT/B3LYP/def2-TZVP RIJCOSX method was used to optimize the structure of polyethylene terephthalate (PET). The PET for the experiment was obtained from the utilization of plastic bottle waste. In addition, a review of the thermodynamics, geometry, HOMO-LUMO orbitals, and vibrational frequencies was conducted to validate the PET molecule against the experimental results. A conductor-like polarizable continuum model was used to determine the best solvent for dissolving the PET plastic waste. The results demonstrated that the Fourier Transform Infra-Red and Fourier Transform Raman spectra obtained from computational calculations were not significantly different from the experimental results. Based on a thermodynamic approach, computationally the Gibbs free energy (−724.723), entropy (0.0428), and enthalpy (−724,723 Kjmol−1 ) values of the PET dimer molecule are not much different from the experimental values (−601, 0.042, and −488 Kjmol−1). The computational approach was successful in selecting solvents that can dissolve PET plastic bottle waste. Phenol solvent has the lowest solvation energy value (−101.879 Kjmol−1) and the highest binding energy (2.4 Kjmol−1) than other solvents. Computational and experimental results demonstrated that the phenol solvent was able to dissolve PET plastic bottle waste better than the other solvents.
Propagation of visible light in nanostructured niobium stripes embedded in a dielectric polymer
Authors: Telesio F , Mezzadri F , Serrano-Ruiz M , Peruzzini M , Bisio F , Heun S , Fabbri F
Published: November 2022

Nanometric metallic stripes allow the transmission of optical signals via the excitation and propagation of surface-localized evanescent electromagnetic waves, with important applications in the field of nano-photonics. Whereas this kind of plasmonic phenomena typically exploits noble metals, like Ag or Au, other materials can exhibit viable light-transport efficiency. In this work, we demonstrate the transport of visible light in nanometric niobium stripes coupled with a dielectric polymeric layer, exploiting the remotely-excited/detected Raman signal of black phosphorus (bP) as the probe. The light-transport mechanism is ascribed to the generation of surface plasmon polaritons at the Nb/polymer interface. The propagation length is limited due to the lossy nature of niobium in the optical range, but this material may allow the exploitation of specific functionalities that are absent in noble-metal counterparts.
Axiomatization
Authors: Moore A. W.
Published: November 2022

This chapter is concerned with the appeal and demands of axiomatization. The appeal of axiomatization is that of capturing the entire infinite truth about a subject in a finite stock of basic principles and rules. If we can achieve that, it will not only help us to make sense of the subject; it will also help us to make sense of how we make sense of it. An argument is given that this is particularly significant in the case of a mathematical subject. The axiomatization of geometry that Euclid gave around 300 BC is then presented as a case study to illustrate the demands of axiomatization. Despite its great power and precision, it contains gaps that invalidate some of the proofs that Euclid based on it; and some of these gaps are exposed. Euclid’s axiomatization is also used to illustrate the concepts of independence and consistency. One of Euclid’s basic principles can be shown to be independent of the others. This is done by showing that an alternative non-Euclidean axiomatization, in which this basic principle is replaced by a rival, is consistent. The chapter concludes by drawing some lessons from how this in turn is shown, which involves assuming that the original Euclidean axiomatization is consistent: this suggests that the best we can hope for in demonstrating the consistency of one axiomatization is to use another axiomatization whose consistency is less open to doubt.