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Research on Lamb wave-based damage identification in plate-like structures depends on precise knowledge of dispersive wave velocity. However, boundary reflections with the same frequency of interest and greater amplitude contaminate direct waves and thus compromise measurement of Lamb wave dispersion in different materials. In this study, non-reflecting boundaries were proposed in both numerical and experimental cases to facilitate time-frequency characterization of Lamb wave dispersion. First, the Lamb wave equations in isotropic and laminated materials were analytically solved. Second, the nonreflecting boundaries were used as a series of frames with gradually increased damping coefficients in finite element models to absorb waves at boundaries while avoiding wave reflections due to abrupt property changes of each frame. Third, damping clay was sealed at plate edges to reduce the boundary reflection in experimental test. Finally, the direct waves were subjected to the slant-stack and short-time Fourier transformations to calculate the dispersion curves of phase and group velocities, respectively. Both the numerical and experimental results suggest that the boundary reflections are effectively alleviated, and the dispersion curves generated by the time-frequency analysis are consistent with the analytical solutions, demonstrating that the combination of non-reflecting boundary and time-frequency analysis is a feasible and reliable scheme for characterizing Lamb wave dispersion in plate-like structures.q [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the digital era, Electronic Word-of-Mouth (eWOM) — the online sharing of opinions and information about movies — has become a crucial factor influencing box office performance. Social media posts, reviews, and ratings shape audience perceptions and impact their choices. This study aims to comprehensively analyze the influence of eWOM on movie box office revenue, identifying key research areas, seminal works, and influential authors in this field, along with highlighting research trends through keyword analysis. The results reveal that the research field is divided into three stages: initial, exploratory, and empirical, with recent emphasis on factors such as the quantity, quality, and credibility of eWOM, significantly affecting consumer behavior. The study also identifies key eWOM research trends, including movie marketing, relevance analysis, and sentiment analysis of reviews. Target audiences include film industry professionals and academic researchers interested in understanding the role of eWOM in enhancing box office performance.

The article compares two works — «Manchurian Princess» by Russian emigrant writer A. Heidok and «Spring in a Small Town» by Chinese writer Xiao Hong, which were created in approximately the same epoch and reproduce the same place of action — the north-east of China. Heidok’s work appealed to the mystical ideas of Chinese culture (the idea of reincarnation); Xiao Hong’s work was deeply influenced by Russian classical literature. Both stories present a story of tragic love, which breaks the traditions of a conservative society and radically changes the lives of the characters. The meaning of the characters’ lives lies in returning to the true nature of man — love, because only in it does existence find meaning; at the same time, the theme of love is closely intertwined with the theme of death. In both works there is an intersection of different epochs — the past and the present; at the same time, it is the past that determines the course of events of the present. Specific situations of the characters’ lives are revealed in a broad historical and cultural space, which allows the author to put before the readers the most important ethical and philosophical problems. A. Heidok’s story shows how life in the previous birth influences the actions of a person in subsequent births; in Xiao Hong’s story «the past» is the power of tradition, which does not allow a girl to get an education and determine her own destiny.

An optical system is considered that ensures the concentration of radiation from an LED emitting within a hemisphere onto a near-field illuminated area. The system is proposed to consider such a system as a composition of two zones — the central zone, which is a lens, and the zone responsible for capturing radiation from the LED within an angle of 40 to 90 degrees. Variants with a central zone in the form of bi-aspherical and sphero-elliptical lenses of finite thickness are analyzed. The alternative variant of the concentrating system composed from a collimating TIR lens and additional focusing lens is also analyzed. The expressions are given that allow analyzing possible concentration efficiency and the light spot size, and examples of systems are given designed with taking into account theoretical analysis results. Factors are discussed that define the choice of the required configuration. The results have shown the good agreement between the theoretical approach and practical design results. The optical elements designed as examples showed the high optical efficiency (near 90 %), thus such approach can be used for designing the LED optical systems for efficient light flux concentration, for example operating with fiber bundle as needed in some optical — electronic devices.

The paper considers a design method for a side-emitting lens working with a single LED source and providing a narrow light beam in the horizontal direction within 360°. The authors deal with the composing method in the design, which is usually used to synthesize the initial scheme of the imaging systems. However, in this case, a similar approach is applied to the synthesis of a system, the task of which is to provide a certain shape and characteristics of the light beam. The stage of choosing an initial principal design and synthesis for non-imaging optics is especially important since this area is characterized by the use of so-called local optimization, the result of which strongly depends on the original system. Therefore, the stage of forming an initial approximation of the system becomes crucial. In this case, the composing method can provide the most effective choice of an initial scheme of a side-emitting lens. The application of the composing method and the theory of aberrations in the field of synthesis of the initial design of a side-emitting lens is shown. The paper describes a method for selecting the key parameters of the system, and presents the relationships that allow a preliminary evaluation of the characteristics of the designed system without the use of time-consuming calculation or optimization procedures. The presented approach makes it possible to ensure the choice of the initial point of the system for further optimization, as well as to achieve high efficiency of using the light flux by the optical system of the lens (up to 90 %), only due to the optimal size of the zones into which the beam is divided and to the optimal parameters of the generating curves. In this case, the lens profile is formed by two zones in each the profile is a conic curve, hence, the curve can be described by a small number of parameters, which is very convenient at the stage of searching the initial scheme. The proposed approach can be applied in the design of such systems, as well as applied at the stage of preliminary assessment of achievable characteristics, which can significantly speed up the development process.

The study is devoted to reparative regeneration of supporting tissue in the area of the defect using the methods of acupuncture with stimulation of biological active points when modeling delayed apposition of fragments. Material and methods. The work was performed using laboratory animals of the Chinchilla rabbits, at the age of 6 months. The delayed apposition of shin bone fragments was simulated in all animals. In the dynamics of the study, an assessment of radiological and morphological changes in the area of the bone defect was performed. After the fragments were compared and fixed using animal randomization methods, the animals were divided into two groups – the control and the main group, in which the biologically active points were stimulated. Results and discussion. The evaluation of the supporting tissue regeneration in the defect zone under the influence of proposed biologically active points combination by the method of acupuncture within the conditions of delayed apposition of shin bone fragments has revealed physiological change of regeneration phases with the formation of differentiated bone tissue and bone marrow elements to the 50th day of the study. The 2 fold predominance of bone tissue, 2 fold — the bone marrow substance, a decrease in cartilage tissue, the absence of fibrous connective tissue have been revealed compared with the control group, where the slowdown in the physiological change of regeneration phases and the formation of regenerate supporting tissue in the form of pseudarthrosis have been revealed.

При встречи с политическими, историческими и культурными особенностями континентального Китая, Гонконга и Тайваня, возникают проблемные вопросы, связанные с пониманием разновидностей национальной/культурной самобытности, которые могут быть порождены ими. Что касается этих трех кинематографов на китайском языке, то традиционный подход к национальному кинематографу, ориентированный преимущественно на национальное государство как источник смысла, обеспечит лишь ограниченное понимание генерируемых смыслов. Данная статья опирается на теорию «воображаемых сообществ» Бенедикта Андерсона (1991), которая предполагает, что большая часть людей считает себя членами «нации» (и здесь мы интерпретируем этот термин широко и за пределами понимания географических границ и политических систем) через различные исторические наследия, культурную память и акты потребления. В этой статье мы исходим из того, что существует общее культурное значение (а именно «китайскость»), которое распространяется на три кинематографа на китайском языке и рассматривает культурное родство и существует как нечто большее, чем национальные и политические границы.

Anime adaptations may not be as common as other kinds of adaptations during the 21st century; the few that have been done and released all have been met with negative reviews from both critics and fans alike. Some of the issues raised in regards to anime adaptations are casting Caucasian actors and actresses as characters of Asian origin, and that maintaining complete fidelity to the source material has proven to be an insurmountable task altogether. That is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the list of problems found in anime adaptations. Despite the growing list of bad apples that have been released, one recent anime adaptation has been showered with praise and acclaim by many people, and that is the 2019 film Alita: Battle Angel. Currently acting as a gold standard for all anime adaptations being done in Hollywood, this article looks at how Alita: Battle Angel successfully tackles the various aspects that have plagued anime adaptations in the past.

The problem of regeneration of bone structure and joint cartilage is one of the priority programs of scientific research. Regulation of bone formation at the damage is carried out by complex set of factors. A reflection of the regeneration processes is the dynamics of blood parameters, among which are the indicators of inflammatory reaction of the organism, and condition of phagocytosis system. One way to control the severity of impaired reparative regeneration is the analysis of immunological tests of the first order. The aim of our study was to investigate nonspecific resistance of the organism for any breach of reparative regeneration of bone in the lower leg. The study was performed on rabbits "Chinchilla" which simulated the breach of the terms of reparative regeneration. We assessed leukocyte profile and indicators of phagocytosis in experimental animals. Status of the phagocytic activity of blood neutrophils was evaluated on the following parameters: phagocytic index, phagocytic number, nitroblue tetrazolium test, the concentration of circulating immune complexes. We found broken shin bone reparative regeneration of rabbit at fiftieth day of observations is accompanied by leukocytosis with increased segmented neutrophils and a decrease in lymphocytes, inhibition of phagocytosis, and violation of the elimination of circulating immune complexes.

Recently, the ubiquitin–proteasome pathway has emerged as a crucial pathway for protein turnover, and it has also been identified as an important factor for insulin synthesis. This pathway plays a critical role inside β cells; therefore, it has naturally been linked with various insulin-related diseases, most notably type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), but also other metabolic diseases and symptoms such as obesity and atherosclerotic plaques. The UBE2E2 gene encodes ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme E2 E2 (UBE2E2), which plays an important role in the synthesis and secretion of insulin. UBE2E2 is a protein expressed in the pancreas, liver, and adipose tissue, as well as in an insulin-secreting cell line . The results of some studies have indicated that single nucleotide polymorphisms on UBE2E2 (rs6780569, rs7612463, rs9812056) are associated with T2DM risk in Japanese, Korean and Chinese populations. Therefore, the UBE2E2 gene has started to draw interest from researchers because of its newly discovered relationships with various diseases.