Browse Articles

Correction: Higher education students’ perceptions of ChatGPT: A global study of early reactions

Impact of tension-free autograft repair on early sensory recovery in polyethylene glycol (PEG)-mediated axonal fusion following traumatic peripheral nerve injuries

Activation of the Ground and Excited State of a Luminescent Osmium(VI) Dioxo Dicyano Complex with Lewis Acids

Correction: A cross-dataset harmonized intrusion detection framework with statistically validated multi-model learning

Carpal tunnel syndrome as risk factor for subsequent development of irritable bowel syndrome: a retrospective cohort study

A four-factor model of consumption values in a multicultural society: Measurement invariance and the duality of materialism and frugality in Qatar

Societies undergoing rapid economic modernization face a tension between materialist consumption and sustainability, yet few psychometrically sound tools exist to measure these values in non-Western contexts. This study aimed to develop and validate a scale of consumption values in the multicultural, high-income setting of Qatar. We conducted a large-scale survey (N = 2,026) of Qatari nationals and expatriates using a comprehensive questionnaire. Exploratory factor analysis revealed four distinct and interpretable dimensions of consumption values: (1) Materialism/Social Status, an orientation valuing luxury and wealth as markers of success; (2) Extravagance, a tendency toward impulsive and unnecessary spending; (3) Frugality, a disposition toward thrift and careful budgeting; and (4) Environmental Consciousness, a concern for the ecological impact of consumption. A four-factor model was confirmed using confirmatory factor analysis, demonstrating good model fit. Multi-group analyses established measurement invariance (configural, metric, and scalar) across nationality, gender, and income groups, ensuring that comparisons between these groups are meaningful. Latent mean comparisons revealed that Qatari nationals scored significantly higher on Materialism and Extravagance but lower on Frugality than expatriates. Critically, materialism and extravagance were associated with poorer self-reported financial well-being, whereas frugality was linked to better financial standing. This research provides a robust, multi-dimensional instrument for assessing consumption values in diverse societies and offers insights into the psychological factors shaping financial and environmental outcomes in modernizing economies.

Correction: Detection of DSCP-based traffic prioritization manipulations and their impact on network performance

Ligand-Enabled Pd-Catalyzed C(sp ³ )–H/C(sp ² )–H Coupling

KGR-SKATER: Spatially clustered kernel graph regression for counting processes

This paper proposes a procedure for fitting a spatiotemporal model with an interpretable and parsimonious dependence structure to high-dimensional non-Gaussian data. A graph is estimated to represent spatial dependence, and a locally periodic kernel is estimated to represent temporal dependence. These two components are then combined via a Kronecker product, producing a separable spatiotemporal covariance matrix that can account for multiple relevant variables and their dependencies at different time scales. Spatial clustering is used to reduce the dimensionality and estimation is carried out via the integrated nested Laplace approximation. The proposed model, which relies on all of these preceding steps, is introduced along with some alternative spatiotemporal reference models for comparison. The utility of this novel multi-step procedure is demonstrated by modeling monthly time series of respiratory-related deaths across California. Social deprivation indices are used to learn a graph structure, and surrogate variables constructed from exposure adjusted measures of air quality are used to learn time series regression relationships encoded by a kernel. The modeling results indicate that KGR-SKATER models fit the data in and out of sample as well as the reference models and have better coverage properties. A synthetic case study is also presented to demonstrate how the proposed procedure makes better forecasts than the reference model in settings where time series exhibit less stationary amplitudes and periods. Data and code available at: https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.j3tx95xtt .

Population Dynamics in Songbird RA and HVC During Learned Motor-Vocal Behavior

Complex, learned motor behaviors involve the coordination of large-scale neural activity across multiple brain regions, but our understanding of population-level neural dynamics within different regions tied to the same behavior remains limited. Here, we investigate the neural population dynamics underlying learned vocal production in awake, singing songbirds. Using Neuropixels probes, we record simultaneous extracellular activity from populations of neurons in two regions of the vocal-motor pathway in adult male zebra finches. In line with observations made in non-human primates during limb-based motor tasks, we show that the population-level activity in both the premotor nucleus HVC and the motor nucleus RA is organized onto low-dimensional neural manifolds upon which coordinated neural activity is captured by temporally structured trajectories during singing behavior. Both HVC and RA latent trajectories carry relevant information to predict vocal sequence transitions between song syllables. However, the dynamics of these latent trajectories differ between regions. Our state-space models suggest a unique and continuous-over-time correspondence between the latent space of RA and vocal output, whereas the corresponding relationship for HVC exhibits a higher degree of neural variability. We demonstrate that high-fidelity reconstruction of continuous vocal outputs can be achieved from both spiking activity and neural latents. However, in contrast to models relying on spiking activity, decoding models leveraging latent dynamics generalize to novel subpopulations in each region, supporting the existence of preserved manifolds that confine vocal-motor activity in HVC and RA.

IALA-BPNN: superior house price prediction through multi-strategy optimized Artificial Lemming Algorithm and BP neural network

Ontogenetic shifts in morphology and ecology of eastern Pacific white sharks revealed by computer vision

Body size is a fundamental property of animal physiology, growth, and maturation, yet field measurements remain difficult to acquire for large-bodied, highly mobile marine species such as white sharks ( Carcharodon carcharias) . In this study, we integrate aerial and underwater imagery to obtain high-resolution morphometrics of eastern Pacific white sharks remotely in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. We develop and validate a computational pipeline leveraging deep learning analysis of Unoccupied Aircraft System (UAS) imagery to extract shark total length and body condition, given by a span-length ratio. UAS-based morphometric data reveal that white sharks form size-structured aggregations aligned with oceanographic gradients, indicating that coastal areas within Monterey Bay function as key transitional zones along a continuum of ontogenetic habitat use on the central coast of California. Across individuals, extended girth-length scaling relationships indicate proportionally greater girth amongst eastern Pacific white sharks relative to other populations. This pattern is particularly pronounced in females, which exhibit progressively higher body condition with life stage, likely reflecting the energetic demands of reproduction or sex-specific foraging strategies. By linking UAS-derived morphometrics to ecological context, this approach enables a novel population-level investigation of ecological structure, body size, and morphological variation in a marine predator population.

Activation by Alcohol of Prefrontal Layer 5 Pyramidal Neurons Depends on Ascending Dopaminergic Input

Short-term alcohol exposure modulates activity in reward-related regions such as the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and executive cortical regions such as the prefrontal cortex (PFC), potentially contributing to alcohol use disorders. Although alcohol induces dopamine release from VTA projection neurons, how dopamine signaling contributes to the acute effects of alcohol in the PFC at the cellular level remains unclear. Using in vivo Ca 2+ imaging and in vitro slice electrophysiology in mice of either sex, we found that moderate-to-high doses of alcohol increased the activity of layer 5 (L5) pyramidal neurons in the PFC in a D1/D5 receptor-dependent manner. We further identified the VTA as a major source of this dopaminergic input by showing that alcohol increased activity in VTA dopaminergic axons within the PFC and that chemogenetic inhibition of VTA projection neurons prevented the excitatory effects of alcohol on L5 pyramidal neurons. These findings demonstrate that acute alcohol activates PFC L5 pyramidal neurons via ascending dopaminergic input from the VTA, which may contribute to the behavioral effects of alcohol intoxication.

Characterizing excited triplet states of synthetic eumelanin and pheomelanin by the application of selected diene probes

What helps and hinders reproducible research? Researchers’ perspectives from a cross-disciplinary interview study

Debates and policy initiatives addressing research reproducibility have expanded considerably in recent years. Yet, many of these measures remain generic and risk overlooking the lived realities of research practice. This study aims to explore researchers’ perspectives on the barriers, facilitators, and motivators that shape reproducible research across diverse fields and career stages, using qualitative methods. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 60 researchers affiliated with universities and research institutions across the European Union and the United Kingdom. Participants were sampled to ensure diversity in discipline, career stage, gender, and geography. The interviews explored experiences with barriers and facilitators for reproducible research, and the data were analyzed using framework analysis with a hybrid inductive–deductive approach. Five interrelated themes described barriers and facilitators influencing reproducibility: navigating the research ecosystem (incentives and policies of institutions, journals, and funders); social and cultural dynamics as drivers and barriers (disciplinary norms, generational differences, competition, and collaboration); resourcing reproducibility (skills, infrastructure, guidelines and standards, time, funding, and awareness); inside the research process (field-specific constraints, methodological transparency, research material sharing, and external restrictions); and personal commitment to shared responsibility (reflective motivations, pragmatic drivers, and perceptions of accountability). Researchers described reproducibility as less of an individual choice but as a socially and institutionally mediated activity, dependent on enabling conditions such as supportive policies, adequate infrastructure, and equitable resource distribution. Reproducibility reform cannot rely solely on individual researcher commitment or one-size-fits-all policies. Effective interventions must account for disciplinary and methodological diversity, provide targeted resources and training, and realign incentive structures to reward transparency and rigour. These findings highlight reproducibility as a collective responsibility across the research ecosystem, requiring coordinated action by researchers, institutions, funders, and publishers. Promoting reproducible practices in this systemic, context-sensitive manner is essential for fostering a more credible, equitable, and sustainable scientific enterprise.

Multiple Scales of Coordination along the Body Axis during <i>Drosophila</i> Larval Locomotion

Coordinated movement along the body axis is critical to locomotion. In segmented, limbless animals, anterior (head) and posterior (tail) segments play different roles in locomotion, leading to a need for flexible coordination across body regions. Larval Drosophila melanogaster present a tractable experimental model for limbless, segmented crawling given the extensive genetic tools available and the optical clarity of the body. Prior work has suggested that, during crawling, all larval body segments contract similarly, despite the fact that each crawl cycle comprises two overlapping phases: a piston involving the most posterior segments and a peristaltic wave involving all body segments. To test whether coordination varies regionally during locomotion, we expressed GCaMP in body wall muscles of larvae of either sex and recorded segmental contraction kinematics and muscle recruitment during many cycles of locomotion in linear channels. Facilitated by machine vision techniques, we discovered new features of larval crawling at multiple scales. First, the propagation of both contraction and recruitment waves slowed approaching mid-body segments, then sped up toward the head. Second, the timing relationship between contraction and recruitment waves could be highly variable in anterior segments. Third, contraction durations showed particularly strong intersegmental correlations among posterior segments. These data suggest posterior segments coordinate to power the piston phase, while anterior segments tolerate greater flexibility to enable reorienting behaviors. Our results depict an unanticipated degree of axial heterogeneity in the coordination of limbless crawling, opening new avenues to study the origins of whole-body coordination and the consequences of segmental diversity for locomotion.

Multi-task adversarial learning detects intersectional algorithmic bias in AI recruitment systems

Inhibitory effects of mycosubtilin on proliferation of colon cancer SW480 cells

The development of novel and effective natural anti-cancer drugs represents a significant focus in contemporary biomedical research. Mycosubtilin (Myco), a cyclic lipopeptide produced by Bacillus subtilis , has not previously been investigated for its potential anti-colorectal cancer activity. This study employed a comprehensive approach combining network pharmacology, molecular docking, cellular analysis, flow cytometry single-color staining, and western blot analysis to preliminarily investigate the potential molecular mechanisms underlying Myco’s anti-CRC activity. Findings revealed that Myco significantly outperformed 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) in inhibiting SW480 cell proliferation. Myco effectively triggered apoptosis. This was supported by the typical apoptotic morphological features, including nuclear condensation and fragmentation. Concurrently, Myco treatment downregulated the expression of the anti-apoptotic protein, Bcl-2. These findings suggest that Myco has potential application value in inhibiting the proliferation of human colorectal cancer SW480 cells.

Sulphate resistance of geopolymer mortars incorporating waste clay brick powder

Metal–Amide Chemistry Enables Controlled Heavy-Pnictogen Reduction for Colloidal III–V Nanocrystal Synthesis