Deep Focus Research Articles

Third-order nonlinear optical properties of metal oxide nanoparticles and nanocomposites: A review

This paper reviews the vibrant field of nonlinear optical (NLO) properties of metal oxide nanoparticles and nanocomposites. It includes a historic introduction which discusses the birth and successive developments of NLO. An attempt is made to give a summary in a nutshell about the basic concepts of nonlinear optics and different NLO phenomena with special attention to third-order phenomenon and [Formula: see text]-scan technique. The review also touches on the topic of science and technology of metal oxide nanoparticles and nanocomposites, various synthesis processes that include co-precipitation, micro-emulsion, sol–gel route, etc. have been discussed. Metal oxide nanoparticles and nanocomposites are introduced with a deep focus on the origin of various physical mechanisms and optical properties. The origin of NLO properties from these important structures has also been discussed. Some recently studied metal oxide nanocomposites along with their NLO coefficients are also given.

"Without IPS I Think I Would Really Fall Apart": Individual Placement and Support as Experienced by People With Mental Illness-Phenomenological Peer Research Study.

Having a job is an important component of recovery from mental illness and a source of economic, social, and health benefits. Most people experiencing severe mental illness (SMI) want to work but are excluded from employment opportunities. Employment specialists (ESs) working in individual placement and support (IPS) teams help persons struggling with SMI obtain competitive employment. This study is a qualitative phenomenological study of 10 IPS participants in the Norwegian context, serving to develop a deeper understanding of the IPS phenomenon as it is experienced in the everyday life of IPS participants. The study was designed as a peer research project including four members of a competence group with experience in IPS and SMI. The results, analyzed using the reflective lifeworld research approach, revealed four constituents: "Having a safety net along the way toward employment," "Feeling more like a person, not just a patient," "Brighter future," and "Going above and beyond employment support." IPS functions as an anchor in participants' journey toward employment. Strong and meaningful relationships with an ES seem crucial for IPS participants to gain the strength and confidence essential to engage in the job search. IPS participants experience various challenges in everyday life, resulting in ESs exceeding their vocational role to cover the unmet needs that health services seem unable to fully address. Closer coordination between vocational and health services, as well as a deeper focus on everyday life issues, will positively affect IPS participants' vocational outcomes and quality of life.

ACUAN DAN RUANG LINGKUP EVALUASI PADA MATA PELAJARAN FIQH DI SMP ISLAM AMANAH UMMAH MOJOLABAN SUKOHARJO

This research aims to investigate the references and scope of evaluation in the Fiqh subject at SMP Islam Amanah Ummah Mojolaban Sukoharjo. With a deep focus, this study employs a qualitative approach involving observation, interviews, and document analysis. The main objectives are to explore the role of Islamic religious teachers in enhancing students' learning motivation and to assess the success of integrating religious values into the evaluation. The qualitative method is chosen to gain an in-depth understanding of the phenomena, with data collection through direct observation and interaction with teachers and students. The research findings indicate that the evaluation in the Fiqh subject at SMP Islam Amanah Ummah Mojolaban Sukoharjo has successfully integrated religious values. However, there is a need to enhance the variety of evaluation methods, provide additional training for teachers, and refine annual evaluation reports. Concrete recommendations are presented to improve the effectiveness of educational evaluation in the Fiqh subject.

Volumetric lesion analysis and validation of various bipolar configurations in radiofrequency ablation of ventricular myocardium in a bovine model.

The bipolar radiofrequency ablation(B-RFA) strategy was increasingly used to target deep intramural re-entrant foci responsible for the arrhythmia not ablated by conventional unipolar RFA / sequential unipolar RFA. Lesional characteristics of various bipolar configurations were largely unknown. To investigate the lesional geometry in relation to various factors to determine the most effective ablation strategy that minimises steam pops and achieves transmurality. To assess the temperatures at the return electrode. A custom-made validated ex-vivo bipolar ablation model was used to assess lesion formation. The myocardial sample was placed between two ablation catheters in four different orientations. Lesions were created using different power (30W, 40W, 50W) and time settings(30, 40 and 50s) with different catheter orientations. Data was analysed using binary logistic regression and multiple linear regression. Among 107 lesions, The volume of the active catheter lesion (266 +/- 137mm^3) significantly differed from their return electrode counterparts (130 +/- 91.8mm^3) (p < 0.001), and the temperatures at the return electrode end were lower than at the active electrode (p = 0.004). Higher power and longer duration application led to more frequent steam pops (p < 0.001), while true parallel configuration resulted in fewer steam pops (p < 0.001). A custom model without ground electrode temperature monitoring is safe and cost-effective. The safest strategy is a true parallel configuration with an inter-electrode distance of at least 15mm and a power of 30W to 40W, which generates lower steam pops and better transmurality.

Social Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Development: the Creation of a Digital Platform Dedicated to Resource Sharing: Moroccan Case Study

Objective: The objective of this study is to investigate and analyze the role of digital social entrepreneurship in achieving sustainable development goals, with a deep focus on the creation of a digital platform for resource sharing. Theoretical Framework: The study is based on the concepts of social entrepreneurship and sustainable development, emphasizing their role in addressing social and environmental challenges such as climate change and inequality, while leveraging digitalization to maximize impact. Method: A quantitative study was conducted with 134 participants to examine the impact of digital social entrepreneurship on sustainable development. The data were collected using a structured questionnaire distributed through a non-probability snowball sampling method. Results and Discussion: The results demonstrate how the creation of a resource-sharing platform can exemplify digital social entrepreneurship. By connecting individuals and organizations for the sharing of materials, skills, and knowledge, the platform fosters the sharing economy, reduces waste, and promotes community cooperation. These outcomes contribute to the achievement of various sustainable development goals. Research Implications: The findings provide insights into the practical application of digital platforms in promoting sustainability and social entrepreneurship. They suggest that technology can be effectively harnessed to address global challenge. Originality/Value: This study contributes to the literature by illustrating how digital social entrepreneurship can serve as a powerful tool for sustainable development. Its originality lies in the innovative approach of combining technology with social problem-solving to drive socio-economic and environmental progress.

Bio-inspired deep neural local acuity and focus learning for visual image recognition

In the field of computer vision and image recognition, enabling the computer to discern target features while filtering out irrelevant ones poses a challenge. Drawing insights from studies in biological vision, we find that there is a local visual acuity mechanism and a visual focus mechanism in the initial conversion and processing of visual information, ensuring that the visual system can give ear to salient features of the target in the early visual observation phase. Inspired by this, we build a novel image recognition network to focus on the target features while ignoring other irrelevant features in the image, and further focus on the focus features based on the target features. Meanwhile, in order to comply with the output characteristics when similar features exist in different categories, we design a softer image label operation for similar features in different categories, which solves the correlation of labels between categories. Relevant experimental findings underscore the efficacy of our proposed method, revealing discernible advantages in comparison to alternative approaches. Visualization results further attest to the method’s capability to selectively focus on pertinent target features within the image, sidelining extraneous information.

How to spark team flow over time

AbstractAn important question in teamwork research is how to maximize performance and the aspects of the team's dynamics and collaboration process that underpin it. Prior research has shown that when team members who are collaborating towards a common purpose experience flow together (team flow; optimal experiences that occur simultaneously at the individual and team levels, entailing deep focus and intrinsic motivation to perform an activity), the team significantly improves its performance and team members experience many positive results at both the individual and team levels. Further advances have built a model of team flow and a means for measuring the construct, as well as qualitative results in business teams to confirm how the elements of team flow interact to generate the positive experiences and higher performance. This study adds practical value to the research by providing proof‐of‐concept for an intervention that promotes team flow in business teams. This cross‐case‐study of 15 teams across five different organizations uses the Team Flow Monitor as a barometer of team health and dynamics, which in turn serves as the centerpiece of an iterative intervention protocol for leading/guiding teams in targeted self‐reflection that can generate virtuous cycles of improving dynamics and performance. In addition to a significant amount of qualitative data confirming the efficacy of the intervention in enabling teams to overcome obstacles and experience more team flow, quantitative analysis of Team Flow Monitor scores showed an increase on average team flow scores across the teams over the course of the intervention (Cohen's d = 0.6). Implications for translating team flow research to field situations are discussed, along with further potential uses of the Team Flow Monitor.

Transformational faulting in Mn2GeO4 from olivine to wadsleyite structure: Implications for physical mechanism of deep-focus earthquakes

High-pressure and temperature deformation experiments interfaced with acoustic emission (AE) monitoring have been conducted to study transformational faulting in Mn2GeO4 olivine, which transforms to the β phase, isostructural to wadsleyite. Metastable Mn2GeO4 olivine exhibits a marked embrittlement behavior at temperatures between 800 and 1100 K, emitting numerous AEs. At each temperature, brittle deformation is characterized by a two-stage process: (1) a “preparation” stage with numerous diffusedly located low-magnitude AEs and large b values (>2), and (2) a failure stage where larger-magnitude AEs form a planar distribution with b values about 1. Microstructure analysis reveals extensive kink band development in olivine grains in the recovered samples. Kink band boundaries (KBBs), with a typical thickness of ∼100 nm, are filled with a nanometric β-Mn2GeO4 “gouge”. A dense array of secondary shear localizations is often present within the kink bands, suggesting significant shear deformation therein. The combined observations suggest that faulting in metastable Mn2GeO4 olivine is a self-similar process, from grain-scale to the sample-scale. Both observed embrittlement behavior and the microstructure of metastable Mn2GeO4 olivine are essentially identical to those in Mg2GeO4 olivine we have reported previously, indicating that the physical mechanism of faulting in metastable olivine is insensitive to the specific crystallographic structure of the high-pressure phase. The low b values (about 1) observed in the faulting process in our experiments are similar to those of deep focus earthquakes in cold subduction zones. Our observed mechanism explains deep focus seismicity in cold metastable mantle wedges, provided that the self-similarity assumption holds to geological scales.

Transformer models for Land Cover Classification with Satellite Image Time Series

In this paper we address the task of pixel-wise land cover (LC) classification using satellite image time series (SITS). For that purpose, we use a supervised deep learning model and focus on combining spatial and temporal features. Our method is based on the Swin Transformer and captures global temporal features by using self-attention and local spatial features by convolutions. We extend the architecture to receive multi-temporal input to generate one output label map for every input image. In our experiments we focus on the application of pixel-wise LC classification from Sentinel‑2 SITS over the whole area of Lower Saxony (Germany). The experiments with our new model show that by using convolutions for spatial feature extraction or a temporal weighting module in the skip connections the performance improves and is more stable. The combined usage of both adaptations results in the overall best performance although this improvement is only minimal. Compared to a fully convolutional neural network without any self-attention layers our model improves the results by 2.1% in the mean F1-Score on a corrected test dataset. Additionally, we investigate different types of temporal position encoding, which do not have a significant impact on the performance.

The Perfect Storm: Applying the Multiple Streams Framework to Understand the Adoption of a WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control-Based Policy in Mexico.

The aim of this study was to document how Mexico adopted a WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC)-based national tobacco control law. We analyzed publicly available documents and interviewed 14 key stakeholders. We applied the Multiple Streams Framework (MSF) to analyze these findings. Previous attempts to approve comprehensive FCTC-based initiatives failed due to a lack of political will, the tobacco industry's close connections to policymakers, and a lack of health advocacy coordination. Applying the MSF reveals increased attention towards collecting and sharing data to frame the severity of the problem (problem stream). The expansion of a coordinated health advocacy coalition and activities led to increased support for desired FCTC policy solutions (policy stream). The election of President López Obrador and legislative changes led to a deep renewed focus on tobacco control (politics stream). These three streams converged to create a policy window to secure a strong FCTC-based initiative on the political agenda that was ultimately passed. The Mexican experience illustrates the importance of continued health advocacy and political will in adopting FCTC-based policies. Other countries should follow Mexico's lead by collecting and sharing data through coordinating efforts in order to be prepared to seize political opportunity windows when strong political will is present.

Deep focusing with broadband light

Deep focusing with broadband light

Relevansi Nilai-Nilai Etika Kristiani Dalam Kehidupan Masyarakat Global

This article deals with our plural and global society of today which impede the validity of ethical values. In this sense, the values of Christian ethics are needed to approach contemporary social issue. We must respond to the current situation of humanity by using library resources and observations of ethical issue in our society and how they can develop their normative effects under the conditions of freedom, plurality, demographic and digital change, as well as the complex economic and financial systems and, last but not least, under the fragile approval of the institutions of international politics. The argument then moves to the meta-theory of Christian ethics, namely the revelation of God as it is expressed in the ‘book of nature’, the written word, and the incarnate Word, Jesus Christ. The article concludes that as long as the values of Christian ethics remains faithful to this meta-theory, understands the modern macro-ethical questions and maintains a deep social focus, it will remain relevant in a plural and global society.

There is a time for everything: Slow cinema and Songs from the Second Floor

Through its mixture of similarities to and differences from typical slow cinema practices, Roy Andersson’s Songs from the Second Floor (2000) offers a unique perspective on what slow cinema can be. This is apparent in the film’s mise en scène and cinematography. While the use of long takes, minimalist performances and deep focus fit comfortably within slow cinema tradition, Songs from the Second Floor differentiates itself with its expansive mise en scène, vast set designs and stationary camera. The film further expands on slow cinema with its inclusion of tragicomic humour, which complements slow cinema’s modernist re-appropriation.

Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia in alcoholics.

Alcoholism associates with increased Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia incidence and mortality. The objective was to compare disease progression, treatment and prognosis of Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia in alcoholics versus non-alcoholics. The study design was a multicenter retrospective analysis of methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia with 90-day follow-up. Patients were stratified as alcoholics or non-alcoholics based on electronic health record data. Altogether 617 Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia patients were included of which 83 (13%) were alcoholics. Alcoholics, versus non-alcoholics, were younger, typically male and more commonly had community-acquired Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia. No differences in McCabe´s classification of underlying conditions was observed. Higher illness severity at blood culture sampling, including severe sepsis (25% vs. 7%) and intensive care unit admission (39% vs. 17%), was seen in alcoholics versus non-alcoholics. Clinical management, including infectious disease specialist (IDS) consultations and radiology, were provided equally. Alcoholics, versus non-alcoholics, had more pneumonia (49% vs. 35%) and fewer cases of endocarditis (7% vs. 16%). Mortality in alcoholics versus non-alcoholics was significantly higher at 14, 28 and 90 days (14% vs. 7%, 24% vs. 11% and 31% vs. 17%), respectively. Considering all prognostic parameters, male sex (OR 0.19, p = 0.021) and formal IDS consultation (OR 0.19, p = 0.029) were independent predictors of reduced mortality, whereas ultimately or rapidly fatal comorbidity in McCabe´s classification (OR 12.34, p < 0.001) was an independent predictor of mortality in alcoholics. Alcoholism deteriorates Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia prognosis, and our results suggests that this is predominantly through illness severity at bacteremia onset. Three quarters of Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia patients we studied had identified deep infection foci, and of them alcoholics had significantly less endocarditis but nearly half of them had pneumonia.

Efficient high-resolution fluorescence projection imaging over an extended depth of field through optical hardware and deep learning optimizations.

Optical microscopy has witnessed notable advancements but has also become more costly and complex. Conventional wide field microscopy (WFM) has low resolution and shallow depth-of-field (DOF), which limits its applications in practical biological experiments. Recently, confocal and light sheet microscopy become major workhorses for biology that incorporate high-precision scanning to perform imaging within an extended DOF but at the sacrifice of expense, complexity, and imaging speed. Here, we propose deep focus microscopy, an efficient framework optimized both in hardware and algorithm to address the tradeoff between resolution and DOF. Our deep focus microscopy achieves large-DOF and high-resolution projection imaging by integrating a deep focus network (DFnet) into light field microscopy (LFM) setups. Based on our constructed dataset, deep focus microscopy features a significantly enhanced spatial resolution of ∼260 nm, an extended DOF of over 30 µm, and broad generalization across diverse sample structures. It also reduces the computational costs by four orders of magnitude compared to conventional LFM technologies. We demonstrate the excellent performance of deep focus microscopy in vivo, including long-term observations of cell division and migrasome formation in zebrafish embryos and mouse livers at high resolution without background contamination.

Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection in Older Adults: An Update.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection represents one of the most common infections during childhood, with significant morbidity and mortality in newborns and in the early years of life. RSV is a common infection throughout all age groups, largely undetected and underestimated in adults, with a disproportionately high impact in older individuals. RSV infection has a wide range of clinical presentations, from asymptomatic conditions to acute pneumonia and severe life-threatening respiratory distress, including exacerbations of underlying chronic conditions. Overall, the incidence of RSV infections requiring medical attention increases with age, and it is highest among persons ≥70years of age. As a consequence of a combination of an aging population, immunosenescence, and the related increased burden of comorbidities, high-income countries are at risk of developing RSV epidemics. The standard of care for RSV-infected patients remains supportive, including fluids, antipyretics, and oxygen support when needed. There is an urgent need for antivirals and preventive strategies in this population, particularly in individuals at higher risk of severe outcomes following RSV infection. In this review, we describe prevention and treatment strategies for RSV illnesses, with a deep focus on the novel data on vaccination that has become available (Arexvy, GSK, and Abrysvo, Pfizer) for older adults.

Abstract PO4-21-01: Recurrent Desmoid Tumor and Ductal Carcinoma In Situ in an African-American Woman: A Case Report and Discussion on Disparities for These Two Cancer Subtypes

Abstract Introduction: Disparities in cancer care in patients from different races and ethnicities unfortunately do exist and are well described in literature. Hormonal-driven cancers, such as some soft-tissue tumors and DCIS, have been demonstrated to impact African-American women (AAW) disproportionately. These patients are at increased risk for not only development of these cancers, but also experience disparities in survival, treatment outcomes, and modalities of treatment. Clinical Case: A 47-year-old premenopausal AAW with past medical history of recurrent desmoid sarcoma of the abdomen and ductal carcinoma in-situ (DCIS) of the left breast presented to oncology clinic with recurrent abdominal mass. The patient was originally diagnosed with DCIS in the left breast in 2018 and subsequently underwent left breast mastectomy with TRAM reconstruction and fat graft later that year. In 2020, the patient noticed a left lower abdominal growth that quickly enlarged and became painful. She underwent imaging without biopsy and was taken to surgery in April 2021 with tumor removal and mesh placement. Pathology showed desmoid fibromatosis infiltrating skeletal muscle and involving the inked resection margin of the specimen. Conservative re-excision and additional therapy was recommended but not done at the time. In 2022, the patient had resection of the area again with pathology of the incisional scar showing skin and deep soft tissue foci suspicious for recurrent desmoid fibromatosis extending to the inked deep margin. No mesh was placed, and the wound closed almost completely. The patient was not aware of positive margins at the time. In January 2023, patient again notice a new bump that was bothersome. Initial CT and MRI without finding of defined mass, but with right rectus thickening and enlarged right external iliac lymph node. Core biopsy in June 2023 confirmed recurrent desmoid fibromatosis. In April 2023, annual screening with mammogram was performed with a finding of 2.9 cm cluster of heterogenous calcification in the right breast. Diagnostic mammogram and ultrasound performed. Core needle biopsy was subsequently performed in May with pathology consistent with high grade DCIS with low ER and PR positivity. Lymph node biopsy was negative, but clinically positive. She is currently undergoing further genetic testing with surgical workup for mastectomy. Discussion and Conclusion: AAW diagnosed with DCIS have higher all-cause and disease specific mortality in comparison to white women (WW) diagnosed with DCIS. AAW are also at increased risk of aggressive secondary breast cancers in both the ipsilateral and contralateral breast in comparison to other races. In regards to tumor biology, WW have been shown to have higher ER and PR positivity in both primary and primary breast cancers than AAW. In many of these large-scale studies higher mortality, recurrence, and metastasis in AAW have been identified regardless of treatment modality. Research into differences in treatment between AAW and WW has shown that AAW, in contrast to our patient case, are more likely to undergo endocrine and radiation therapy rather than mastectomy. Although there does not seem to be an increased risk of desmoid fibromatosis in AAW when compared to WW, other soft-tissue tumors and malignancies do show a predilection for AAW. Incidence of sarcoma in black patients is higher than white patients, and black patients also have poorer survival outcomes. This case provides an example of the intersectionality of two cancer subtypes that impact black patients disproportionately. More evidence is required to unearth the reasons why these two cancer subtypes which are driven by similar processes impact AAW to a greater degree. Citation Format: Vinita Akula, Jessica Jones. Recurrent Desmoid Tumor and Ductal Carcinoma In Situ in an African-American Woman: A Case Report and Discussion on Disparities for These Two Cancer Subtypes [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2023 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2023 Dec 5-9; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(9 Suppl):Abstract nr PO4-21-01.

3138: Mediastinal irradiation for thymic epithelial tumors: A deep focus on coronary arteries’ exposure

3138: Mediastinal irradiation for thymic epithelial tumors: A deep focus on coronary arteries’ exposure

Deep enteroscopy - what's new and what works best?

We aim to review the types of device-assisted deep enteroscopy endoscopes, tips for a successful procedure as well as areas for improvement. Deep enteroscopy allows for diagnostic and therapeutic intervention of the small bowel and can be used as an adjunct to video capsule endoscopy to improve the yield and management of small bowel lesions. Our top tips for deep enteroscopy success include reviewing patient history and prior imaging, utilizing CO 2 insufflation or water exchange, verifying quality measures and emphasizing ergonomics. With these, endoscopists can optimize patient outcomes while minimizing occupational risks. New aspects of deep enteroscopy equipment focus on high-resolution imaging, a larger working channel, and enhanced scope angulation. Proposed improvements include developing innovative technology to optimize the color and clarity of the high-resolution imaging, minimizing the number of staff required for the procedure, and decreasing ergonomic strain.

Teaching English Online During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Saudi Arabia: Challenges and Pedagogical Opportunities

With the spread of COVID-19 all over the world, the transformation of the educational system and the implementation of remote lessons became the only possible variant to continue the process of teaching students for English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers. This tendency was unexpected and became rather difficult for teachers and administrators who were typically not involved in online education to facilitate that change smoothly. The purpose of the study is to investigate the pedagogical opportunities and challenges for teachers who have to work online during the pandemic organizing the lessons of foreign languages in Saudi Arabia. The study is based on the analysis of the information received during qualitative semi-structured interviews with teachers from Saudi Arabian Universities and English language centers who use online classes as an alternative to traditional English lessons. The results of the study show that from the teacher’s perspective, challenges included a lack of student engagement, unnatural communication patterns, unusual requirements for planning content, and technical difficulties. The study found that remote education is hampered by low student engagement, lack of appropriate technology, incompatibility with new technologies, emotional stress, communication issues, student perception of material, attention on work, and inability to communicate with teachers and classmates. Moreover, the major findings include the solutions to the existing issues of online education, such as the creation of compelling content, the use of powerful online tools, the provision of effective platforms to students, the deeper focus on listening skills, and the use of technologies.