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Cost-free charity facilitates dishonesty in a dice-rolling experiment
Abstract Exploring the motivations behind collaboratively dishonest behaviour, is often done using dice-rolling experiments, where coordinated cheating increases participant pairs’ earnings. Here we present a preregistered dice-rolling experiment that investigates how participants’ dishonest (cheating) behaviour is influenced (i) by the dishonest (cheating) behaviour of their experimental partners and (ii) by by-product altruism (or cost-free charity) that is a direct consequence of a monetary reward in this experiment. We studied a 2 × 2 factorial design of the dice-rolling game, with the presence or absence of (i) a cheating partner and (ii) by-product altruism. Following the game, participants filled out the Moral Foundations Questionnaire and the Social Dominance Orientation questionnaire. We found that without the opportunity of cost-free charity, cheating was not detectable, independent of the cheating behaviour of the partner. However, the opportunity of donating to a chosen charitable foundation (cost-free charity) significantly increased the level of cheating. We found that the relationship between the degree of dishonesty and the measured psychological traits is complex and, in some cases, contradictory. Our results do, however, confirm that participants with a stronger moral integrity were less likely to cheat. Our results showed that the level of collaborative cheating to obtain a monetary benefit is significantly increased by participants’ perception of acting in a socially beneficial way as a by-product of their unethical behaviour.
Optimizing the mechanical performance of sustainable industrial waste modified concrete using supervised machine learning modeling and feature importance analysis
Wickerhamomyces anomalus as a biocontrol agent against Aspergillus clavatus and patulin in apples
Abstract Apple is a widely consumed fruit, but its quality can be compromised by mycotoxins such as patulin, produced mostly by Penicillium expansum , but also by the less-studied Aspergillus clavatus . This toxin poses a health risk, requiring effective control strategies. Biocontrol, particularly using yeasts, has gained attention as a promising method. In this study, we assessed the potential of different yeast strains to inhibit the growth of the patulin (PAT)-producing A. clavatus B9/6 and to remove patulin. While Saccharomyces cerevisiae , previously reported as an antagonist of P. expansum , showed no inhibitory effects on A. clavatus , all 13 Wickerhamomyces anomalus strains studied exhibited antifungal activity to varying degrees. Among them, strains 01499, 0961, 0170, and 01655 showed the strongest inhibition. Notably, W. anomalus 01499 not only inhibited fungal growth but also removed patulin, reducing the toxin by 71% within 24 h and achieving complete removal after 48 h under the tested experimental conditions (10 ppm patulin in apple juice). In vivo assays in apples showed that pre-inoculation with W. anomalus 01499 strongly suppressed fungal infection, whereas delayed application resulted in more severe symptoms, emphasizing the importance of early intervention. Mechanistic studies revealed that patulin removal occurred primarily through cell wall binding (11%) and intracellular components (including enzymes) (33%), while no contribution from extracellular enzyme activity was detected. These results suggest that W. anomalus 01499 is a promising candidate for the biocontrol of A. clavatus and for reducing patulin contamination in apples. This study provides further evidence supporting the potential role of W. anomalus in patulin removal and fungal biocontrol.
Host-derived probiotics outperform commercial formulations in improving growth, gut health and disease resistance in red tilapia
Secure adaptive federated learning for scalable anomaly detection in industrial IoT networks
Climate-driven flooding widens economic inequalities across EU regions
Channel-engineered GAA FETs: From device to circuit perspective for Angstrom technology nodes
Abstract This work presents a comprehensive device-to-circuit analysis of channel-engineered gate-all-around (GAA) FETs intended for advanced CMOS logic applications, namely the comb-shaped FET (C-FET) and inter-bridge FET (I-FET), benchmarked against a conventional nanosheet FET (NS-FET). All devices are designed according to sub-3-nm IRDS guidelines and evaluated through calibrated 3D TCAD simulations. The results show that the incorporation of vertical inter-bridge (IB) channels in C-FET and I-FET significantly enhances the effective width, leading to notable improvements in drive current, with the I-FET achieving the highest $$I_\textrm{ON}$$ and $$I_\textrm{ON}/I_\textrm{OFF}$$ ratio. Scalability studies reveal that the I-FET retains superior performance under variations in gate length and IB dimensions while maintaining acceptable short-channel behavior. Analog and RF evaluations indicate that both C-FET and I-FET exhibit enhanced transconductance, cut-off frequency, and reduced intrinsic delay compared to NS-FETs, making them promising candidates for high-speed applications. Circuit-level simulations using LUT-based Verilog-A models further confirm that C-FET and I-FET deliver higher switching currents and improved ring-oscillator frequencies, with the I-FET achieving the maximum $$f_\textrm{OSC}$$ across all supply voltages and stage counts. Overall, the results demonstrate that channel-engineered C-FET and I-FET architectures provide substantial performance advantages over conventional nanosheet devices, highlighting their suitability for advanced CMOS and RF systems for angstrom technology nodes.
Prevalence and risk factors associated with diabetic retinopathy: a cross-sectional study in northern Xinjiang
Visibility-aware Fisher information optimization for optimal fiducial marker deployment in complex indoor environments
Abstract Fiducial markers are fundamental tools for visual localization, calibration, and augmented reality; however, the precision of these systems is fundamentally constrained by the spatial configuration of the markers. We introduce a principled pipeline for optimal marker deployment in indoor scenes. The method (i) extracts wall-like candidate locations from dense 3D reconstructions, (ii) computes a Fisher Information Matrix (FIM) for each candidate by analytically aggregating the Jacobians of projected marker corners over a set of camera poses, and (iii) selects a compact subset of markers via an information-aware optimization strategy. Given a Matterport-style point cloud, the system automatically proposes marker poses on planar surfaces at user-specified heights. The proposed framework was validated through both simulation and real-world indoor experiments and compared against random, uniform, and optimization-based baseline strategies.
Factors influencing nurses’ knowledge on peripherally inserted central catheter care in Guizhou, China: A web-based cross-sectional study
Characterization of IgG N-glycan patterns in COVID-19, sepsis and healthy subjects
Dissecting the interplay of model-based control, impulsivity and compulsivity on self-control in daily life
Abstract Impaired self-control is linked to maladaptive behavior and psychopathology and may be shaped by transdiagnostic factors such as impulsivity and compulsivity. Both traits show associations with model-based control, which supports goal-directed behavior by representing long-term action consequences. To investigate how model-based control and personality traits relate to everyday self-control, we combined single-trial EEG data (modulation of the feedback-related negativity [FRN] and P3) from 236 participants during a two-step decision-making task with self-reported impulsivity (BIS-11) and compulsivity (OCI-R) and a seven-day ecological momentary assessment of daily-life self-control. Mixed-effects models revealed that desire enactment was more likely when desires were stronger and perceived conflicts weaker. The effect of model-based control varied with impulsivity and compulsivity: In individuals low in compulsivity, stronger modulations of the FRN, suggesting higher model-based control, were connected to fewer desire enactments, suggesting a protecting role of model-based control. This pattern reversed at high compulsivity levels, possibly due to greater conflict awareness but reduced behavioral regulation capacity. Impulsivity moderated compulsivity effects, such that model-based control consistently predicted reduced enactment at high impulsivity levels. These findings highlight how compulsivity and impulsivity shape the translation of cognitive control into everyday behavior and offer insights into mechanisms underlying self-control deficits.
GLP-1 receptor agonists and clinical outcomes in adults with Crohn’s disease and obesity: a propensity score–matched real-world cohort study
A one-parameter poisson–emrem model for count data: Theory and applications to cytogenetic and COVID-19 studies
Distinctive patterns of glucagon and incretin responses to oral and isoglycaemic intravenous glucose load in fibrocalculous pancreatic diabetes
Selphi, a tool for improving genotype imputation accuracy
A green approach to antibacterial and antioxidant wool and polyamide 6 fabrics through bioactive Aspergillus turcosus extracted pigment for healthy and high-performance textile products
Abstract Wool is a proteinic fiber with unique properties like breathability, excellent moisture management, and odor resistance; these features make it highly desirable for next-to-skin applications. Polyamide 6 (PA6) fabric as well is a strong, durable, and versatile fabric. Recently natural dyes from plants and microorganisms with predominant properties have been widely used in textile coloration to avoid synthetic dyes, which are often petroleum-based. This study is the first investigation into the pigment-producing capability of Aspergillus turcosus , a strain that hasn’t been associated with this activity before. The extracted pigment has been used in dyeing wool and polyamide 6 fabrics at different reaction conditions. The chemical characterization for the functional groups of the extracted pigment has been identified using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance analysis (NMR) . The colorimetric data were assigned for the dyed fabrics, and the results showed that the extracted pigment showed a good affinity to the fabrics with good colorfastness properties. Antibacterial activity was assigned, and the data revealed an increase in the inhibition zone diameter from 0 to 31 mm for wool fabric and from 0 to 35 mm for PA6 fabrics. Additionally, the dyed fabrics showed enhancement in the antioxidant inhibition rate from 15 to 60% for wool fabric and 10 to 45% for PA6 fabrics compared to the undyed ones. The extracted pigment also enhanced the UPF of the dyed fabrics by 65% and 85% for wool and PA6, respectively.