Browse Articles

Optimization of energy management in Malaysian microgrids using fuzzy logic-based EMS scheduling controller

The association between the healthy lifestyle index and MRI-derived body composition measurements in the UK Biobank study

Fear of progression, coping strategies, and associated factors among a sample of Malaysian women with breast cancer

Details on the transport of European eel larvae through the Strait of Gibraltar into the Mediterranean Sea

AbstractNumbers of European glass eels (Anguilla anguilla) monitored along the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts of Europe currently serve as the main stock indicator in assessment of this critically endangered species. Spawning, however, takes place exclusively in the Sargasso Sea, several thousand kilometers away. The beginning of its complex lifecycle is characterized by a distant and lengthy larval drift, before the young-of-the-year reach the monitoring stations at the European coasts. The oceanic mechanisms regulating dispersal and distribution of European eel leptocephalus larvae, before they metamorphose into glass eels and colonize future growth habitats, are still poorly understood and data are scarce. Here, we present oceanographic and leptocephalus catch data from a 24-h station on board of the German Research Vessel Meteor, covering one event cycle of the tide-derived change of hydrographic conditions in the central part of the Strait of Gibraltar. Results of this study provide detailed insights on how the exchange of water masses between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea may favor or prevent transport and migration of eel larvae through the Strait, which potentially plays a decisive role in timing and magnitude of larval recruitment events into the entire Mediterranean region.

Repeated ionizing radiation exposure induces TRIP13 expression, conferring radioresistance in lung cancer cells

Isolation and characterization of a new Leptobacillium species promoting tomato plant growth

An effective vessel segmentation method using SLOA-HGC

A single-center prospective study evaluating the relationship of tumor consistency on remission in acromegaly patients

Research on design and control method of active vibration isolation system based on piezoelectric Stewart platform

AbstractSpace payloads in orbit are vulnerable to small vibrations from satellite platforms, which can degrade their performance. Traditional methods typically involve installing a passive vibration isolation system between the platform and the payload. However, such systems are usually effective only for high-frequency, large-amplitude vibrations and perform poorly in isolating low-frequency vibrations and resonances below 10 Hz. To address this limitation, this paper proposes an active vibration isolation system using a 6-degrees-of-freedom Stewart platform driven by piezoelectric actuators. First, the characteristics of the Stewart platform are analyzed and modeled, with the deformation displacement of each leg calculated through decoupling, allowing for high-precision servo control. Next, given the inherent hysteretic nonlinearity of piezoelectric ceramics, which significantly affects positioning accuracy, the hysteresis mechanism of the actuators is analyzed, and a phenomenological mathematical model based on Bouc–Wen operators is established. A Modified particle swarm optimization (MPSO) method is proposed for identifying the model’s nonlinear parameters, significantly enhancing the optimization efficiency. Finally, feedforward inverse compensation and feedback linearization methods are introduced. Experimental results verify that the designed active–passive vibration isolation system greatly improves both the positioning accuracy of the piezoelectric actuators and the active vibration isolation performance of the platform.

Determining the optical and polaritonic properties of isotopically pure hBN using cryogenic FTIR micro-spectroscopy

van der Waals materials support numerous exotic polaritonic phenomena originating from their layered structures and associated vibrational and electronic properties. However, many van der Waals materials' unique properties are most prominent at cryogenic temperatures. This presents a particular challenge for polaritonics research, as reliable optical constant data are required for understanding light-matter coupling. This paper presents a cryogenic Fourier transform infrared microscope design constructed entirely from off-the-shelf components and associated fitting procedures for determining optical constants in the infrared. Data correction techniques were developed to directly quantify systematic errors in the fitting procedure. We use this microscope to present the first temperature-dependent characterization of the optical properties of hexagonal boron nitride enriched with isotopically pure boron. Our full analysis of the infrared dielectric function shows small but significant tuning of the optical constants, which is highly consistent with Raman data from the literature. We then use this dielectric data to perform and analyze the polariton propagation properties, which agree exceptionally well with published cryogenic scattering-type near-field microscopy results. In addition to the insights gained into hyperbolic polaritons in hBN, our paper represents a transferable framework for characterizing exfoliated infrared polaritonic materials and other infrared devices. This could accelerate discoveries in different material systems, especially those that are spatially inhomogeneous or cannot be prepared as large single crystals.

Development and validation of a nomogram to predict survival in septic patients with heart failure in the intensive care unit

Ferroelectric polarizations engineered reversible skyrmion–bimeron switch in van der Waals heterostructure RuClBr/Ga2S3

Controllable operation between different magnetic topological states, such as skyrmions and bimerons, which share the same topological charge but exhibit distinct properties, has garnered extensive attention due to their potential applications in future high-density memory technologies. However, their remarkable origin mechanisms (e.g., in-plane and out-of-plane easy magnetic axis) make effective control of their switching a huge challenge. Based on first-principles calculations, we explore the 2D RuClBr/Ga2S3 van der Waals heterostructure and find that the skyrmion and bimeron topological states could be switched instantaneously and efficiently by regulating the electric polarization of Ga2S3 with an external electric field. Additionally, atomic spin dynamic simulations reveal that the evolved skyrmion and bimeron magnetic configurations are highly resistant to external disturbances, enduring external magnetic fields of up to 20 T. This efficient transformation between magnetic states is driven by magnetic anisotropy accompanying changes in the polarization state. Our work predicts that the RuClBr/Ga2S3 system is an ideal platform for addressing this control problem.

Effect of air temperature in indoor transition spaces on the thermal response of occupant during summer

An optically transparent rectifying metasurface for 2.4/5.8 GHz dual-band RF energy harvesting

In this paper, an optically transparent rectifying metasurface system (RMS) is designed and validated for simultaneously harvesting radio frequency (RF) energy while enabling the efficient transmission of visible light. The RMS comprises an optically transparent metasurface absorber (OTMA) based on indium tin oxide materials and a voltage-doubling rectifier circuit. The proposed RMS features several advantages, including polarization insensitivity, wide incidence angle coverage, low profile, and the ability to operate at low incident power densities. Utilizing a stacked structure, the RMS and the solar cell can provide a more hybrid output power to accommodate more application scenarios. To validate its performance, a prototype 3 × 3 OTMA array was designed, fabricated, and measured. Results demonstrate that the fabricated RMS achieves RF to DC efficiencies of 19.64% at 2.4 GHz and 7.92% at 5.8 GHz, with an impressive 80% optical transparency. Furthermore, solar energy harvesting tests show that the measured maximum power point for the RF/solar hybrid energy harvesting is 13.11% higher than that of a single solar panel under a light intensity of 257 lux.

Traffic classification in SDN-based IoT network using two-level fused network with self-adaptive manta ray foraging

Formation of high-quality SiO2/<i>β</i>-Ga2O3(001) MOS structures: The role of post-deposition annealing

We investigated the effect of post-deposition annealing on the electrical characteristics of SiO2/β-Ga2O3(001) MOS structures. While oxygen annealing effectively improves the interface properties, it induces acceptor defects in Ga2O3, leading to a decrease in net donor density. With the combination of oxygen and nitrogen annealing, carrier compensation was suppressed, and a low interface state density of about 1 × 1011 cm−2 eV−1 was obtained near the conduction band edge of Ga2O3. High immunity against positive gate bias stress was also confirmed.

Effect of DLPFC rTMS on anhedonia and alpha asymmetry in depressed patients

Fragmented charged domain wall below the tetragonal-orthorhombic phase transition in BaTiO3

Ferroelectric charged domain walls are known for their high electrical conductivity, making them promising candidates for modern electronics. A remarkably high conductivity and nominal charge density has been found in the head-to-head ferroelastic domain wall of tetragonal barium titanate. Conductivity of this domain wall decreases by several orders of magnitude when the temperature drops down below about 5 °C when the tetragonal phase transforms to the orthorhombic one. We explored the evolution of these ferroelectric charged domain walls in BaTiO3 crystals, while they undergo this phase transition by in situ optical microscopy. Our results reveal that, below the phase transition, the domains adjacent to charge domain walls become twinned, and the head-to-head charged domain wall transforms into a superdomain wall, which is broken into alternating micrometer-scale segments with and without the excess bound charge. Since the macroscopic conductive channel along such fragmented superdomain wall is disrupted, these observations explain the observed loss of the domain wall conductivity below the phase transition.

SMYD3 drives cell cycle and epithelial-mesenchymal transition pathways through dual gene transcriptional repression and activation in HPV-negative head and neck cancer

AbstractHuman papillomavirus (HPV)-negative head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is the sixth most common cancer type in the world and is associated with an overall poor prognosis. The protein methyltransferase SET and MYND domain-containing 3 (SMYD3), which trimethylates H3K4, activates gene transcription and enhances several oncogenic pathways, including epithelial-mesenchymal transition and cell cycle related pathways, in various cancer types. It was also recently shown that SMYD3 is overexpressed in HPV-negative HNSCC, and represses the expression of type I IFN response genes, contributing to resistance to anti-PD-1 checkpoint blockade in this disease. In this study, we show that SMYD3 depletion using siRNA interference or CRISPR decreases cellular proliferation and clonal capacity, induces cell cycle arrest and decreases the invasive potential of HPV-negative HNSCC cell lines. Accordingly, xenografts of SMYD3 knockout tumors derived from a human HPV-negative HNSCC cell line grew significantly slower compared to control tumors in mice. Genome-wide mapping for SMYD3 and H3K4me3 in HPV-negative HNSCC cells using cleavage under targets and release using nuclease (CUT&amp;RUN) assays identified direct downstream gene targets regulated by SMYD3, including cell cycle- and EMT-promoting genes. This study provides insights into the epigenetic role of SMYD3 as an oncogene in HPV-negative HNSCC and supports SMYD3 as a rational therapeutic target in HPV-negative HNSCC.

High-performance mid-infrared plasmonic bispectral routers by inverse design

In modern imaging systems, the application of multispectral imaging technologies is pervasive, furnishing an enhanced spectrum of information. Multispectral methods typically employ arrays of filters to selectively exclude light from undesired spectral bands, thus facilitating the capture of discrete narrowband data. However, the inherent multi-channel filtering process limits their energy utilization efficiency, a constraint that is magnified by the current trend of miniaturization in imaging devices. In this work, we have developed a pixel-level, metal-based, mid-infrared router by employing an inverse design method. This design achieved peak spectral efficiencies of 58.61% and 67.35% within the operational bands of 3.5–4.2 and 4.4–5 μm, respectively, and an average energy utilization efficiency across the entire operational range of 3.5–5 μm was elevated to 72%, which is 1.44 times higher than that of conventional filter-based systems. The designed routers were realized by standard nanofabrication processes that transfer the designed patterns into a gold film on a ZnS substrate. The spectral measurements show that the fabricated routers have a routing performance close to the simulation results.