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This study introduces a wide bandwidth and wide axial ratio (AR), circularly polarised (CP), patch array antenna. By combining dual layers of a polarizer with dual layers of linearly polarized microstrip patch antenna, a novel method is created for generating circular polarization waves with a wide frequency range. The dual-layer 2 × 2 and 2 × 8 microstrip patch array antenna is employed to achieve linearly polarized waves and the external polarizer consists of a 3 × 3 and 3 × 12 four-layer dual rings polarizer that transforms linearly polarized (LP) waves into CP waves. The |S11| −10 dB bandwidth of small and large-scale circular polarized array antennas is 20% and 27.06% at 5 GHz, respectively, Simulations and testing show that the 3-dB axial ratio bandwidth (ARBW) at 5 GHz is 17%. The suggested antenna has a lot of potential for satellite communication applications because of its easy structure, wide ARBW, and wide impedance bandwidth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper adopted the 2D periodic boundary-condition (PBC) density functional theory (DFT) to examine the adsorption of CH3Br, CH3Cl, and CH3F halomethanes into not only bare boron phosphide (BP) nanosheets but also gallium- and aluminium-doped ones. Geometric optimisation was applied to all the structures at the B3LYP/6-311+G (d) level of theory. Moreover, the CAM-B3LYP/6-311+G(d), ωB97X-D3, and M06-2X levels of theory were implemented to calculate the single point energy. The quantum theory of atoms in molecules (QTAIM) and natural bond orbital (NBO) analysis were carried out, evaluating the donor-acceptor interactions, partial natural charge, and Wiberg bond index (WBI). The adsorption energy values demonstrated that the gallium-doped BP had the highest adsorptive capability, while the lowest adsorption occurred in the bare BP. However, the adsorption of CH3Cl, with much smaller adsorption energy, was maximised in the aluminium-doped BP and minimised in the bare BP. Furthermore, CH3Br and CH3Cl showed the highest and lowest tendencies to be adsorbed onto the nanosheet surfaces, respectively. Gallium- and aluminium-doped BP structures appear to be efficient and effective in the development of new solid-state sensors of halomethanes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Communicating visions inspires followers' efforts by imbuing collective objectives with meaning, but it is not clear how leaders achieve this motivating effect. We argue that central to motivational influences of leaders' vision communication is a match between the motivational appeal in communication and followers' values. We test this proposition by focusing on followers' individualism–collectivism as moderators of the effectiveness of motivational appeals that are anchored in either personal interests (a match with individualistic values) or obligations to the collective (a match with collectivistic values) to inspire creativity in pursuing vision. From a vision–values match principle, we predict that communicating visions with a personal interest appeal inspires more creativity among individuals with stronger individualistic values by engendering followers' meaningfulness, and more so for vertical than for horizontal individualism whereas communicating visions relying on an obligation appeal is more effective for individuals with stronger collectivistic values, and more so for horizontal than for vertical collectivism. Results of an experiment (N = 115) and a field study (N = 304) were largely consistent with these propositions. We discuss broader implications of the vision–values match principle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oxidative stress from the trophoblasts is one of the possible pathological mechanisms of Preeclampsia (PE). This study aimed at exploring the potential effects of astaxanthin (ATX) on oxidative stress damaged placental trophoblast cell line HTR-8/SVneo. Oxidative stress-induced damaged through H2O2 treatment was checked by MTS CellTiter 96® cell viability, 2ʹ,7ʹ-dichlorofluorescein diacetate (DCFH-DA) induced fluorescence, the level of the intracellular malondialdehyde (MDA), and the detection of glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT). Different concentrations of ATX were applied, and then the proliferation rate, apoptotic percentage, cell cycle distribution, invasion test and relative biological function of the rescued cells were followed. We provide evidence that ATX had an anti-oxidative effect against oxidative stress induced by H2O2 on the trophoblast cell line and had beneficial role in promoting cell proliferation, inhibiting cell apoptosis, and inducing cell invasion. Abbreviations: UV: ultraviolet; DCFH-DA: 2',7'-dichlorofluorescein diacetate; EVT: extravillous trophoblast; MMPs: matrix metalloproteinases; IUGR: intrauterine growth restriction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Surface suspended sediment concentration (SSC) retrieved from the satellite data was used to study the multidecadal (1984–2015) dynamics of the surface turbidity maximum zone (TMZ) in Hangzhou Bay (HZB), China. A correlation algorithm was calibrated to estimate the surface SSC using the remote sensing data. The averaged deviation of the retrieved SSC from the field data was 15.6%. The impacts of tidal amplitude and phase on remote sensing data were specifically considered and accurately removed. Five periods were organized to analyze the multidecadal variability of surface SSC: (a) 1984–1988, (b) 1990–1994, (c) 1997–2001, (d) 2002–2006, and (e) 2013–2015. Results showed that the areas of low turbidity zone (<200 mg L–1) increased from period a to e, indicated by the trend ratio (Ts) of 2.58%. The area of TMZ (>700 mg L–1) decreased significantly from 2205 km2 in the period a to 647 km2 in period e, with Ts = −4.57%. The distribution pattern of the SSC was more skewed in period e (Sk = 2.03) than that in the period a (Sk = 0.63). Tidal flat reclamation around HZB contributed to the multidecadal reduction of the surface SSC from 1984 to 2015, through changing the hydrodynamics and reducing sediment source. The decreased sediment load from the Changjiang River contributed to the decline in the surface SSC in HZB, by reducing the sediment source. Flooding of the Qiantang River during wet seasons played an important role in increasing the surface SSC at the bay head, as the deposited sediment during wet seasons reduced the water depth and increased the resuspension. This study helps the estuarine morphology and environment management worldwide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel swapped double-sided electromagnetic bandgap (DS-EBG) power/ground plane is proposed with broadband suppression of the simultaneous switching noise (SSN) and low radiation emission. By using the double-sided structure, the equivalent inductance between the EBG cells can be well improved and result in the broadband suppression of SSN. In the proposed structure, pairs of via are used to build the three-dimensional bridges between the swapped power/ground planes. They also lead to the suppressions of SSN be improved. Simulated and measured results show good agreements with each other. Additionally, the measured radiation emission of the proposed structure shows that it has lower electromagnetic interference compared with the two typical reference boards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new planar waveguide structure, based on spoof surface plasmon polaritons (SSPPs), is proposed featuring compact size, low loss, and good subwavelength field confinement. Compared with the rectangular- and trapezoidal-type cells in the conventional spoof surface plasmonic waveguides (SSPWs), the proposed cell has 50.7% and 27.8% size reduction at the same cut-off frequency, respectively. Moreover, the simulated electrical field distributions show that there are good improvements in the field enhancement and subwavelength confinement. To further validate the transmission characteristics of the proposed waveguide, coplanar waveguide (CPW) and corresponding transition structures are used to get a high efficient mode conversion. A CPW-SSPW-CPW structure on a dielectric board is designed, fabricated, and measured in the microwave region. Good agreement is achieved between the simulated and measured results. The last results show that the proposed waveguide has low insertion loss and flat group delay in an ultra-wideband from 2.4 to 10.3 GHz. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ecological degradation has inhibited sustainable development along the coast of China. To counter this, the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) of China has implemented the Blue Bay Remediation Project for bay restoration as one of the strategies to build a strong marine nation by a process of integrated coastal-zone management. With the overall goals of pristine water, a green coast, clean beaches, beautiful bays and islands clearly defined, the restoration of 66 bays will be funded (about USD$48-64 million for each bay), starting with 16 bays in 2016. This project can be described as a milestone for China, as the marine environment has never before attracted such attention. Such a huge remediation project should provide an example for the rest of the world to follow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the increasing popularity of managerial coaching in organizations worldwide, little is known with regard to how gender and culture may affect managerial behavior. The present study is the first empirical study on managerial coaching on a global scale. Based on social role theory, role congruity theory, and cross-cultural theory, we first expect female leaders to engage in more coaching behavior than male leaders. Second, we expect that male leadership, particularly coaching behavior, is more influenced by societal culture than female leadership. Survey data were obtained from more than 600,000 employees, assessing coaching behavior of more than 130,000 practicing managers from 51 countries/areas. Results support both expectations. Taken together, this study has advanced our empirical and theoretical understanding of managerial coaching on a global scale. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Stakeholder participation has become a popular management approach and its significance has been widely recognised. There is a lack of studies regarding evaluation of stakeholder participation, especially in environmental management by defence sectors. This paper examines how the Australian Defence Force (ADF) involves stakeholders in environmental management and its effectiveness, using Shoalwater Bay Training Area, Queensland, as a case study. Based on the combination of field observations, extensive interviews, a public questionnaire survey and relevant analyses, this study concluded that, overall, stakeholder participation was considered by respondents to be marginally effective. Recommendations were finally provided to improve the ADF's stakeholder participation in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Estimation of signal parameters via rotational invariance techniques (ESPRIT) is employed to time-reversal (TR) imaging for single target in this paper. By the precondition of ESPRIT, the signal subspace is divided into two parts, which are connected with each other by a transfer matrix. This transfer matrix can be used to get the TR-ESPRIT imaging pseudo-spectrum. Two examples corresponding to the noise-free and noise case are considered. The last simulated results show that the proposed TR-ESPRIT method has higher resolution than the conventional decomposition of the time-reversal operator method, and it can keep the efficiency of time reversal operator-based imaging by the signal subspace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A compact microstrip dual-band bandpass filter with multiple transmission zeros is proposed. This filter is composed of input/output (I/O) coupling structure with source-load cross-coupling and two pairs of short-ended resonators resonating at 2.4 and 5.8 GHz, respectively. By proper arrangement of the I/O coupling structure with source-load cross-coupling, multiple transmission zeros are introduced. In this way, high selectivity of both passbands and good out-band rejection level better than 20 dB up to 9 GHz are achieved. Good agreement can be found between the full-wave electromagnetic simulations and measured results, which verifies the proposed design concept. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A theoretical method is presented to study the multiple scattering of electro-elastic waves resulting from two subsurface holes in a functionally graded piezoelectric material (FGPM) layer bonded to a homogeneous piezoelectric material, and the dynamic stress around the holes is also presented. The analytical solutions of wave fields are expressed by employing wave function expansion method, and the expanded mode coefficients are determined by satisfying the boundary conditions at the surface and around the holes. The mechanical and electrical boundary conditions at the free surface of the structure are satisfied by using the image method. Analyses show that the piezoelectric property and the distance between the two holes express great effect on the dynamic stress around the holes, and the effect increases with the decrease of the thickness of FGPM layer. If the material properties of the homogeneous piezoelectric material are greater than those at the surface of the structure, the dynamic stress increases dramatically due to the piezoelectric property and the distance between the two holes. The angular distribution of electric displacement under different parameters is also presented. The accuracy and efficiency of the solving method are demonstrated by the comparison of selected results with the solutions obtained by using finite element software ANSYS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]