Specific Orientation Research Articles

Enhanced mixing quality of ring-type electroosmotic micromixer using baffles

In this study, an attempt has been taken to enhance the mixing efficiency in a micromixer of two different concentration fluids using electrokinetic effects such as electroosmotic flow. Four microelectrodes are located at specific locations on the outer surface of the one ring-shaped micromixer chamber. In addition, rigid baffles at the inlet side of the microchannel have been considered to enhance the mixing quality. The computation is performed using the finite element-based solver. The influences of different parameters such as average inlet fluid velocity (U0), frequency of the alternating current (f), the voltage amplitude of the alternating current (V), angle of inclination of the baffles (α), and the orientation fashion of the baffles at the inlet side have been investigated to achieve best mixing quality. This technique produces rapid mixing in the microchamber. Higher mixing quality can be achieved by considering the baffles in a specific orientation. The best mixing quality (99.67%) is obtained at the low inlet velocity of 0.05 mm/s. On the contrary, the lowest mixing quality (15.78%) is concerned with the higher inlet velocity with a high frequency of AC electric field.

Sexual life of Spanish women during the lockdown by COVID-19: Differences according to sexual orientation?

The COVID-19 pandemic may have exacerbated the sexual health differences that already existed among women based on their sexual orientation. Therefore, a total of 971 Spanish women aged 18–60 years (84 % heterosexual and 16 % with a minority sexual orientation) answered an ad hoc online questionnaire about sexual behavior during April 2020. Compared to heterosexual women, sexual minority women showed a greater increase in sexual frequency, masturbated more, had more sex with a housemate, and engaged in more online sexual activities during lockdown. The emotional impact of the pandemic, having privacy, and age showed a relationship with the quality of sexual life, but not sexual orientation. Based on these results, women's sexual lives are not as closely related to their sexual orientation as they are to other variables. Therefore, it seems more necessary to address issues affecting women in general during lockdown than to focus on their specific sexual orientation.

Lead zirconate titanate ceramics with aligned crystallite grains.

The piezoelectric properties of lead zirconate titanate [Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 or PZT] ceramics could be enhanced by fabricating textured ceramics that would align the crystal grains along specific orientations. We present a seed-passivated texturing process to fabricate textured PZT ceramics by using newly developed Ba(Zr,Ti)O3 microplatelet templates. This process not only ensures the template-induced grain growth in titanium-rich PZT layers but also facilitates desired composition through interlayer diffusion of zirconium and titanium. We successfully prepared textured PZT ceramics with outstanding properties, including Curie temperatures of 360°C, piezoelectric coefficients d33 of 760 picocoulombs per newton and g33 of 100 millivolt meters per newton, and electromechanical couplings k33 of 0.85. This study addresses the challenge of fabricating textured rhombohedral PZT ceramics by suppressing the otherwise severe chemical reaction between PZT powder and titanate templates.

Influence of the hierarchical architecture of multi-core iron oxide nanoflowers on their magnetic properties

Magnetic properties of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles are controlled mainly by their particle size and by their particle size distribution. Magnetic properties of multi-core iron oxide nanoparticles, often called iron oxide nanoflowers (IONFs), are additionally affected by the interaction of magnetic moments between neighboring cores. The knowledge about the hierarchical structure of IONFs is therefore essential for understanding the magnetic properties of IONFs. In this contribution, the architecture of multi-core IONFs was investigated using correlative multiscale transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction and dynamic light scattering. The multiscale TEM measurements comprised low-resolution and high-resolution imaging as well as geometric phase analysis. The IONFs contained maghemite with the average chemical composition gamma-Fe_{2.72pm 0.02}O_4. The metallic vacancies located on the octahedral lattice sites of the spinel ferrite structure were partially ordered. Individual IONFs consisted of several cores showing frequently a specific crystallographic orientation relationship between direct neighbors. This oriented attachment may facilitate the magnetic alignment within the cores. Individual cores were composed of partially coherent nanocrystals having almost the same crystallographic orientation. The sizes of individual constituents revealed by the microstructure analysis were correlated with the magnetic particle sizes that were obtained from fitting the measured magnetization curve by the Langevin function.

A model rural rehabilitation service station in China– Evaluation after 5 years

A simple setup for rehabilitation training was established in 2007 in a rural area of Shanxi Province, China. It made use of an underused facility created for elderly people’s leisure time. Simple equipment for rehabilitation training was provided free for the users, and instructions were given by rehab experts, Traditional medical doctors, and social workers. This rural Service Station must be the first of its kind in rural China and deserves scrutinizes for its unique nature. After 5 years of service, a service evaluation of its service nature, service providers, users, and special orientations was completed. It is hoped that this Service Station could be taken as a model of similar rural development in China.

Recrystallization Behavior of Specially Oriented Grains during Dynamic Softening of Powder Superalloys

By analyzing the degree of grain deformation of FGH96 alloy under different plastic deformation process parameters, as well as the relative frequency and distribution characteristics of recrystallized core and grain boundaries with different orientation differences, comprehensively considering the evolution law of grains of different sizes, the relationship between grain boundary characteristics and grain boundaries is studied. The correlation and evolution law between the nucleation mechanism of recrystallized grains, the growth characteristics of recrystallized cores, and related dynamic softening mechanisms, combined with the change trend of grain orientation during deformation, for the special orientation grains generated during deformation. Granules and their recrystallization behavior characteristics were analyzed.

Thrombocytosis in relation to severity of lower respiratory tract infection in children aged 2 months to 5 years

Background: Primary or essential thrombocytosis in children is very rare but reactive thrombocytosis occurs in children and respiratory tract infection is the commonest cause. The study aimed to determine the association of thrombocytosis with severity of lower respiratory tract infection; and the association of degree of thrombocytosis with severity of pneumonia. Materials and methods: This observational study was conducted in the Department of Paediatrics of Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Medical College & Hospital, Barpeta in Assam. This study was done on 120 children aged between 2 months and 5 years who were admitted with lower respiratory tract infection and classified according to WHO guidelines. Complete general physical examination and systemic examination with special orientation towards respiratory system was done. Complete blood count was performed with automated system sysmex xs800i cell counter. Thrombocytosis was noted and severity of thrombocytosis was classified. Results: Among 120 cases of lower respiratory tract infections, 48 children had thrombocytosis. 13 (48.1%) children with very severe disease, 29 (46.1%) children with severe pneumonia and 6(20%) children with pneumonia had thrombocytosis. Thus it was seen that there was significant association between platelet count and severity of pneumonia (p value=0.018). Two children had severe thrombocytosis (9.01-10.00L/mm3) and both of them had very severe disease. It indicates that degree of thrombocytosis increases as severity of pneumonia increases. Conclusion: There is a significant relationship between thrombocytosis and severity of pneumonia. Also degree of thrombocytosis increases as severity of pneumonia increases. Keywords: thrombocytosis; lower respiratory tract infection; pneumonia; severe pneumonia

Can orientations of directionally solidified dual-phase Al2O3/YAG eutectics be induced by single-phase sapphire seeds?

• The orientations of the dual-phase directionally solidified Al 2 O 3 /Y 3 Al 5 O 12 (YAG) eutectic ceramics were induced successfully by various single-phase sapphire seeds. They show special crystallographic orientation relationships (COR I-IV). • The directions of Al 2 O 3 in the eutectics were governed by the seeds and the YAG in each induced eutectics had a specific growth direction endowed by the Al 2 O 3 in the as-induced eutectics or the sapphire seed. • Based on calculated planar lattice misfits and total interfacial strain energies of four CORs, which indicated that the constraint of the sapphire seed makes the YAG grow following the rule of minimizing the interfacial strain energy. Directionally solidified dual-phase Al 2 O 3 /Y 3 Al 5 O 12 (YAG) eutectic ceramics (DSECs) typically exhibit strong anisotropy. To improve their properties, various single-phase sapphire seeds, including r -axis [11_02], m -axis [101_0], c -axis [0001], and a -axis [112_0], were used as seeds to induce the orientation of the Al 2 O 3 /YAG DSECs. The results showed that Al 2 O 3 in the eutectics could be governed by the sapphire seeds. The YAG in each induced eutectic had a specific growth direction endowed by Al 2 O 3 in the as-induced eutectics or the sapphire seed. Herein, we calculated the planar lattice misfits and interfacial strain energies of four crystallographic orientation relationships based on the constructed lattice models. It was elucidated the constraint of the sapphire seed caused YAG to grow following the rule of minimizing the interfacial strain energy. This revealed the reason why Al 2 O 3 /YAG DSECs orientation can be successfully induced. These results may provide a novel method for the design of high-performance eutectic ceramic materials.

Influence of Deformation Rate on Nucleation and Growth of Recrystallized Grains during Hot Deformation of Nickel-Based Powder Superalloys

High temperature uniaxial compression deformation test was carried out on nickel-based powder superalloy FGH96 alloy by thermal processing simulation test machine, and the relationship between grain boundary characteristics and nucleation mechanism of recrystallized grains, growth characteristics of recrystallized cores and related dynamic softening mechanisms was studied. According to the correlation and evolution law of grains, combined with the change trend of grain orientation during the deformation process, the recrystallization behavior characteristics of the grains with special orientation generated during the deformation process were analyzed. When the deformation temperature is 1070 °C, the evolution rules of the substructure grain boundaries with an orientation difference of less than 10° are different under different deformation rate conditions, which indicates that the dynamic softening mechanism of FGH96 alloy is slightly different with the increase of deformation rate. There are different. With the increase of the deformation rate, the nucleation mechanism induced by Σ3 twinning gradually replaced the nucleation mechanism of continuous subgrain rotation and coarsening, and the grain growth rate gradually slowed down.

Synergetic control of specific orientation and self-distribution of photoelectrons in micro-nano ZnIn2S4/black phosphorus quantum dots (BPQDs) heterojunction to enhance photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

Black phosphorus quantum dots (BPQDs)-based materials possess excellent photocatalytic efficiency; however, they often present a loss of photo-induced carriers and random active sites in electron transfer of heterojunctions, thus restricting the enhancement of hydrogen (H2) evolution and their potential application. In this study, a micro-nano ZnIn2S4/BPQDs (MN-ZISBP) composite is constructed to enable specific orientation and self-distribution of photoelectrons transferred from ZnIn2S4 (ZIS) to BPQDs. The relationship between photoelectron transfer and H2 evolution efficiency is investigated via experiments and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. MN-ZISBP with a nanorod-like structure presents an H2 evolution rate of 1207 μmol/g/h and is higher than that of the sheet-shaped (S-ZISBP, 1023 μmol/g/h) and flower-like composites (F-ZISBP, 744 μmol/g/h) under visible light irradiation. The MN-ZISBP composite with a lower conduction band level and larger specific surface area increases the number of active sites on BPQDs via “self-distribution” for H2 evolution. Finally, the electron transfer direction and bonding orbitals of MN-ZISBP are calculated using the work function and density of states results to verify the above conclusions. The novel construction technique and photocatalytic mechanism of MN-ZISBP reported in this study provide significant insights into the BPQDs-based photocatalysts for H2 evolution.

Deformation behavior and strengthening effects of an eutectic AlCoCrFeNi2.1 high entropy alloy probed by in-situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction and post-mortem EBSD

In this work, high energy synchrotron X-ray diffraction was used during tensile testing of an as-cast eutectic AlCoCrFeNi2.1 high entropy alloy. Aside, from determining for the first time the volume fractions of existing phases, we further detail their role on the alloy deformation behavior. The two major phases, a soft disordered FCC and a hard ordered B2 BCC, were observed to exhibit a stress partitioning effect which can be used to modulate the mechanical response of the material based on the relative volume fraction of each phase. Dislocation density analysis revealed that the soft FCC phase had a significantly higher dislocation density right after the onset of plastic deformation. This is attributed to the existence of strain gradients across the lamellar structure, where the hard B2 BCC prevents free deformation of the FCC phase. Nonetheless, despite the increase of the dislocation density in the soft FCC phase, calculations of the strengthening effects induced by generation of dislocations are more significant in the hard B2 BCC phases, as this phase is primarily responsible for the strength increase in the alloy. Besides, the evolutions in dislocation density of the soft FCC and hard B2 BCC phases during tensile deformation obtained from synchrotron X-ray diffraction data are consistent with the evolution of KAM determined by EBSD characterization. Also, lattice strain analysis across two principal directions (parallel and perpendicular to the loading axis) reveals that for these specific orientations there is a preferential deformation of the hard FCC planes which can be related to the deformation response of specific lattice planes at distinct orientations, as well as to the phase partitioning stress behavior.

Prototypicality at the intersection of gender and sexual orientation.

The intersectional invisibility hypothesis (IIH) states that members of multiply marginalized groups experience intersectional invisibility by not being seen as prototypical for either of their constitutive groups due to the influence of heterocentrism and androcentrism. That is, a lesbian woman may not be represented in relation to either the category 'woman' or the category 'homosexual people'. Two online experiments conducted in Sweden and the United Kingdom (N= 1923) tested predictions from the IIH at different intersections of specific genders (woman and man) and sexual orientations (heterosexuality, homosexuality and bisexuality) using an attribute generation task and direct similarity ratings. Results show strong support for the influence of heterocentrism: Only prototypes for heterosexual women/men match general prototypes for women/men. Androcentrism influenced the prototype for 'homosexual people', which had a stronger match with the prototype for gay men compared with lesbian women. In contrast, bisexual women were seen as more prototypical 'bisexual people' than bisexual men were. Psychological research conducted on general gender groups may therefore only be applicable to heterosexual individuals, while research on homosexual people in general may be applicable mainly to gay men.

Early detection of cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease using eye tracking.

Patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) are known to exhibit visuospatial processing impairment, as reflected in eye movements from the early stages of the disease. We investigated whether the pattern of gaze exploration during visual tasks could be useful for detecting cognitive decline at the earliest stage. Sixteen AD patients (age: 79.1 ± 7.9 years, Mini Mental State Examination [MMSE] score: 17.7 ± 5.3, mean ± standard deviation) and 16 control subjects (age: 79.4 ± 4.6, MMSE score: 26.9 ± 2.4) participated. In the visual memory task, subjects memorized presented line drawings for later recall. In the visual search tasks, they searched for a target Landolt ring of specific orientation (serial search task) or color (pop-out task) embedded among arrays of distractors. Using video-oculography, saccade parameters, patterns of gaze exploration, and pupil size change during task performance were recorded and compared between AD and control subjects. In the visual memory task, the number of informative regions of interest (ROIs) fixated was significantly reduced in AD patients compared to control subjects. In the visual search task, AD patients took a significantly longer time and more saccades to detect the target in the serial but not in pop-out search. In both tasks, there was no significant difference in the saccade frequency and amplitude between groups. On-task pupil modulation during the serial search task was decreased in AD. The number of ROIs fixated in the visual memory task and search time and saccade numbers in the serial search task differentiated both groups of subjects with high sensitivity, whereas saccade parameters of pupil size modulation were effective in confirming normal cognition from cognitive decline with high specificity. Reduced fixation on informative ROIs reflected impaired attentional allocation. Increased search time and saccade numbers in the visual search task indicated inefficient visual processing. Decreased on-task pupil size during visual search suggested decreased pupil modulation with cognitive load in AD patients, reflecting impaired function of the locus coeruleus. When patients perform the combination of these tasks to visualize multiple aspects of visuospatial processing, cognitive decline can be detected at an early stage with high sensitivity and specificity and its progression be evaluated.

Surface potential variation across (hk1) and non-(hk1) grain boundaries of antimony triselenide

Electronic materials that can tolerate defects or create self-passivated interfaces expand the horizons to more sustainable electronic devices. Two heuristic models suggest that (i) antimony triselenide is a defect tolerant semiconductor (to certain point defects) and that (ii) the boundaries of grains with a specific orientation are self-passivated. Yet, experimental support or scrutiny of these models is lacking. Partly because measuring a passive quality of a material is perplexing. A possible way forward is to measure defect activity in correlation with other experimental evidence for defect presence, for example, by relating the grain boundaries’ (GBs) nanostructure and electronic quality. One measure of the electronic quality is the magnitude of the surface potential variation across grain boundaries—a high (charged) defect concentration and low defect tolerance typically leads to a significant surface potential variation. On the other hand, direct observation of defects (e.g., by electron microscopy) and a small surface potential variation indicates that the material is defect tolerant. In parallel, a comparison of the surface potential variation across grain boundaries in films with grains of different orientations provides a qualitative measure of the self-passivation of material because only certain crystallographic surfaces are expected to be self-passivated. Herein we report that regardless of the grains’ mutual respective orientation, the grain boundaries of antimony triselenide have a relatively benign electronic quality. This is evident in a shallow surface potential variation across grain boundaries (10–50 mV; 195 GBs were investigated). Yet, a high-resolution TEM investigation reveals that a variety of defects is prevalent at and near the GBs. Additionally, we found that GBs in films with distinct (hk1) orientation indeed have a lower surface potential variation than grains with (hk0) orientation. These findings support both heuristic models and provide a practical way to scrutinize defect tolerance in other polycrystalline semiconductors.

Dynamic dielectrophoretic cell manipulation is enabled by an innovative electronics platform

We report on a portable dielectrophoresis manipulation platform, for the positioning and immobilization of small dielectric objects, such as cells or microbes, using a circular array of up to six symmetrically arranged and independently controllable micro-electrodes. The system’s micro-controller-instructed electronic drivers can be operated in three distinct modes. We demonstrate the system’s function by actuating bacterial cells to specific locations and orientations within a region of interest. Using a deep learning approach, we map voltage phase combinations of the six electrodes to geometrical trap position locations, thereby facilitating smooth trajectory planning.

Analysis of the psychophysical state military officers under the influence of special exercises

The article considers the theoretical and methodological principles of military personnel's physical training. Despite the constant technical modernization of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, modern combat conditions today associate with considerable physical stress. The combat activity of many military specialists in modern conditions has features of considerable physical work, which is associated with large, and in some cases, with maximum physical exertions. The results of research also presented the requirements for the physical preparedness of military personnel, the level of development of their general and speed-strength endurance and the degree of formation of military-applied motor skills. According to the results of the conducted research was analyzed the character of the physical activity showed by military personnel in the process of training and combat activities. Has been proven the fact that mainly prevailed physical exercises of considerable and moderate capacity, which aimed at the development of general endurance, and at the same time insufficient attention is paid to the development of special physical qualities and the formation of military-applied motor skills. It is justified that one of the effective ways to solve this problem is to use physical exercises and applied military sports. It is substantiated the special orientation of physical training in the system of military-professional activity: the task of physical training is divided into two groups of military specialties, which are taught in military educational institutions. Higher educational institutions with a expressed motor component (a direct relationship between physical preparedness and the effectiveness of future professional activity) and higher educational institutions that train specialists with an unexpressed motor component in the structure of future professional activity. The article provides data that determine the interaction of special physical training and the psychophysical state of military personnel, presents the method of developing special psychophysical qualities of military personnel by means of physical education. It has been developed practical recommendations on the use of special focused exercises during military activities and their influence on the psychophysical condition of military personnel.

High-Performance Embedded System for Offline Signature Verification Problem Using Machine Learning

This paper proposes a high-performance embedded system for offline Urdu handwritten signature verification. Though many signature datasets are publicly available in languages such as English, Latin, Chinese, Persian, Arabic, Hindi, and Bengali, no Urdu handwritten datasets were available in the literature. So, in this work, an Urdu handwritten signature dataset is created. The proposed embedded system is then used to distinguish genuine and forged signatures based on various features, such as length, pattern, and edges. The system consists of five steps: data acquisition, pre-processing, feature extraction, signature registration, and signature verification. A majority voting (MV) algorithm is used for improved performance and accuracy of the proposed embedded system. In feature extraction, an improved sinusoidal signal multiplied by a Gaussian function at a specific frequency and orientation is used as a 2D Gabor filter. The proposed framework is tested and compared with existing handwritten signature verification methods. Our test results show accuracies of 66.8% for ensemble, 86.34% for k-nearest neighbor (KNN), 93.31% for support vector machine (SVM), and 95.05% for convolutional neural network (CNN). After applying the majority voting algorithm, the overall accuracy can be improved to 95.13%, with a false acceptance rate (FAR) of 0.2% and a false rejection rate (FRR) of 41.29% on private dataset. To test the generalization ability of the proposed model, we also test it on a public dataset of English handwritten signatures and achieve an overall accuracy of 97.46%.

Socio–Economic Crises (Historical and Political Aspect)

The relevance of the research is due to the fact that we are at the breaking point of the world system, called the capitalist formation, and showing how this happens and what it leads to is one of the most important tasks for social scientists around the world. The arguments about the crises of the economy, world politics, education, ideology, etc. are scattered and do not allow us to see the main thing that is happening at the present time, namely, that all these crises are united by the stadium completion of the system that has dominated in the last six centuries and is distinguished by a special expansionist orientation, which is the meaning of its existence. Analyzing these aspects, the author comes to the conclusion that globalization, hegemonic plans for the dominance of the United States, the coronavirus pandemic and the desire of the hegemon to get out of the crisis by unleashing a big war, dragging Russia into it, contributed to the aggravation of the existing capitalist system. The historical analogies of the country's exit from difficult situations, cited by the author, allow us to use historical experience in modern conditions, taking into account milder forms of mobilization character than those that have been in our history. The author analyzes in detail the economic measures that can help our country to withstand the severe trials that have befallen it. Finally, it is concluded that in order for Russia to survive, in addition to the partial mobilization announced by the president and the realization of the goals of denationalization and demilitarization of nationalist Ukraine, it is also necessary to carry out decolonization and deliberation in the country and participate in deglobalization as much as possible.

Protein-Precoated Surface of Metal-Organic Framework Nanoparticles for Targeted Delivery.

Metal-organic framework (MOF) nanoparticles have recently emerged as a promising vehicle for drug delivery with high porosity and feasibility. However, employing a MOF-based drug delivery system remains a challenge due to the difficulty in controlling interfaces of particles in a biological environment. In this paper, protein corona-blocked Zr6 -based MOF (PCN-224) nanoparticles are presented for targeted cancer therapy with high efficiency. The unmodified PCN-224 surface is precoated with glutathione transferase (GST)-fused targetable affibody (GST-Afb) proteins via simple mixing conjugations instead of chemical modifications that can induce the impairment of proteins. GST-Afb proteins are shown to stably protect the surface of PCN-224 particles in a specific orientation with GST adsorbed onto the porous surface and the GST-linked Afb posed outward, minimizing the unwanted interfacial interactions of particles with external biological proteins. The Afb-directed cell-specific targeting ability of particles and consequent induction of cell death is demonstrated both in vitro and in vivo by using two kinds of Afb, which targets the surface membrane receptor, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) or epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). This study provides insight into the way of regulating the protein-adhesive surface of MOF nanoparticles and designing a more effective MOF-hosted targeted delivery system.

Martian Gravity Waves Observed by the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) During Northern Summer

AbstractMartian gravity waves (GW) greatly impact the atmospheric circulation and formation of clouds, but many GW observations of the lower atmosphere are confined to specific orientations and wavelengths, leaving many gaps in the continuum of waves. To overcome the issue, we analyze eight Mars years of data during the season of Ls = 120°–150° from Band 10 (14.9 µm) of the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS), sensitive to GWs at ∼25 km altitude. All horizontal orientations at wavelengths below ∼40 km are detectable, with the potential to detect north‐south oriented GWs up to ∼1,000 km in length. Most THEMIS observations have brightness temperature variances compatible with GW disturbances. Intense GW activity concentrates poleward of 60°S, with normalized magnitudes up to 10−4 K2 K−2; activity decreases toward the equator and remains low throughout the northern hemisphere. The interannual intensity of GWs varies by latitude within three regimes of GW length: short (<20 km), medium (20–100 km), and long (>100 km). Gravity wave orientations that are detectable in all directions do not favor a single direction; that is, Martian GWs at 25 km altitude are isotropic. Finally, interannual variability seems to emerge from interactions with dust storms, orography, and planetary waves.