Human Usage Research Articles

How Good Is GPT’s “Emojinal Intelligence”? Investigating Emoji Patterns in LLM-Generated Social Media Text

Recent advancement in Large Language Models (LLMs) has opened the prospect of generating text for social media content that mimics human writing. The misuse of these tools presents urgent dilemmas, motivating the need to better understand the structure and patterns of LLM-generated content. Human communication on the Internet has developed relevant linguistic adaptations, including the use of emoji to augment traditional text. This study investigates the ability of one LLM, OpenAI’s GPT-3.5, to replicate human emoji usage in social media contexts. Drawing upon a dataset of nearly three thousand US English human-written tweets, we employed GPT-3.5-Turbo to generate social-media-style content and analyzed the use of emoji in the resulting text. We compared the patterns of emoji usage between the LLM-generated and the human-written datasets, particularly frequency, types of emoji commonly used, and emoji sequences (n-grams). Our results revealed notable differences in all categories. While human-written tweets were more likely to use faces, hearts, and repetitive sequences of emoji, LLM-created content had a broader variety of emoji, with a preference for literal representations of the text’s subject matter, producing diverse and unique emoji combinations.

Development of Novel Hydroxy Amide‐Based HDAC1 Inhibitors: Integrated Pharmacophore Modelling, 3D‐QSAR, and Virtual Screening Studies

AbstractHistone deacetylases (HDAC) are well‐established epigenetic targets for cancer therapy, with several HDAC inhibitors already approved for clinical use. Despite their potential, the clinical application of HDAC inhibitors, particularly HDAC1‐selective compounds, faces significant challenges. These include poor pharmacokinetics, limited bioavailability, and a lack of selectivity, which often necessitates to combine these inhibitors with other drugs for improved efficacy. Their limitations as standalone therapies emphasize the urgent need for further research and development. In this study, the dataset of 71 compounds were used to generate various pharmacophore models, among them DDRRR_1 was generated as the best pharmacophore model with a survival score of 6.148. The 3D‐QSAR data of theses compound showed a significant result with the values of R2 = 0.95 and Q2 = 0.87 in the atom‐based model and R2 = 0.901 and Q2 = 0.77 in the field‐based model. R‐group enumeration study generated novel 6426 compounds which was further screened through virtual screening study. The top‐scoring compound was M1 with the highest docking score (−8.804 kcal/mol) where hydroxy amide is important for interaction with HDAC1 protein. The ADME analysis demonstrated the compound's drug‐like characteristics. Overall, all hit compounds showed pharmacokinetic characteristics found within the range that is considered safe for human usage. This study findings have the potential to be applied further in the development of HDAC1 inhibitors for the treatment of gastric cancer.

Dynamic transition to a sustainable waterfront development in Penang, Malaysia

The interactions between human with land and water in realizing economic dynamism and sustainability with vast diversity human usage and needs is a great challenge that often with the resultant of rising tensions among stakeholders and the users. While the right to development is an absolute human right, along the development pathway should at least preserve or sustain the ecological systems for the future generations while maintaining the socio-economy balance. This paper firmly positions its study on Penang and applying the mixed mode research methods to reveal the underlaying elements to examine the sustainable waterfront development goals that will benefit the stakeholders and users of Penang. These underlaying elements plays a pivotal solution in addressing the rapid development with land and water. It emphasizes the proactive measures that can be undertaken to restrain economic, social and ecological systems risks, cultivating an improved and congruent environment for both the stakeholders and users of Penang. The mixed mode method used in this paper was the quantitative approach that collects data from questionnaires surveys and qualitative approach covers interviews where the analysis point of interface converged the results producing a constructive good health, quality education and deserving a quality living place as a sustainable inference to address the land and water mixed application challenges in Penang.

Groundwater geochemistry using modified integrated water quality index (IWQI) and health indices with special emphasis on nitrates and heavy metals in southern parts of Tirupati, South India.

Groundwater is particularly vulnerable to pollution in places with a high population density and extensive human usage of the land, especially in southern parts of Tirupati, India. To assess this, 60 bore-well samples were obtained and assessed for physical specifications, ion chemistry, and heavy metals during the pre- and post-monsoon seasons 2022. The current investigation employed a modified integrated water quality index (IWQI), conventional graphical and human health risk assessment (HHRA) of nitrates and heavy metals to know the groundwater chemistry and its detrimental health effects on humans. The major ions were analyzed using American public health association (APHA)standards, whereas heavy metals were analyzed using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry(ICP-OES). Additionally, pH Redox Equilibrium and C (PHREEQC),a geochemical model written in C programming language was employed to determine the saturation indices of mineral facies and ArcGIS 10.3.1 was used for spatial distribution patterns of IWQI. Then, the HHRA of nitrates and heavy metals was performed using United States environmental protection agency (USEPA)guidelines. The noteworthy outcomes include elevated levels of Ca2+, Mg2+, Cl-, NO3-, Cu,Fe, Mn, and Pb, demonstrating rock-water interaction, silicate weathering, Ca-Mg-HCO3 followed by mixed water facies, dissolution/precipitation, reverse exchange, and anthropogenic contamination are the major controlling processes in groundwater of southern Tirupati, India. The modified IWQI reveals that most groundwater samples (38%) fall under the bad quality class, with (47%) in the poor quality class and only (15%) classified as medium qualityclass in pre- and post-monsoon seasons. Elevated IWQI were observed in all directions except in the east, which is suitable for drinking. Moreover, the major hazard quotient (HQ) and hazard index (HI)for nitrates (NO3-) and heavy metals like copper(Cu), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn) are above the critical value of 1, revealing potential risk to humans, especially infants, followed by children and adults, entailing the instantaneous implementation of proper remedial measures and stringent policies to reduce the risk associated with groundwater pollution in the southern parts of Tirupati.

Spatio-temporal change and driving mechanisms of land use/cover in Qarhan Salt Lake area during from 2000 to 2020, based on machine learning

The significance of land use classification has garnered attention due to its implications for climate and ecosystems. This paper establishes a connection by introducing and applying automatic machine learning (Auto ML) techniques to salt lake landscape, with a specific focus on the Qarhan Salt Lake area. Utilizing Landsat-5 Thematic Mappe (TM) and Landsat-8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) imagery, six machine learning algorithms were employed to classify eight land use types from 2000 to 2020. Results show that XGBLD performed optimally with 77% accuracy. Over two decades, salt fields, construction land, and water areas increased due to transformations in saline land and salt flats. The exposed lakes area exhibited a rise followed by a decline, mainly transforming into salt flats. Agricultural land areas slightly increased, influenced by both human activities and climate. Our analysis reveals a strong correlation between salt fields and precipitation, while exposed lakes demonstrate a significant negative correlation with evaporation and temperature, highlighting their vulnerability to climate change. Additionally, human water usage was identified as a significant factor impacting land use change, emphasizing the dual influence of anthropogenic activities and natural factors. This paper addresses the void in the application of Auto ML in salt lake environments and provides valuable insights into the dynamic evolution of land use types in the Qarhan Salt Lake region.

Data Synthesis Is Going Mobile—On Community-Driven Dataset Generation for Android Devices

Personal electronic devices such as smartphones and smartwatches have become indispensable daily companions, collecting a multitude of personal and sensitive data. As a result, they are of paramount importance in digital forensic examinations. However, there is a lack of publicly available and ready-to-use digital forensic datasets, especially in mobile forensics. This work presents a concept and an open-source proof-of-concept implementation, which simplifies and automates the creation of mobile forensic datasets within the scope of the Android operating system. In contrast to previous approaches, which populate the most common databases of an Android device, our concept is based on community-driven playbooks and makes use of interaction with the actual smartphone GUI. Hence, we are able to generate coherent and realistic traces as they occur in real-world human usage. Our proof-of-concept implementation is based on the standard Android emulation environment and borrows tools from the user interface testing community. Our evaluation shows that our approach actually generates realistic Android datasets. For instance, we can generate traces that cannot be simulated by gestures (e.g., changing the GPS position or triggering incoming phone calls). Recording the actual data synthesis process allows users to either create and share their own playbooks (i.e., the exact instructions for the data synthesis process rather than having to share the full image) or reproduce Android images with different scenarios using playbooks previously created and shared by the community.

Phage therapy: A novel approach against multidrug-resistant pathogens.

The rapid rise of multidrug-resistant (MDR) organisms has created a critical need for alternative treatment options. Phage therapy is gaining attention as an effective way to fight bacterial infections by using lytic bacteriophages to specifically target and kill harmful bacteria. This review discusses several phage therapeutic options and emphasizes new developments in phage biology. Phage treatment has proven to be successful against MDR bacteria, as evidenced by multiple human clinical trials that indicate favorable results in treating a range of diseases caused by these pathogens. Despite these promising results, challenges such as phage resistance, regulatory hurdles, and the need for standardized treatment protocols remain. To effectively combat MDR bacterial infections, future research must focus on enhancing phage effectiveness, guaranteeing safety for human usage and incorporating phage therapy into clinical practice.

Study on knowledge, attitudes and behavioral practices of antimicrobial usage and resistance in animals and humans in Bahir Dar City, Northwest Ethiopia

Antimicrobial resistance has emerged as one of the foremost global public health challenges. While not a new issue, AMR has gained increasing attention due to the rise of multi-resistant pathogenic organisms, leading to higher mortality rates and significant economic burdens. To assess the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of the Bahir Dar City community regarding human and animal antimicrobial use and AMR, a community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from February to June 2023. The study area was selected purposively, and a simple random sampling approach was used to select kebeles, households, and individual participants. A total of 400 participants were enrolled in the study, with 63.25% being male and 31.25% having graduated from secondary school. Additionally, 61.5% of respondents were married, and the majority (46.5%) owned two species of animals. The findings revealed that 48.5% of the participants had moderate knowledge, 57.5% had positive attitudes, and 52.75% demonstrated good practices regarding antimicrobial resistance and usage. Chi-square analysis revealed statistically significant associations (p < 0.05) between respondents’ knowledge level and their educational level, marital status, and position in the house. Attitude level were significantly associated (p < 0.05) with educational level, marital status, occupation, house ownership, and position in the house. Practice level also showed significant association (p < 0.05) with position in the house and occupation. Furthermore, there were significant associations among knowledge, attitude, and practice: knowledge was significantly associated with attitude (χ2 = 209.91, p ≤ 0.001), knowledge with practice (χ2 = 160.43, p ≤ 0.001), and attitude with practice (χ2 = 136.95, p ≤ 0.001). In conclusion, the study found a moderate level of knowledge, positive attitude, and good practice regarding antimicrobial usage and resistance among participants. It is recommended to promote responsible antimicrobial use across all sectors and encourage interdisciplinary collaboration.

Misuse of Antibiotics in Pediatric Patients – A Comprehensive Review .

To identify and assess the likely causes of antibiotic overuse in the Pediatric outpatient department (OPD) of a busy teaching hospital. Overuse of antibiotics has emerged as a significant global pediatric concern. Specifically, the sale of drugs without a prescription from a doctor and other circumstances may have an impact on the abuse of antibiotics. Antibiotic resistance is encouraged by the misuse of antibiotics, particularly when antibiotics are used, even when they are not the recommended course of therapy. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that between one-third and half of all antibiotic usage in humans is unwarranted or improper. Viral pathogens are the primary cause of respiratory tract infections (RTI) in children compared to adults. Interestingly, compared to adults with RTI, very little is known regarding the usage of antibiotics in children.

Economic and environmental considerations for the deployment of industrial very high temperature heat pumps in European markets

Very high temperature heat pumps (VHTHP) have begun to emerge on the market during the past decade, providing an alternative to fuel-fire boilers for generating industrial process heat up to 200 °C. Large temperature lifts are common for VHTHPs, resulting in a reduced coefficient of performance (COP) compared to traditional heat pumps. Thus, the economic feasibility of operating VHTHPs becomes more dependent on local price conditions, and the environmental impact is affected by increased electricity usage. Both the economics and the environmental impact of operating industrial VHTHPs in place of fossil fuel-fired boilers in Europe are studied in this article. Discounted payback periods are estimated for the varying price conditions in Europe, and life cycle assessment tools are used to quantify the environmental impact of operating VHTHPs. Finland, Sweden, and Denmark were found to be ideal countries for VHTHP deployment, as they showcase both favorable economic conditions as well as generally small environmental impacts in the endpoint categories Human health, Climate change, and Resource usage, if local grid electricity is used. The effect on the endpoint category Ecosystem impacts was generally larger for most countries, including the aforementioned three, mostly due to the use of biomass in the electricity grid.

Mouse embryo CoCoPUTs: novel murine transcriptomic-weighted usage website featuring multiple strains, tissues, and stages

Mouse (Mus musculus) models have been heavily utilized in developmental biology research to understand mammalian embryonic development, as mice share many genetic, physiological, and developmental characteristics with humans. New explorations into the integration of temporal (stage-specific) and transcriptional (tissue-specific) data have expanded our knowledge of mouse embryo tissue-specific gene functions. To better understand the substantial impact of synonymous mutational variations in the cell-state-specific transcriptome on a tissue’s codon and codon pair usage landscape, we have established a novel resource—Mouse Embryo Codon and Codon Pair Usage Tables (Mouse Embryo CoCoPUTs). This webpage not only offers codon and codon pair usage, but also GC, dinucleotide, and junction dinucleotide usage, encompassing four strains, 15 murine embryonic tissue groups, 18 Theiler stages, and 26 embryonic days. Here, we leverage Mouse Embryo CoCoPUTs and employ the use of heatmaps to depict usage changes over time and a comparison to human usage for each strain and embryonic time point, highlighting unique differences and similarities. The usage similarities found between mouse and human central nervous system data highlight the translation for projects leveraging mouse models. Data for this analysis can be directly retrieved from Mouse Embryo CoCoPUTs. This cutting-edge resource plays a crucial role in deciphering the complex interplay between usage patterns and embryonic development, offering valuable insights into variation across diverse tissues, strains, and stages. Its applications extend across multiple domains, with notable advantages for biotherapeutic development, where optimizing codon usage can enhance protein expression; one can compare strains, tissues, and mouse embryonic stages in one query. Additionally, Mouse Embryo CoCoPUTs holds great potential in the field of tissue-specific genetic engineering, providing insights for tailoring gene expression to specific tissues for targeted interventions. Furthermore, this resource may enhance our understanding of the nuanced connections between usage biases and tissue-specific gene function, contributing to the development of more accurate predictive models for genetic disorders.

Behind the designs: An exploration of sustainability attitudes among interior design students in Jordan

This research is an attempt to understand where interior design students in Jordan and the Middle East Region stand in the sustainable thinking process through education and practice and if their education on sustainability and environmental issues is enough or if it needs more development in terms of interior design programs curriculums to be more effective sustainable interior designers. The survey instrument was used to assess the attitudes of interior design students toward ecological responsibility and environmental sustainability; a modified New Ecological Paradigm Scale (NEP) was used in this research. Students enrolled in interior design programs at a Northern Jordanian university were surveyed. The sample comprised 160 interior design students from different levels of an interior design program at a public university in Jordan. In the study’s sample, the students showed more interest in the negative effect of human usage of many of the planet's resources and how this will impact the planet's ecological system. This attitude provides insight into the students’ minds regarding where they have those ideas. As design students, this can motivate them to take a proactive stand toward sustainability, which may be done through their projects in the future. However, many participants did not understand sustainable practices and strategies. This can be due to the lack of sustainability training at the university level.Based on the NEP score distribution in each section, it can be concluded that students support the concept of sustainability and reject the destruction happening to the planet. This data shows an increased awareness of environmental and ecological problems, which can positively push design students and future designers to adapt sustainable design strategies to their projects.

Evaluations of Mechanical Properties and Functionalities of the Al- and Zr-Tailored Ti–5.5Mo Shape Memory Alloys for Biomedical Applications

AbstractDue to the critical world population aging issue, biomaterials are important topics in the biomedical community. Among the biomedical materials, shape memory alloys (SMAs) are considered to be promising materials owing to their functionalities, such as shape memory effect (SME) and superelasticity (SE). Ti–Mo–Al-based alloys, which are biocompatible materials, are basic materials in the Ti-based SMAs due to the evaluation of the phase stability through the calculations of Mo and Al equivalents. This study, in addition, introduced Zr into the Ti–Mo–Al-based alloys for its highly biocompatibility and being a fine modifier to tune the phase stability. The mechanical (i.e., strength and elongation) and functional (i.e., SME and SE) properties have been investigated in this study to reveal the practicability of the biomedical applications for human usage. It was found that addition of Zr to the Ti–Mo alloy shows slight influence on the mechanical properties of the binary Ti–Mo alloy. With the addition of Al, that is, ternary Ti–Mo–Al alloys, two-stage yielding was found in the tensile examinations. Among all the alloys, the Ti–5.5Mo–4Al, the Ti–5.5Mo–4Al–6Zr, and the Ti–5.5Mo–8Al–6Zr (mol pct) alloys performed excellent shape recovery of about 100 pct in the bending and heating tests. Especially, the Ti–5.5Mo–4Al–6Zr and the Ti–5.5Mo–8Al–6Zr alloys further show high strength. Results in this study could be a guideline for the design of the fundamental Ti–Mo–Al-based SMAs.

An analysis of McMurdo Dry Valleys’ lotic habitats within Antarctica’s protected area network and addressing gaps in biodiversity protection

ABSTRACT The McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV), Antarctica’s largest ice-free region, hosts unique terrestrial ecosystems, with biodiversity concentrated in the aquatic environments and surrounding soils. Despite being a scientific hub, the creation of the MDV Antarctic Specially Managed Area (ASMA) made significant steps toward protecting the environment from degradation from human usage. However, with sustained human presence within the MDV, increasing human activity across Antarctica, and aquatic ecosystems subject to environmental change, the effectiveness of current protections for biodiversity conservation requires evaluation. This study employs spatial analysis of MDV protected areas, streams, lakes, research camps, and tourist sites to assess the robustness of current protections, identify underprotected areas, and outline steps for future protection. Within the MDV ASMA, five smaller Antarctic Specially Protected Areas (ASPAs) exist. Only two ASPAs contain streams, and only one with a full hydrologic catchment. With roughly 6% of the lotic habitat area protected by ASPAs, the MDV fall short of global goals for freshwater protection. Past successful management of the MDV shows the effectiveness of collaboration and early action, and amongst calls for ASPA network expansion and restructuring, the MDV has the opportunity to be at the forefront again and increase the protection of Antarctic aquatic ecosystems.

Regional invasion history and land use shape the prevalence of non-native species in local assemblages.

The ecological impact of non-native species arises from their establishment in local assemblages. However, the rates of non-native spread in new regions and their determinants have not been comprehensively studied. Here, we combined global databases documenting the occurrence of non-native species and residence of non-native birds, mammals, and vascular plants at regional and local scales to describe how the likelihood of non-native occurrence and their proportion in local assemblages relate with their residence time and levels of human usage in different ecosystems. Our findings reveal that local non-native occurrence generally increases with residence time. Colonization is most rapid in croplands and urban areas, while it is slower and variable in natural or semi-natural ecosystems. Notably, non-native occurrence continues to rise even 200 years after introduction, especially for birds and vascular plants, and in other land-use types rather than croplands and urban areas. The impact of residence time on non-native proportions is significant only for mammals. We conclude that the continental exchange of biotas requires considerable time for effects to manifest at the local scale across taxa and land-use types. The unpredictability of future impacts, implied by the slow spread of non-native species, strengthens the call for stronger regulations on the exchange of non-native species to reduce the long-lasting invasion debt looming on ecosystems' future.

Assessment of nutritional contents of different parts of moringa plant from selected districts of Oromia, Ethiopia

Moringa plants are among high-value trees and belong to the Moringaceae family, consisting of 13 species and highly distributed in Africa and southern Asia. It is multi-purpose tree with medicinal, nutritional, industrial and socio-economic values. Preliminary information indicates that the human dietary usage of the edible parts of these species is limited. Assessment of the nutritional quality of different moringa parts was not well documented in Oromia. Hence, the aim of this activity is to assess the nutritional qualities of different parts of moringa collected from different districts of Oromia. Sample collection was done from Bako from West Showa, Bishoftu from East Showa, Dalo Mena and Goro from Bale Zone, of Oromia representing mid and low land agro-ecologies of the region. Three to four sampling PAs were used from each district. Different parts of Moringa, namely, leaf, pod, bark, seed and flower were collected from the four districts at least in triplicate. The collected samples were made to dry at room temperature, milled with coffee miller, and passed through a 1 mm standard sieve. The prepared samples were analyzed for proximate and mineral compositions using standard methodologies. The result obtained indicated that leaf is rich in nutrients Ca, Na, Mn and Zn. Moringa flower is rich in nutrients like Zn and Mn, and second in K composition next to pod. The pod is also rich in K and Zn, while the fat and CP contents are high in the seed part of moringa. Generally, Higher % CP, K and P were found from the Bishoftu collection, while Mg, Ca and K were higher for the collection from DM. Bark is poor in protein content compared to other parts of the plant. However, Ca, Mg and Zn are double the optimum composition of plant material. Finally, it is possible to use different moringa parts for food fortification, where determination for antioxidant and nutritional composition analysis is mandatory, as well as future research directions. Int. J. Agril. Res. Innov. Tech. 14(1): 62-69, June 2024

MODL-04. ZEBRAFISH: THE FUTURE OF PEDIATRIC BRAIN CANCER RESEARCH

Abstract Pediatric brain cancers cause the highest rate of mortality amongst all childhood cancers. Most high-grade gliomas are difficult to treat mainly due to impermeability across the blood-brain barrier, or systemic toxicity. Here, we explore the benefits of zebrafish to assess drug toxicity, orthotopic pediatric brain cancer model development and drug screening. We assessed the toxicity of eight anti-cancer drugs with diverse mechanisms of action. In addition to the survival assay (LC50), we analyzed other teratogenic characteristics to demonstrate the detrimental developmental toxicity, which was critical in determining drug safety for future human usage. To develop fast and reproducible orthotopically xenografted pediatric brain cancer models, we injected approximately 80-100 mCherry expressing JHH-NF1-PA1 and TM-31 cells into the midbrain of 2 days post-fertilization (dpf) zebrafish embryos and imaged daily for next 4 days to monitor the survival, progression, and invasion of the injected cells. Our results show that both cell types were engrafted successfully and multiplied inside the developing zebrafish brain. As compared to JHH-NF1-PA1 cells, which mostly migrated caudally within the developing spinal cord, TM-31 migrated in multiple directions and metastasized five times more rapidly. To check the efficiency of VAL-083 and AZD-1775 in high-grade glioma, 2 dpf zebrafish embryos were injected with mCherry expressing HGG cells, SF8628. At one day post-injection (dpi), the xenografted embryos were exposed to different combinations of Val-083 and AZD-1775 for 72 hours. After 4 dpi, tumor cell invasion and migration in zebrafish were quantified. We found that the combination group had the lowest tumor burden with significantly lower fluorescence intensity, total area of migration, and reduced number of metastatic cells (p&amp;lt;0.001) compared to single or no drug treatment groups. Our study showed that zebrafish is a valuable, rapid, and cost-effective in-vivo pediatric brain cancer pre-clinical model to assess tumor proliferation, metastasis, and rapid drug screening.

Publication, funding, and experimental data in support of Human Reference Atlas construction and usage

Experts from 18 consortia are collaborating on the Human Reference Atlas (HRA) which aims to map the 37 trillion cells in the healthy human body. Information relevant for HRA construction and usage is held by experts, published in scholarly papers, and captured in experimental data. However, these data sources use different metadata schemas and cannot be cross-searched efficiently. This paper documents the compilation of a dataset, named HRAlit, that links the 136 HRA v1.4 digital objects (31 organs with 4,279 anatomical structures, 1,210 cell types, 2,089 biomarkers) to 583,117 experts; 7,103,180 publications; 896,680 funded projects, and 1,816 experimental datasets. The resulting HRAlit has 22 tables with 20,939,937 records including 6 junction tables with 13,170,651 relationships. The HRAlit can be mined to identify leading experts, major papers, funding trends, or alignment with existing ontologies in support of systematic HRA construction and usage.

Determining anthropogenic pressure on the Southern Black Sea blue flag beaches

Coasts are settlement areas that attract human for many years. Türkiye, geographically located on Mediterranean Basin and Asian Continent passage with unique climate regime, has a great coastal zone. The mid-latitude geographic setting makes possible to experience coastal recreation and tourism activities for almost all year along. Among all activities sun, sea and sand tourism can be placed on the first stage. Recent changes in local climate of the Black Sea such as rising mean atmospheric temperatures and increasing number of sunny days have triggered touristic beach activities in the region. In the literature, there are different techniques for grading and classifying coastal beaches. In this study, as an integral part of coastal landscape formation Land Use/Land Cover (LULC) structure is linked to landscape value and regarded as cover changes that determines landscape pattern of the area under investigation. The research rationale of this study is based on an assumption of Southern Black Sea coastal blue flag beaches are under severe anthropogenic pressure. For this purpose, 15 blue flag beaches which are located on the Black Sea coast of Türkiye were selected based on their morphological dimensions. To determine landscape changes and potential human induced effects on selected beaches for the last 35–40 years period, georeferenced, atmospherically corrected Landsat 5 TM and Landsat 8 OLI-TIRS satellite images were used. Furthermore, carrying capacities for all researched beaches were calculated and documented in order to find the actual human usage frequencies during the high season. According to results of the study, it is clearly observed that all beach areas are under anthropogenic pressure. The most important evidence of this situation is the proportional increases in the IS (Impervious Surface) cover class in the classified images between 1984 and 1985 and 2021 in all 15 beaches. Moreover, these increases have reached up to 5–6 times for some beaches. As inferred, from the field surveys, beach carrying capacities were also exceeded for the most of the beaches under investigation. This means the blue flag beaches of Southern Black Sea are not only affected by construction and urbanization but also under intense pressure of overuse during the high seasons. It is revealed that these areas should be carefully managed with state-of-the-art techniques that prioritize adaptive planning that takes into account all stakeholders participation. Moreover, the activities, authorization and attitudes of municipalities regarding the coastal zones must be limited and inspected by a higher organization.

Carbon dioxide-activated mesoporous date palm fronds carbon integrated with MnO2/polyaniline for highly efficient capacitive deionization of water.

The continuous population growth and drying up the freshwater reservoirs around the world are increasing the demand for fresh water. Therefore, there is an urgent need to explore newer technologies able to purify water on large scales for human usage. Capacitive deionization is one of the most promising approaches to generate fresh water by the removal of salt ions from brackish water. In this work, we prepared three different capacitive deionization electrodes using carbonized palm tree fronds (PFC). These PFC activation was achieved using CO2 at 900°C. To generate the deionization electrodes, PFC activated carbon was combined with either polyaniline (PANI), MnO2, or both (PFC-PANI, PFC-MnO2, and PFC-MnO2-PANI). The MnO2 and PANI provided additional functionality and enhanced electrical conductivity, which resulted in much higher Na+ and Cl- ions adsorption. The BET surface area of PFC-MnO2-PANI was estimated to be 208.56 m2/g, which is approximately three times that of PCF-PANI and PFC-MnO2 alone. The morphological analysis showed that the PANI and MnO2 nanorods were well dispersed throughout the PFC network. Although PANI and MnO2 is largely embedded inside the PFC network, some remnants are visible on the surface of the electrodes. The cyclic voltammetry (CV) curves showed capacitive behavior of all electrodes in which PFC-MnO2-PANI showed highest specific capacitance of 84 F/g, while the PFC-MnO2 and PFC-PANI showed 42 and 43 F/g, respectively. Owing to its enhanced functionality and CV characteristics, the PFC-MnO2-PANI showed maximum salt adsorption capacity of 10.5mg/g in contrast to 3.72 and 5.64 mg/g for PFC-MnO2 and PFC-PANI, respectively. Moreover, the measured contact angle for PFC-MnO2-PANI was ~51°, which indicates the hydrophilic nature of electrode that improved ions adsorption. PRACTITIONER POINTS: Date tree fronds were converted into mesopores carbon using CO2 as activation agent. Three composites were prepared with PANI, MnO2, and date palm fronds activated carbon (PFC-MnO2, PFC-MnO2-PANI, and PFC-PANI). Surface area, pore profile, surface morphology, electrochemical behavior, desalination performance, and hydrophilicity of all the electrodes were investigated. The PFC-MnO2-PANI showed maximum salt adsorption capacity of 10.5mg/g in contrast to 3.72 and 5.64 mg/g for PFC-MnO2 and PFC-PANI, respectively.