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Previously, the types of impacts of land–atmosphere interactions have scarcely been clarified systematically. In this article, we present a classification of these impacts based on modeling boundary layer variables/parameters, which is grouped into local, regional, and remote impacts. In the narrow sense, land surface processes (LSPs) influence the atmospheric state via vertical land–atmosphere coupling at local scales, which is referred to as local LSP impacts. However, local LSP impacts can lead to the advection effect due to the horizontal heterogeneity in the parameters over a region, which can be defined as regional LSP impacts. Furthermore, remote LSP impacts on the regional atmospheric state are induced by some land/sea surface variables/parameters over remote key areas of the Earth's surface, which are conventionally taken as strong signals of climate variation. Of the three impacts, local impacts are the most important essential, as the other two types of impacts are derived from these impacts. We describe the quantification of local impacts based on our previous studies from the perspective of modeling approaches, and we discuss some issues related to these impacts. Previous investigations showed that local LSP impacts are mostly stronger than regional LSP impacts, e.g., the diabatic process is dominant in the physical processes responsible for daily maximum temperatures, and two first-order physical processes including vertical diffusion largely induce changes in surface wind speed in China. Finally, some aspects for future research are noted. This study provides insights into the research on land–atmosphre interactions at different scales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water is a fundamental and crucial natural resource for human survival. However, the global demand for water is increasing, leading to a subsequent decrease in water availability. This study addresses the critical need for improved water resource forecasting models amidst global water scarcity concerns exacerbated by climate change. This study uses the best weather and water resource forecasting model for sustainable development. Employing a Recurrent Neural Network–Long Short-Term Memory (RNN-LSTM) approach, the research enhances drought prediction capabilities by integrating secondary data of the rainfall, temperature, and ground and surface water supplies. The primary objective is to forecast water resources under changing climatic conditions, facilitating the development of early warning systems for vulnerable regions. The results from the LSTM model show an increased trend in temperature and rainfall patterns. However, a relatively unstable decrease in rainfall is observed. The best statistical analysis result was observed with the LSTM model; the model's accuracy was 99%, showing that it was quite good at presenting the obtained precipitation, temperature, and water data. Meanwhile, the value of the root mean squared error (RMSE) was about 13, 15, and 20, respectively. Therefore, the study's results highlight that the LSTM model was the most suitable among the artificial neural networks for forecasting the weather, rainfall, and water resources. This study will help weather forecasting, agriculture, and meteorological departments be effective for water resource forecasting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In South China, the large quantity of rainfall in the pre-summer rainy season can easily lead to natural disasters, which emphasizes the importance of improving the accuracy of precipitation forecasting during this period for the social and economic development of the region. In this paper, the back-propagation neural network (BPNN) is used to establish the model for precipitation forecasting. Three schemes are applied to improve the model performance: (1) predictors are selected based on individual meteorological stations within the region rather than the region as a whole; (2) the triangular irregular network (TIN) is proposed to preprocess the observed precipitation data for input of the BPNN model, while simulated/forecast precipitation is the expected output; and (3) a genetic algorithm is used for the hyperparameter optimization of the BPNN. The first scheme reduces the mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) and the root mean square error (RMSE) of the simulation by roughly 5% and more than 15 mm; the second reduces the MAPE and RMSE by more than 15% and 15 mm, respectively, while the third improves the simulation inapparently. Obviously, the second scheme raises the upper limit of the model simulation capability greatly by preprocessing the precipitation data. During the training and validation periods, the MAPE of the improved model can be controlled at approximately 35%. For precipitation hindcasting in the test period, the anomaly rate is less than 50% in only one season, and the highest is 64.5%. According to the anomaly correlation coefficient and Ps score of the hindcast precipitation, the improved model performance is slightly better than the FGOALS-f2 model. Although global climate change makes the predictors more variable, the trend of simulation is almost identical to that of the observed values over the whole period, suggesting that the model is able to capture the general characteristics of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD), characterized by macular retinal degeneration, poses a significant health concern due to the lack of effective treatments for prevalent dry AMD. The progression of AMD is closely linked to reactive oxygen species and Fas signaling, emphasizing the need for targeted interventions. In this study, we utilized a NaIO3-induced retinal degeneration mouse model to assess the efficacy of Fas-blocking peptide (FBP). Intravitreal administration of FBP successfully suppressed Fas-mediated inflammation and apoptosis, effectively arresting AMD progression in mice. We developed a 6R-conjugated FBP (6R-FBP) for eye drop administration. 6R-FBP, administered as an eye drop, reached the retinal region, attenuating degeneration by modulating the expression of inflammatory cytokines and blocking Fas-mediated apoptosis in rodent and rabbit NaIO3-induced retinal degeneration models to address practical concerns. Intravitreal FBP and 6R-FBP eye drops effectively reduced retinal degeneration and improved retinal thickness in rodent and rabbit models. This study highlights the therapeutic potential of FBP, particularly 6R-FBP as an eye drop, in inhibiting Fas-mediated cell signaling and protecting against retinal cell death and inflammation in dry AMD. Future investigations should explore the translational prospects of this approach in primates with eye structures comparable to those of humans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Logistics centers (LCs) have become a critical component of supply chain networks, playing an essential role in the development and implementation of logistics and supply chain management strategies. Recognizing the importance of LCs, Pakistan and China have initiated an extensive plan to establish and expand an LC system as part of the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) initiative. However, the implementation of this plan has faced challenges due to the inadequate prioritization of factors used to identify LCs. This research proposes a structured framework for selecting LC locations, employing a combination of fuzzy logic and the technique for order of preference by similarity to the ideal solution (TOPSIS). These widely used methods address various challenges encountered in location selection. The findings highlight crucial logistics hubs in China and Pakistan, emphasizing factors such as port accessibility, freight demand, and transportation costs. The prioritization of criteria for LC selection is determined through the evaluation of variables and alternatives. The proposed framework enhances decision-making based on multiple criteria by addressing uncertainty and subjective assessments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ischemic stroke-induced neuronal cell death leads to the permanent impairment of brain function. The Fas-mediating extrinsic apoptosis pathway and the cytochrome c-mediating intrinsic apoptosis pathway are two major molecular mechanisms contributing to neuronal injury in ischemic stroke. In this study, we employed a Fas-blocking peptide (FBP) coupled with a positively charged nona-arginine peptide (9R) to form a complex with negatively charged siRNA targeting Bax (FBP9R/siBax). This complex is specifically designed to deliver siRNA to Fas-expressing ischemic brain cells. This complex enables the targeted inhibition of Fas-mediating extrinsic apoptosis pathways and cytochrome c-mediating intrinsic apoptosis pathways. Specifically, the FBP targets the Fas/Fas ligand signaling, while siBax targets Bax involved in mitochondria disruption in the intrinsic pathway. The FBP9R carrier system enables the delivery of functional siRNA to hypoxic cells expressing the Fas receptor on their surface—a finding validated through qPCR and confocal microscopy analyses. Through intranasal (IN) administration of FBP9R/siCy5 to middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) ischemic rat models, brain imaging revealed the complex specifically localized to the Fas-expressing infarcted region but did not localize in the non-infarcted region of the brain. A single IN administration of FBP9R/siBax demonstrated a significant reduction in neuronal cell death by effectively inhibiting Fas signaling and preventing the release of cytochrome c. The targeted delivery of FBP9R/siBax represents a promising alternative strategy for the treatment of brain ischemia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Daylighting has emerged as a prominent strategy for elevating indoor environments by harmonizing visual comfort and energy efficiency. This paper introduces a louver system crafted for energy simulations, specifically tailored to address lighting and cooling requirements in office spaces. Louvers, acknowledged for their exceptional efficiency in providing daylight, are integrated as a pivotal energy-saving technique. Adopting a quantitative research approach facilitated by building information simulation tools, DIALUX evo and Rhino were employed for modeling and simulating the building's daylighting performances. The simulation outcomes reveal substantial energy savings, particularly in the realms of lighting and cooling. Notably, a 50% louver opening in office spaces results in an impressive 27.0% reduction in energy consumption. The study explores various louver configurations, providing insights into both lighting and cooling energy savings. The overall system performance excels in sustaining consistent daylight, significantly contributing to enhanced energy efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Apoptosis plays a crucial role in neuronal injury, with substantial evidence implicating Fas-mediated cell death as a key factor in ischemic strokes. To address this, inhibition of Fas-signaling has emerged as a promising strategy in preventing neuronal cell death and alleviating brain ischemia. However, the challenge of overcoming the blood–brain barrier (BBB) hampers the effective delivery of therapeutic drugs to the central nervous system (CNS). In this study, we employed a 30 amino acid-long leptin peptide to facilitate BBB penetration. By conjugating the leptin peptide with a Fas-blocking peptide (FBP) using polyethylene glycol (PEG), we achieved specific accumulation in the Fas-expressing infarction region of the brain following systemic administration. Notably, administration in leptin receptor-deficient db/db mice demonstrated that leptin facilitated the delivery of FBP peptide. We found that the systemic administration of leptin-PEG-FBP effectively inhibited Fas-mediated apoptosis in the ischemic region, resulting in a significant reduction of neuronal cell death, decreased infarct volumes, and accelerated recovery. Importantly, neither leptin nor PEG-FBP influenced apoptotic signaling in brain ischemia. Here, we demonstrate that the systemic delivery of leptin-PEG-FBP presents a promising and viable strategy for treating cerebral ischemic stroke. Our approach not only highlights the therapeutic potential but also emphasizes the importance of overcoming BBB challenges to advance treatments for neurological disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The vaccination campaign against SARS-CoV-2 relies on the world-wide availability of effective vaccines, with a potential need of 20 billion vaccine doses to fully vaccinate the world population. To reach this goal, the manufacturing and logistic processes should be affordable to all countries, irrespective of economical and climatic conditions. Outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) are bacterial-derived vesicles that can be engineered to incorporate heterologous antigens. Given the inherent adjuvanticity, such modified OMVs can be used as vaccines to induce potent immune responses against the associated proteins. Here, we show that OMVs engineered to incorporate peptides derived from the receptor binding motif (RBM) of the spike protein from SARS-CoV-2 elicit an effective immune response in vaccinated mice, resulting in the production of neutralizing antibodies (nAbs) with a titre higher than 1:300. The immunity induced by the vaccine is sufficient to protect the animals from intranasal challenge with SARS-CoV-2, preventing both virus replication in the lungs and the pathology associated with virus infection. Furthermore, we show that OMVs can be effectively decorated with the RBM of the Omicron BA.1 variant and that such engineered OMVs induce nAbs against Omicron BA.1 and BA.5, as measured using the pseudovirus neutralization infectivity assay. Importantly, we show that the RBM438–509 ancestral-OMVs elicited antibodies which efficiently neutralize in vitro both the homologous ancestral strain, the Omicron BA.1 and BA.5 variants with a neutralization titre ranging from 1:100 to 1:1500, suggesting its potential use as a vaccine targeting diverse SARS-CoV-2 variants. Altogether, given the convenience associated with the ease of engineering, production and distribution, our results demonstrate that OMV-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccines can be a crucial addition to the vaccines currently available. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy needs have increased with global advancements and industrial revolutions. Electrical energy utilization shares a huge amount of energy with residential and industrial loads. Traditional energy resources are expensive and polluting, producing greenhouse gasses, which is a major environmental concern. Solar energy utilization is a cost-effective, sustainable, and green solution to meet the ongoing energy demand. Concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) systems are developed for energy conversion by providing high efficiency using multi-junction solar cells. This paper provides an overview of the recent optical developments in CPV systems and emerging technologies that are likely to shape the future of CPV systems. The objective of this article is to provide an overview of the issues that need to be resolved to improve the geometrical concentration, acceptance angle, uniformity, and optical efficiency of CPV systems. A comprehensive comparison is also presented on different types of solar concentrators. In addition, future research directions are presented to facilitate the continued growth and success of CPV systems. Furthermore, this review article gives an up-to-date and widespread overview of CPV technology, assesses its potential for various applications, and distinguishes the challenges and opportunities for future research and development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maritime security is facing many challenges due to war conflicts, geopolitics, sanctions, and pandemics. The supply chain for maritime containers has faced considerable obstacles as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Numerous factors, such as port closures, travel restrictions, and a decreased workforce, have impacted the supply chain. The risk of cargo theft, piracy, and other security events has increased as a result of these difficulties. Therefore, it is essential to look at the risk variables that may affect the security of the marine container supply chain during the pandemic. This research paper highlights those risks through the following three indexes: the likelihood index (LI), severity index (SI), and average risk index (ARI) by analyzing 64 risk factors that were prepared and designed by incorporating the Delphi expert survey technique to prepare a systematic questionnaire. The article addresses worries over the COVID-19 pandemic's effects on international supply networks. The causes of the most recent global shipping industry disruptions and their impact on supply chains have been thoroughly examined. In order to reduce the number of disruptions in global supply chains and lower the direct and indirect costs for consumers, the authors have also mentioned the necessary actions that must be implemented. The results concluded after the analysis pointed to "management activities," such as human resources or the working environment as having the highest possibility of going wrong, whereas "operation activities" were judged to likely be the fatal ones if the security of maritime containers was ever compromised. The main objective of the study is to evaluate how the COVID-19 epidemic may affect international shipping, particularly container shipping, which is currently the most important link in the world's multimodal land–sea supply chains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Postpartum depression (PPD) can predispose to physical and mental health problems in Pakistani women. However, PPD is associated with health and perceived social support, yet their causal relationship is unclear. Therefore, this study intended to evaluate the association of PPD with insomnia, mental health, and physical health. The convenience sampling technique was used to collect data from 320 (52.8%) young and middle-aged postpartum women, at the outpatient departments of obstetrics and gynecology of the Government Maula Bakhsh Hospital, District Head Quarter in Sargodha, Pakistan. The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Warwick–Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale, patient health questionnaire, and Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support were used to measure study variables. The results revealed a significant positive relationship between PPD and physical health (r = 0.45, p = 0.001), negative relationships with insomnia (r = −0.24, p < 0.001), and perceived social support (r = −0.38, p = 0.001). Results further confirmed that perceived social support played a moderating role (β = 0.97, p = 0.01) in the relationship between PPD and mental health among Pakistani women. This study concluded that perceived social support has an important role in PPD and the health of Pakistani women. The study also concluded that poor health is a risk indicator for the identification of aid in the early stages of postpartum among Pakistani women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the importance of swift responses and the necessity of dependable technologies for vaccine development. Our team previously developed a fast cloning system for the modified vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA) vaccine platform. In this study, we reported on the construction and preclinical testing of a recombinant MVA vaccine obtained using this system. We obtained recombinant MVA expressing the unmodified full-length SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) protein containing the D614G amino-acid substitution (MVA-Sdg) and a version expressing a modified S protein containing amino-acid substitutions designed to stabilize the protein a in a pre-fusion conformation (MVA-Spf). S protein expressed by MVA-Sdg was found to be expressed and was correctly processed and transported to the cell surface, where it efficiently produced cell–cell fusion. Version Spf, however, was not proteolytically processed, and despite being transported to the plasma membrane, it failed to induce cell–cell fusion. We assessed both vaccine candidates in prime-boost regimens in the susceptible transgenic K18-human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (K18-hACE2) in mice and in golden Syrian hamsters. Robust immunity and protection from disease was induced with either vaccine in both animal models. Remarkably, the MVA-Spf vaccine candidate produced higher levels of antibodies, a stronger T cell response, and a higher degree of protection from challenge. In addition, the level of SARS-CoV-2 in the brain of MVA-Spf inoculated mice was decreased to undetectable levels. Those results add to our current experience and range of vaccine vectors and technologies for developing a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluated multiple aspects of flood risks and effects on the Cinan Feizuo flood protection area in the Huaihe River basin. Flooding remains a leading problem for infrastructure, especially in urban, residential areas of the region. Effective flood modeling for urbanized floodplains is challenging, but MIKE (ID-2D) is paramount for analyzing and quantifying the risk in the vulnerable region. The Saint-Venant equation and a one-dimensional (1D) MIKE 11 model were used to understand the flood dynamics in the Huaihe River, and a two-dimensional (2D) MIKE 21 model was applied to assess the risk in the Cinan Feizuo flood protection area. The finite volume method (FVM) was used for discrete grid problems, and the models were coupled through the weir equation to find the flow volume from the 1D domain to the 2D domain to investigate water level changes. Flood inundation maps were generated for the flood protection area. The maximum discharge, velocity, and submerged depth for 50- and 100-year flood events were assessed with flood risk. Chenbei indicated a high flood risk level in 50 to 100 years in which the water level exceeds a high level and inundates the maximum area with minimum time. Conversely, the 100-year flood inundation in the flood protection area was comparatively higher than the 50-year flood, with a lower time step. The risk analysis identified significant damage caused by the flood over the target regions. The findings of this study provide technical support for flood risk analysis and loss assessment within the flood protection area and have important reference values for regional flood control, disaster reduction decision making, and constructive planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study was intended to examine the effect of psychosocial factors on the stigma of mental illness among people addicted to drugs who have relapsed in Punjab, Pakistan. A sample composed of 116 people addicted to drugs and who have relapsed was collected through the purposive sampling technique. Certain self-report measures were used to assess the pertinent study variables. The results elucidated that self-efficacy, social support, and conscientiousness were found to be negative predictors and neuroticism a positive predictor of stigma. The results also confirmed social support as being a significant moderator in the relationship between self-efficacy and stigma, and self-efficacy as being a significant moderator in the relationship between social support and stigma. It was safe to conclude that psychosocial factors such as self-efficacy, social support, personality traits and stigma have a significant role in causing addiction relapse. The conclusions made have been discussed thoroughly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last five decades, Pakistan experienced its worst drought from 1998 to 2002 and its worst flood in 2010. This study determined the record-breaking impacts of the droughts (1998–2002) and the flood (2010) and analyzed the given 12-year period, especially the follow-on period when the winter wheat crop was grown. We identified the drought, flood, and warm and cold edges over the plain of Punjab Pakistan based on a 12-year time series (2003–2014), using the vegetation temperature condition index (VTCI) approach based on Aqua Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data products. During the year 2010, the Global Flood Monitoring System (GFMS) model applied to the real-time Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) rainfall incorporated data products into the TRMM Multi-Satellite Precipitation Analysis (TMPA) for the flood detection/intensity, stream flow, and daily accumulative precipitation, and presented the plain provisions to wetlands. This study exhibits drought severity, warm and cold edges, and flood levels using the VTCI drought-monitoring approach, which utilizes a combination of the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) with land surface temperature (LST) data products. It was found that during the years 2003–2014, the VTCI had a positive correlation coefficient (r) with the cumulative precipitation (r = 0.60) on the day of the year (D-073) in the winter. In the year 2010, at D-201, there was no proportionality (nonlinear), and at D-217, a negative correlation was established. This revealed the time, duration, and intensity of the flood at D-201 and D-217, and described the heavy rainfall, stream flow, and flood events. At D-233 and D-281 during 2010, a significant positive correlation was noticed in normal conditions (r = 0.95 in D-233 and r= 0.97 in D-281 during the fall of 2010), which showed the flood events and normality. Notably, our results suggest that VTCI can be used for drought and wet conditions in both rain-fed and irrigated regions. The results are consistent with anomalies in the GFMS model using the spatial and temporal observations of the MODIS, TRMM, and TMPA satellites, which describe the dry and wet conditions, as well as flood runoff stream flow and flood detection/intensity, in the region of Punjab during 2010. It should be noted that the flood (2010) affected the area, and the production of the winter wheat crop has consistently declined from 19.041 to 17.7389 million tons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Punjab region of Pakistan faced significant losses from flash flooding in 2010 and experienced a multiyear drought during 1998–2002. The current study illustrates the drought and flood conditions using the multi-satellite data products derived from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) as well as the TRMM Multi-satellite Precipitation Analysis (TMPA) satellites with high-quality resolution in the region of Punjab during 2010–2014. To determine the drought and flood events, we used the Vegetation Temperature Condition Index (VTCI) drought monitoring approach combined with the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Land Surface Temperature (LST) to identify the warm and cold edges (WACE) in the provision of soil moisture as well as the VTCI imagery using the MODIS-Aqua data products. We assessed the 2010 flood effect on the four years (2011–2014) of drought conditions during winter wheat crop seasons. The obtained VTCI imagery and precipitation data were utilized to validate the drought and flood conditions in the year 2010 and the drought conditions in the years 2011–2014 during the winter-wheat-crop season. It is worth mentioning that over the four years (2011–2014) of the Julian day~D-041 year, the VTCI shows a stronger link with the accumulative precipitation anomaly (r = 0.77). It was found that for D-201 during the 2010 flood was the relationship was nonlinear, and in D-217, there was a negative relationship which revealed the flood timing, duration, and intensity. For D-281, a correlation (r = 0.97) was noted during fall 2010, which showed the drought and flood extreme conditions for the winter-wheat-crop season in the year 2010–2014. In regard to 2010, the Global Flood Monitoring System (GFMS) model employs the TRMM and TMPA data products to display the study region during the 2010 flood events and validate the VTCI results. This study's spatial and temporal observations based on the observed results of the MODIS, TRMM, and TMPA satellites are in good agreement with dry and wet conditions as well as the flood runoff stream flow and flood intensity. It demonstrates the flood events with high intensity compared with the normality of flood with the complete establishment of flood events and weather extremes during the year of 2011–2014, thereby highlighting the natural hazards impacts. Our findings show that the winter wheat harvest was affected by the 2010 monsoon's summer high rain and floods in the plain of Punjab (Pakistan). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electric vehicles (EVs) are rapidly becoming a sustainable and viable mode of future transportation due to their multitude of advantages, such as reduced CO2 emissions, local air pollutants, and vehicular noise. This study aims to identify and analyze the scientific literature using bibliometric analysis to determine the main topics of authors, their sources, and the most-cited articles, countries, journals, and institutes in the literature on EVs. This bibliometric analysis included scientific work that was published from 2011 to 2022 to provide a thorough analysis of EVs, which will assist researchers and policymakers in understanding the most current global EV advancements. This analysis extracted all bibliometric information about EVs from the Scopus database, collecting 17,150 articles published between 2011 and 2022. The data were sorted for analysis by publication year, document type, author, institute, country, cited author, keyword, and keyword co-occurrence of the EVs. The VOSviewer software was employed to examine the sorted data due to its excellent analysis and visualization capabilities. We used VOSviewer to graphically represent the density, co-occurrence, trends, and linkage of the aforementioned data comprehensibly. The publishing patterns of EVs indicate that the research field is evolving, with a yearly increase in the number of publications. The analysis showed that China, the United States, and the United Kingdom are leading in EV research and large-scale applications. Furthermore, China is the leading country in terms of research institutions and authors involved in EVs. The journal Energies is the most prominent publication periodical. Keyword analysis revealed that during the past decade, EV research has concentrated on battery-management systems, energy storage, charging infrastructure, environmental concerns, etc. The bibliometric study offered pertinent details on the main themes explored concerning EVs and current technological developments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)-based ionospheric anomalies are nowadays used to identify a possible earthquake (EQ) precursor and hence a new research topic in seismic studies. The current study also aims to provide an investigation of ionospheric anomalies associated to EQs. In order to study possible pre-and post-seismic perturbations during the preparation phase of large-magnitude EQs, statistical and machine learning algorithms are applied to Total Electron Content (TEC) from the Global Positioning System (GPS) and Global Ionosphere Maps (GIMs). We observed TEC perturbation from the Sukkur (27.8° N, 68.9° E) GNSS station near the epicenter of Mw 5.4 Mirpur EQ within 5–10 days before the main shock day by implementing machine learning and statistical analysis. However, no TEC anomaly occurred in GIM-TEC over the Mirpur EQ epicenter. Furthermore, machine learning and statistical techniques are also implemented on GIM TEC data before and after the Mw 7.7 Awaran, where TEC anomalies can be clearly seen within 5–10 days before the seismic day and the subsequent rise in TEC during the 2 days after the main shock. These variations are also evident in GIM maps over the Awaran EQ epicenter. The findings point towards a large emission of EQ energy before and after the main shock during quiet storm days, which aid in the development of lithosphere ionosphere coupling. However, the entire analysis can be expanded to more satellite and ground-based measurements in Pakistan and other countries to reveal the pattern of air ionization from the epicenter through the atmosphere to the ionosphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Featured Application: The significant feature of Wi-Fi 6 and beyond generations is a beamforming technology that allows the antenna arrays in a router or a client device (such as a tablet) to send and receive information over Wi-Fi in a desired direction. Conventionally, this is achieved using the commercially available phase shifters connected to the antennas. In contrast to commercially available phase shifters, the proposed novel phase shifters do not require additional electronics biasing circuitry, thus saving space and reducing the burden of additional power requirements at the Wi-Fi router. A linear phased array antenna excited with a novel composite right/left-handed (CRLH) phase shifters structure is proposed. The phase of the conventional CRLH transmission line is controlled with magnetically aligned micron-sized particles embedded inside the unit cell of the CRLH transmission line. The cascading of unit cells produces the desired phase shifts for the main beam scanning of the linear antenna array operating at a 5.5 GHz center frequency for Wi-Fi 6 applications. The proposed phase shifter design has a very low insertion loss (0.5–2 dB), excellent matching characteristics with the antenna array (less than −10 dB) and a small phase error (1–2 degrees). A 1 × 4 linear patch antenna phased array operating at a 5.5 GHz center frequency of the Wi-Fi 6 band is simulated using the Method of Moments (MoM) simulator platform. Then, the array is driven with the proposed novel CRLH phase shifters for the main beam at broadside and the main beam steered at 15- and 30-degree scan angles toward the desired users. For experimental validation, multiple unit cells of the proposed phase shifters are fabricated, and the 1 × 4 patch antenna array is fed with these fabricated unit cells of the phase shifters. The phased array radiation patterns are measured using an in-house fully calibrated anechoic chamber and were compared with simulated phased array patterns. The measured phased array patterns are in good agreement with the simulated patterns. As compared with commercially available phase shifters, the proposed novel CRLH phase shifters do not need external complex biasing circuitry, which is a major advantage in space constraint limitations at the router side of multi-user MIMO-OFDM systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The search for Earthquake (EQ) precursors in the ionosphere and atmosphere from satellite data has provided significant information about the upcoming main shock. This study presents the abnormal atmospheric and ionospheric perturbations associated with the Mw 7.2 Haiti EQ on 14 August 2021 at geographical coordinates (18° N, 73° W) and shallow hypocentral depth of 10 km from the data of permanent Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) stations near the epicenter, followed by Swarm satellites data. The total vertical electron (VTEC) anomalies occur within a 5-day window before the main shock in the analysis of nearby operation stations, followed by Swarm (A and C satellites) ionospheric anomalies in the same 5-day window before the main shock. Moreover, the geomagnetic activities are completely quiet within 10 days before and 10 days after the main shock. Similarly, the atmospheric parameters endorse the EQ anomalies within 5 days before the main shock day. The evolution of gases from the lithosphere at the epicentral region possessed significant atmospheric and ionospheric perturbations within the EQ preparation period of 5-day before the main shock under the hypothesis of Lithosphere-Atmosphere-Ionosphere Coupling (LAIC). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The modern digital world and associated innovative and state-of-the-art applications that characterize its presence, render the current digital age a captivating era for many worldwide. These innovations include dialogue systems, such as Apple's Siri, Google Now, and Microsoft's Cortana, that stay on the personal devices of users and assist them in their daily activities. These systems track the intentions of users by analyzing their speech, context by looking at their previous turns, and several other external details, and respond or act in the form of speech output. For these systems to work efficiently, a dialogue state tracking (DST) module is required to infer the current state of the dialogue in a conversation by processing previous states up to the current state. However, developing a DST module that tracks and exploit dialogue states effectively and accurately is challenging. The notable challenges that warrant immediate attention include scalability, handling the unseen slot-value pairs during training, and retraining the model with changes in the domain ontology. In this article, we present a new end-to-end framework by combining BERT, Stacked Bidirectional LSTM (BiLSTM), and a multiple attention mechanism to formalize DST as a classification problem and address the aforementioned issues. The BERT-based module encodes the user's and system's utterances. The Stacked BiLSTM extracts the contextual features and multiple attention mechanisms to calculate the attention between its hidden states and the utterance embeddings. We experimentally evaluated our method against the current approaches over a variety of datasets. The results indicate a significant overall improvement. The proposed model is scalable in terms of sharing the parameters and it considers the unseen instances during training. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A conformal cylindrical phased array antenna excited with composite right/left-handed (CRLH) phase shifters is proposed. The phase tuning of the CRLH phase shifter is achieved by embedding novel magneto-static field-responsive micron-sized particles in its structure. It is shown that through the tiny magnet activation of these novel magneto-static particles at appropriate locations along the length of CRLH stub and inter-digital fingers, variable phase shifts are obtained. The proposed particle-based CRLH phase shifter operates in C-band (5–6) GHz with a low insertion loss and phase error. The 1 × 4 cylindrical phased array is excited with the four unit cells of the proposed particle-embedded CRLH transmission line phase shifters to scan the main beam at desired scan angles. A prototype of a 1 × 4 cylindrical phased array excited with the particle-based CRLH phase shifters was fabricated, and the results show that the simulated results are in close agreement with the measured results. The conformal cylindrical array with the proposed particle-based CRLH phase shifters has great potential for use in printed and flexible electronics design where commercially available phase shifters have a definite drawback. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pyramiding of major resistance (R) genes through marker-assisted selection (MAS) is a useful way to attain durable and broad-spectrum resistance against Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae pathogen, the causal agent of bacterial blight (BB) disease in rice (Oryza sativa L.). The present study was designed to pyramid four broad spectrum BB-R genes (Xa4, xa5, xa13 and Xa21) in the background of Basmati-385, an indica rice cultivar with much sought-after qualitative and quantitative grain traits. The cultivar, however, is susceptible to BB and was therefore, crossed with IRBB59 which possesses R genes xa5, xa13 and Xa21, to attain broad and durable resistance. A total of 19 F1 plants were obtained, some of which were backcrossed with Basmati-385 and large number of BC1F1 plants were obtained. In BC1F2 generation, 31 phenotypically superior genotypes having morphological features of Basmati-385, were selected and advanced up to BC1F6 population. Sequence-tagged site (STS)-based MAS was carried out and phenotypic selection was made in each successive generation. In BC1F6 population, potentially homozygous recombinant inbred lines (RILs) from each line were selected and evaluated on the bases of STS evaluation and resistance to local Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (Xoo) isolates. Line 23 was found pyramided with all four BB-R genes i.e., Xa4, xa5, xa13 and Xa21. Five genotypes including line 8, line 16, line 21, line 27 and line 28 were identified as pyramided with three R genes, Xa4, xa5 and xa13. Pathological study showed that rice lines pyramided with quadruplet or triplet R genes showed the highest level of resistance compared to doublet or singlet R genes. Thus, line 23 with quadruplet, and lines 8, 16, 21, 27, and 28 with triplet R genes, are recommended for replicated yield and resistance trials before release as new rice varieties. Further, traditional breeding coupled with MAS, is a solid way to attain highly effective BB-resistant rice lines with no yield cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cystic echinococcosis (CE), or hydatid cyst disease (HCD), is a zoonosis of significant importance caused by the cestode of Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato (s. l.) that affects mainly nomadic populations and has substantial economic consequences. Due to the 76% rural and nomadic population, Baluchistan is a highly endemic region in Pakistan for CE; however, it has not yet been investigated for CE. For this purpose, this study was carried out to investigate the molecular epidemiology of CE in this region. In total, 23 human hydatid cyst samples were collected from tertiary health care units in Baluchistan and processed for DNA extraction, which was then followed by sequencing of the cox1 mitochondrial gene of all 23 collected samples, genotyping, and phylogenetic and haplotype analysis. Most subjects were livestock owners (39.13%) in rural settings (73.91%). Most patients (73.19%) were pet owners (dogs) and used water from open sources for drinking. The liver was the most affected organ (52.17%), followed by the lungs (17.39%). Sequence analysis based on the cox1 gene revealed that EG genotype 1 (G1) was the most prevalent (56.52%), followed by G3 (34.78%), while some samples (8.7%) were identified as the Echinococcus canadensis (G6/7) genotype. A total of five haplotypes were detected with high haplotype diversity (0.80) and low nucleotide diversity (0.033). Phylogenetic analysis revealed two diverse sub-clades, each of G1 and G3 isolates from Baluchistan, that were evolutionarily related to previously reported G1 and G3 isolates from Pakistan and China. On the other hand, the G6/7 isolates of this study were evolutionarily identical to the already reported G6/7 isolates from Pakistan, Turkey, and Kazakhstan. This study concludes that diverse G1 and G3 EG isolates are present in this part of Pakistan, while the G6/G7 genotype was reported for the first time from Baluchistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objectives: Hereditary multiple exostoses (HME) is a disease characterized by cartilage-capped bony protuberances at the site of growth plates of long bones. Functional mutations in the exostosin genes (EXT1 and EXT2) are reported to affect the hedgehog signalling pathways leading to multiple enchondromatosis. However, the exact role of each EXT protein in the regulation of heparan sulphate (HS) chain elongation is still an enigma. In this study, a Pakistani family with HME is investigated to find out the genetic basis of the disease. Materials and Methods: Genotyping of eight members of the family by amplifying microsatellite markers, tightly linked to the EXT1 and EXT2 genes. Results: The study revealed linkage of the HME family to the EXT1 locus 8q24.1. Sanger sequencing identified a heterozygous deletion (c.247Cdel) in exon 1 of EXT1, segregating with the disease phenotype in the family. In silico analysis predicted a shift in the frame causing an early stop codon (p.R83GfsX52). The predicted dwarf protein constituting 134 amino acids was functionally aberrant with a complete loss of the catalytic domain at the C-terminus. Interestingly, an alternative open reading frame 3 (ORF3) caused by the frame shift is predicted to encode a protein sequence, identical to the wild type and containing the catalytic domain, but lacking the first 100 amino acids of the wild-type EXT1 protein. Conclusion: Consequently, haploinsufficiency could be the cause of HME in the investigated family as the mutated copy of EXT1 is ineffective for EXT-1/2 complex formation. The predicted ORF3 protein could be of great significance in understanding several aspects of HME pathogenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gap acceptance analysis is crucial for determining capacity and delay at uncontrolled intersections. The probability of a driver accepting an adequate gap changes over time, and in different intersection types and traffic circumstances. The majority of previous studies in this regard have assumed homogeneous traffic conditions, and applying them directly to heterogeneous traffic conditions may produce biased results. Moreover, driver behavior concerning critical gap acceptance or rejection in traffic also varies from one location to another. The current research focused on the estimation of critical gaps considering different vehicle types (cars, and two- and three-wheelers) under heterogenous traffic conditions at uncontrolled crossings in the city of Peshawar, Pakistan. A four-legged uncontrolled intersection in the study area was used to investigate drivers' gap acceptance behavior. The gaps were investigated for various vehicle types: two-wheelers, three-wheelers, and cars. For data collection, a video recording method was used, and Avidemux video editing software was used for data investigation. The study investigated the applicability of the maximum likelihood (MLM) method to analyzing a vehicle's critical gap. MLM estimation results indicate that the essential critical gap values for car drivers are in the range from 7.45 to 4.6 s; for two-wheelers, the critical gap was in the range from 6.78 to 4.7 s; and for three-wheelers, the values were in the range from 6.3 to 4.9 s. At an uncontrolled intersection, the proposed method's results can assist in distinguishing between different road user groups. This study's findings are intended to be useful to both researchers and practitioners, particularly in developing countries with similar traffic patterns and vehicle adherence patterns at unsignalized intersections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Encephalitis, a well-known complication of measles, is inflammation of the brain parenchyma which is mostly due to the viral invasion of neurons. It presents with a variety of symptoms ranging from mild to severe depending on the extent of the damaged neurons. The diagnosis is based on clinical symptoms such as fever, headache, altered level of consciousness, focal neurological deficits, etc. A detailed history and physical examination facilitate the diagnosis. Investigations include blood tests for measles-specific antibodies, CT, MRI, and analysis of the CSF. The management of measles-induced encephalitis mainly revolves around prevention against contracting the disease and providing supportive care if acquired. The administration of the measles vaccine is the major means of preventing this disease in childhood. Two doses are required to achieve sufficient immunity against measles, the first at the age of 12–15 months and the second at 4–6 years of age. Supportive care includes administering acetaminophen for fever, oral rehydrating salt (ORS) for diarrhea and vomiting, antibiotics for otitis media and pneumonia, and using anti-epileptics such as sodium valproate for seizures. Vitamin A can be given to prevent severe effects in children. The specific treatment would depend on the type of encephalitis the patient has developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing a cost-effective, efficient, and stable oxygen evolution reaction (OER) catalyst is of great importance for sustainable energy conversion and storage. In this study, we report a facile one-step fabrication of cationic surfactant-assisted Prussian blue analogues (PBAs) Mx[Fe(CN)5CH3C6H4NH2]∙yC19H34NBr abbreviated as SF[Fe-Tol-M] (where SF = N-tridecyl-3-methylpyridinium bromide and M = Mn, Co and Ni) as efficient heterogeneous OER electrocatalysts. The electrocatalysts have been characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). In the presence of cationic surfactant (SF), PBAs-based electrodes showed enhanced redox current, high surface area and robust stability compared to the recently reported PBAs. SF[Fe-Tol-Co] hybrid catalyst shows superior electrochemical OER activity with a much lower over-potential (610 mV) to attain the current density of 10 mA cm−2 with the Tafel slope value of 103 mV·dec−1 than that for SF[Fe-Tol-Ni] and SF[Fe-Tol-Mn]. Moreover, the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) unveiled that SF[Fe-Tol-Co] exhibits smaller charge transfer resistance, which results in a faster kinetics towards OER. Furthermore, SF[Fe-Tol-Co] offered excellent stability for continues oxygen production over extended reaction time. This work provides a surface assisted facile electrode fabrication approach for developing binder-free OER electrocatalysts for efficient water oxidation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this research, a new biodegradable and eco-friendly adsorbent, starch-grafted polymethyl methacrylate (St-g-PMMA) was synthesized. The St-g-PMMA was synthesized by a free radical polymerization reaction in which methyl methacrylate (MMA) was grafted onto a starch polymer chain. The reaction was performed in water in the presence of a potassium persulfate (KPS) initiator. The structure and different properties of the St-g-PMMA was explored by FT-IR, 1H NMR, TGA, SEM and XRD. After characterization, the St-g-PMMA was used for the removal of MB dye. Different adsorption parameters, such as effect of adsorbent dose, effect of pH, effect of initial concentration of dye solution, effect of contact time and comparative adsorption study were investigated. The St-g-PMMA showed a maximum removal percentage (R%) of 97% towards MB. The other parameters, such as the isothermal and kinetic models, were fitted to the experimental data. The results showed that the Langmuir adsorption and pseudo second order kinetic models were best fitted to experimental data with a regression coefficient of R2 = 0.93 and 0.99, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of mutual coupling on the scanning characteristics of a four-element linear rectangular dielectric resonator antenna array (RDRA) are investigated for different inter-element spacing in this work. In particular, the gain and half-power beam width (HPBW) of an RDRA are studied for various scan angles in the E- and H-plane configurations. It is shown that for both the E and H planes, mutual coupling has an adverse effect on the performance of both phased array configurations. The H-plane array, however, is more stable than the E-plane array in terms of a gain and beam width performance comparison. The HPBW increases and gain decreases more in the E plane than the H plane when the scan angle is increased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rapid growth of wireless spectrum access through cellular and IoT devices, for example, requires antennas with more capabilities such as being conformal and self-adapting beamforming. In this paper, the adaptive beamforming patterns of microstrip patch antenna arrays on changing flexible (or conformal) curved surfaces are developed by deriving array coefficients based on the projection method that includes the mutual coupling between elements. A linear four-element microstrip patch antenna array is then embedded on two deformed conformal surfaces to investigate the projection method for desired beamforming patterns. The generated beamforming radiation patterns using the computed weighting coefficients are validated with theoretical equations evaluated in MATLAB, full-wave simulations in HFSS and measurement results. The measured results of the fabricated system agree with the simulated results. Furthermore, new guidelines are provided on the effects of mutual coupling and changing conformal surfaces for various beam-forming patterns. Such demonstrations pave the way to an efficient and robust conformal phased-array antenna with multiple beam forming and adaptive nulling capabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of medical devices for therapeutic and diagnostic purpose is globally increasing; however, bacterial colonization on therapeutic devices can occur, causing severe infections in the human body. It has become an issue for public health. It is necessary to develop a nanomaterial based on photothermal treatment to kill toxic bacterial strains. Appropriately, high photothermal conversion and low-cost powerful photothermal agents have been investigated. Recently, gold nanocomposites have attracted great interest in biological applications. Here, we prepared rod-shaped Se-Te@Au nanocomposites of about 200 nm with uniform shape and surface-coated with gold nanoparticles for the first time showing high anti-bacterial and anti-cancer activities. Se-Te@Au showed proper structural consistency and natural resistance to bacterial and cancer cells. The strong absorption and high photothermal conversion efficacy made it a good photothermal agent material for the photothermal treatment of bacterial and cancer cells. The Se-Te@Au rod showed excellent anti-bacterial efficacy against Gram-negative Escherichia coli and Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus, with highest recorded inhibition zones of 25 ± 2 mm and 22 ± 2 mm, respectively. More than 99% of both types of strains were killed after 5 min with a near-infrared (NIR) laser at the very low concentration of 48 µg/mL. The Se-Te@Au rod's explosion in HeLa cells was extensively repressed and demonstrated high toxicity at 100 µg/mL for 5 min when subjected to an NIR laser. As a result of its high photothermal characteristics, the exceptional anti-bacterial and anti-cancer effects of the Se-Te@Au rod are considerably better than those of other methods previously published in articles. This study could open a new framework for sterilization applications on the industrial level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study proposes a decision-making model based on different models of driver behavior, aiming to ensure integration between road safety and crash reduction based on an examination of speed limitations under weather conditions. The present study investigated differences in road safety attitude, driver behavior, and weather conditions I-69 in Flint, Genesee County, Michigan, using the fuzzy logic approach. A questionnaire-based survey was conducted among a sample of Singaporean (n = 100) professional drivers. Safety level was assessed in relation to speed limits to determine whether the proposed speed limit contributed to a risky or safe situation. The experimental results show that the speed limits investigated on different roads/in different weather were based on the participants' responses. The participants could increase or keep their current speed limit or reduce their speed limit a little or significantly. The study results were used to determine the speed limits needed on different roads/in different weather to reduce the number of crashes and to implement safe driving conditions based on the weather. Changing the speed limit from 80 mph to 70 mph reduced the number of crashes occurring under wet road conditions. According to the results of the fuzzy logic study algorithm, a driver's emotions can predict outputs. For this study, the fuzzy logic algorithm evaluated drivers' emotions according to the relation between the weather/road condition and the speed limit. The fuzzy logic would contribute to assessing a powerful feature of human control. The fuzzy logic algorithm can explain smooth relationships between the input and output. The input–output relationship estimated by fuzzy logic was used to understand differences in drivers' feelings in varying road/weather conditions at different speed limits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South Asia is home to one of the fastest-growing populations in Asia, and human activities are leaving indelible marks on the land surface. Yet the likelihood of successive observed droughts in South Asia (SA) and its four subregions (R-1: semi-arid, R-2: arid, R-3: subtropical wet, and R-4: tropical wet and dry) remains poorly understood. Using the state-of-the-art self-calibrated Palmer Drought Severity Index (scPDSI), we examined the impact of different natural ocean variability modes on the evolution, severity, and magnitude of observed droughts across the four subregions that have distinct precipitation seasonality and cover key breadbaskets and highly vulnerable populations. The study revealed that dryness had significantly increased in R-1, R-2, and R-4 during 1981–2020. Temporal analysis revealed an increase in drought intensity for R-1 and R-4 since the 2000s, while a mixed behavior was observed in R-2 and R-3. Moreover, most of the sub-regions witnessed a substantial upsurge in annual precipitation, but a significant decrease in vapor pressure deficit (VPD) during 1981–2020. The increase in precipitation and the decline in VPD partially contributed to a significant rise in Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and a decrease in dryness. In contrast, a strong positive correlation was found between drought index and precipitation, and NDVI across R-1, R-2, and R-4, whereas temperature and VPD exhibited a negative correlation over these regions. No obvious link was detected with El-Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events, or Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) and drought evolution, as explored for certain regions of SA. The findings showed the possibility that the precipitation changes over these regions had an insignificant relationship with ENSO, IOD, and drought onset. Thus, the study results highlight the need for considering interactions within the longer climate system in describing observed drought risks rather than aiming at drivers from an individual perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Groundwater depletion has become a major concern all over the world. Recently, the rapid population growth and need for water and food have placed a massive strain on land and water resources. In this study, groundwater depletion resulting from land-use and climate change was investigated in the Faisalabad district, Pakistan, from 2000 to 2015. A Pearson correlation analysis between climatic parameters and land-use indices with groundwater was conducted to explore the major influencing factors. Interpolation maps of groundwater were generated using the inverse distance weighting interpolation (IDW) method. The Normalized Difference Built-up Index (NDBI) of five-year intervals demonstrated a strong increasing trend, whereas the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) presented a declining trend. The results also indicated a significant declining trend in groundwater levels in the region, with the annual average groundwater level decreasing at a rate of approximately 0.11 m/year. Climatic parameters (i.e., precipitation and temperature) further reveal an insignificant increasing trend estimated using the Mann–Kendall test and Sens's slope. Overall, spatial analysis results showed a statistically significant positive trend in the groundwater level of the Faisalabad district, where the NDBI ratio is high and the NDVI is low, owing to the extensive extraction of groundwater for domestic and industrial use. These findings may be useful for a better understanding of groundwater depletion in densely populated areas and could also aid in devising safety procedures for sustainable groundwater management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The current study was designed to examine the relationship between health anxiety, cyberchondria (its constructs), and metacognitive beliefs. In addition, it also evaluated the moderating role of metacognitive beliefs in this relationship. Design and Method: The present study used the purposive sampling technique to acquire a sample of (N = 500) adults, among them (N = 256) women and (N = 244) men, and the age of the sample ranged from 20 to 50 years. Short Health Anxiety Inventory, Cyberchondria Severity Scale, and Metacognitions Questionnaire–Health Anxiety were used to operationalize the present study variables. Findings: The descriptive statistics revealed that all instruments have good psychometric properties, as Cronbach's alpha coefficients for all scales are ≥0.70. In addition to this, the Pearson correlation showed that all variables of the present study have a significant positive correlation with each other. Furthermore, the regression analysis described that health anxiety and metacognitive beliefs (biased thinking and beliefs about uncontrollable thoughts) were the significant positive predictors of cyberchondria. Moreover, moderation analysis showed that metacognitive beliefs significantly strengthened the association between health anxiety and cyberchondria and its constructs. Practical Implications: The present study will help medical practitioners to understand how metacognitive beliefs and health anxiety can cause an increase in cyberchondria. This will help them to design better treatment plans for people with cyberchondria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A variety of reasons, specifically contact issues, irregular loads, cracks in insulation, defective relays, terminal junctions and other similar issues, increase the internal temperature of electrical instruments. This results in unexpected disturbances and potential damage to power equipment. Therefore, the initial prevention measures of thermal anomalies in electrical tools are essential to prevent power-equipment failure. In this article, we address this initial prevention mechanism for power substations using a computer-vision approach by taking advantage of infrared thermal images. The thermal images are taken through infrared cameras without disturbing the working operations of power substations. Thus, this article augments the non-destructive approach to defect analysis in electrical power equipment using computer vision and machine learning. We use a total of 150 thermal pictures of different electrical equipment in 10 different substations in operating conditions, using 300 different hotspots. Our approach uses multi-layered perceptron (MLP) to classify the thermal conditions of components of power substations into "defect" and "non-defect" classes. A total of eleven features, which are first-order and second-order statistical features, are calculated from the thermal sample images. The performance of MLP shows initial accuracy of 79.78%. We further augment the MLP with graph cut to increase accuracy to 84%. We argue that with the successful development and deployment of this new system, the Technology Department of Chongqing can arrange the recommended actions and thus save cost in repair and outages. This can play an important role in the quick and reliable inspection to potentially prevent power substation equipment from failure, which will save the whole system from breakdown. The increased 84% accuracy with the integration of the graph cut shows the efficacy of the proposed defect analysis approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The species of the genus Trillium (Melanthiaceae alt. Trilliaceae) include perennial herbs with characteristic rhizomes mainly distributed in Asia and North America. Steroids and saponins are the main classes of phytochemicals present in these plants. This review summarizes and discusses the current knowledge on their chemistry, as well as the in vitro and in vivo studies carried out on the extracts, fractions and isolated pure compounds from the different species belonging to this genus, focusing on core biological properties, i.e., cytotoxic, antifungal and anti-inflammatory activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The corrosion of grounding grids can result in a grounding accident of a power system, and much attentions has been concentrated on the method used to detect a corrosion fault in a grounding grid, in which the methods of voltage measurement and magnetic field measurement are usually used. In this paper, a cycle voltage measurement method and L-curve regularization method are proposed to locate the faults in grounding grids. The L-curve method was used to select the appropriate regularization parameter, which can effectively balance the error and stability of the solution to the inverse problem. The uncertainty of the solution due to the ill-posed problem in the inverse problem has been well-solved. Experiments were conducted in a laboratory with two network types. In addition, a field experiment was carried out in a 110-kV substation. Both of the results showed that the method can effectively locate a branch fault with a single branch and multiple branches in the grounding grids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The internal defects of cable joints always accelerate the deterioration of insulation, until finally accidents can arise due to the explosion of the joints. The formation process of this damage often involves changes in the electromagnetic, temperature and stress distribution of the cable joint, therefore, it is necessary to analyze the electromagnetic-thermal-mechanical distribution of cable joints. Aiming at solving this problem, the paper sets up a 3-D electromagnetic-thermal-mechanical coupling model of cable joints under crimping process defects. Based on the model, the electromagnetic losses distribution, temperature distribution and stress distribution of a cable joint and body are calculated. Then, the coupling fields characteristics in different contact coefficient k, ambient temperature Tamb and load current I were analyzed, and according to the thermal-mechanical characteristics of a cable joint under internal defects, the temperature difference ΔTf and stress difference Dsf of cable surface are applied to evaluate the internal cable joint defects. Finally, a simplified model of the cable joint is set up to verify the accuracy of the coupling field model proposed in this paper, which indicates that the model can be used to analyze the coupling fields characteristics of cable joints and the method can be applied to evaluate crimping process defects of cable joints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fiber-optic daylighting systems have been shown to be a promising and effective way to transmit sunlight in the interior space whilst reducing electric lighting energy consumption. To increase efficiency in terms of providing uniform illumination in the interior, the current need is to illuminate optical fiber-bundle with uniform light flux. To this end, we propose a method for achieving collimated light, which illuminates the fiber-bundle uniformly. Light is collected through a parabolic concentrator and focused toward a collimating lens, which distributes the light over each optical fiber. An optics diffusing structure is utilized at the end side of the fiber bundle to spread light in the interior. The results clearly reveal that the efficiency in terms of uniform illumination, which also reduces the heat problem for optical fibers, is improved. Furthermore, a comparison study is conducted between current and previous approaches. As a result, the proposed daylighting system turns out convenient in terms of energy saving and reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drought is one of the most complex natural phenomena affecting the life and livelihood of people, especially in the current time of human-induced climate change. This research employs ground-based observations to assess the recent spatiotemporal characteristics of meteorological drought events over Rwanda. The drought is examined based on the Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) and Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) at seasonal and annual time scales from 1981 to 2020. The Man–Kendal test was used to evaluate the trends in rainfall, temperature, and SPEI values at the annual scale and during the March to May (MAM) and October to December (OND) seasons. The analysis revealed nonsignificant trends in annual (8.4 mm/decade), MAM (−3.4 mm/decade), and OND (4.5 mm/decade) rainfall, while an apparent significant increasing trend in surface air temperature was obtained during the MAM (0.19 °C/decade), OND (0.2 °C/decade), and annual (0.23 °C/decade) time slices. Overall, the SPEI characteristics indicated that the country is more prone to moderate drought events than severe and extreme drought events during MAM and OND seasons. However, the intensity, duration, and frequency differ spatially among seasons. The findings of this study inform policy and decision-makers on the past experienced drought behavior, which can serve as a baseline for future drought mitigation and adaptation plans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Schizophrenia is a major psychotic disorder affecting nearly 23.6 million people globally and greatly impacting the cognitive and social functioning of individuals. Multiple risk factors, including genetic, environmental, and epigenetic factors have been identified. However, the exact mechanism by which some factors aid in the development of schizophrenia is still uncertain. Acute and/or long-standing inflammation has been implicated as both a cause and effect of schizophrenia. Heightened immune responses have been documented in large cohorts of individuals with schizophrenia. While not completely known, multiple hypotheses, such as disruption of the blood–brain barrier, alterations in the kynurenine/tryptophan pathway, and increased microglial activation, have been presented to correlate inflammation with schizophrenic symptoms. Measurement of C-reactive protein (CRP) is a commonly performed and inexpensive test on patients' serum to determine levels of systemic inflammation in the body. Multiple studies have reported an elevated CRP level in different stages of schizophrenia, indicating its potential to be used as a viable biomarker in the diagnosis and monitoring of schizophrenia along with assessing treatment response to conventional and non-conventional treatment regimens. This review aims to evaluate the role of inflammation, in general, and CRP, in particular, in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia and its potential significance in diagnostic, therapeutic, and preventative approaches towards schizophrenia and psychosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak has caused significant destruction, claiming over three million lives worldwide. Post SARS-COV-2 invasion, immunosuppression with hyperglycemia and elevated ferritin levels along with steroidal treatment creates a perfect storm for opportunistic infections. There is increasing evidence of mucormycosis co-infection in COVID-19 patients, during or post-treatment. A worse prognosis, a late diagnosis, and limited guidelines of screening and management of COVID-19 associated mucormycosis have made healthcare professionals fear an epidemic alongside a pandemic. This review geographically reports cases of COVID-19 associated mucormycosis (CAM), evaluates characteristics, clinical manifestations, and outcomes of mucormycosis in COVID-19 active or recovered patients. It further describes preventive strategies and recommendations for optimal management therapy that can be adopted worldwide to curtail an impending threat to the healthcare system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]