Specific Areas Of Interest Research Articles

On Certainty, Proper Confidence, and Doubt: A Postfoundationalist and Critical Realist Epistemology for Doing Constructive Theology

ABSTRACTThe present essay1 seeks to focus on the meaning and challenges of doubt and lack of certainty in the context of doing academic theological work, whether in a Seminary setting such as my own, Fuller Theological Seminary, or in a “secular” university setting such as the University of Helsinki, my other institution. Throughout, I am raising questions such as whether any kind of certainty or confidence is available in the work of theology, particularly constructive theology, my own particular area of interest. Speaking of constructive theology, reflecting on the issues of doubt, certainty, and confidence is particularly important for the simple reason that it typically engages some non‐theological disciplines such as natural sciences with their own criteria for truth. And in my case, dialogue with some other faith traditions, including Islam, further makes the issue of doubt pertinent. To make my inquiry manageable—and hopefully also dynamic—I am carrying critical conversation with two thinkers of the 20th century, namely the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein and the missionary bishop and cultural critic of the West, Lesslie Newbigin. Whereas the mature Wittgenstein was in search of certainty towards the end of his life, Newbigin sought for proper confidence. Both of them rejected the Cartesian indubitable certainty of modernity, on the one hand, and the dismissal of the possibility of truth in many streams of late modernity on the other. While critically affirming some key arguments of these two diverse thinkers, I also see the importance of buttressing their emerging epistemological programs with the help of insights from postfoundationalist and critical–realist epistemologies. It is clear without saying that this big task can only be outlined and sketched rather than scrutinized in any detail within a 1‐h talk! My presentation is more an invitation to conversation and less any kind of finished project. I will first engage the two protagonists. Thereafter, before the summative and concluding reflections in terms of implications to theology and faith, a brief look at the meaning and nature of postfoundationalism and critical realism is attempted.

A scheduling perspective on modular educational systems in Europe

In modular educational systems, students are allowed to choose a part of their curriculum themselves. The rationale behind letting students choose their courses themselves is to enhance self-responsibility, improve student motivation, and allow for focus on specific areas of interest. A central instrument for bringing these systems to fruition is the timetable. However, scheduling the timetable in such systems can be an extremely challenging and time-consuming task. In this study, we present a framework for classifying modular educational systems in Europe that reflects different degrees of freedom regarding student choices and explore the consequences from the perspective of scheduling a timetable that satisfies all requirements from the organizational and pedagogical perspectives. For this purpose, we conducted interviews in Austria, Germany, Finland, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg, and applied the framework to these educational systems, finding that among them the Finnish system shows the highest degree of modularity. After analyzing the consequences of modularity from the scheduling perspective, we assess the necessity for automated scheduling methods, which are central to realizing the potential and many benefits of modular education. The framework developed in this paper can be used by educational systems to assess their degree of modularity and consider the right approach to timetabling based on it.

Space Analogs and Behavioral Health Performance Research review and recommendations checklist from ESA Topical Team.

Space analog research has increased over the last few years with new analogs appearing every year. Research in this field is very important for future real mission planning, selection and training of astronauts. Analog environments offer specific characteristics that resemble to some extent the environment of a real space mission. These analog environments are especially interesting from the psychological point of view since they allow the investigation of mental and social variables in very similar conditions to those occurring during real space missions. Analog missions also represent an opportunity to test operational work and obtain information on which combination of processes and team dynamics are most optimal for completing specific aspects of the mission. A group of experts from a European Space Agency (ESA) funded topical team reviews the current situation of topic, potentialities, gaps, and recommendations for appropriate research. This review covers the different domains in space analog research including classification, main areas of behavioral health performance research in these environments and operational aspects. We also include at the end, a section with a list or tool of recommendations in the form of a checklist for the scientific community interested in doing research in this field. This checklist can be useful to maintain optimal standards of methodological and scientific quality, in addition to identifying topics and areas of special interest.

Methodological approaches in 16S sequencing of female reproductive tract in fertility patients: a review.

The female genital tract microbiome has become a particular area of interest in improving assisted reproductive technology (ART) outcomes with the emergence of next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology. However, NGS assessment of microbiomes currently lacks uniformity and poses significant challenges for accurate and precise bacterial population representation. As multiple NGS platforms and assays have been developed in recent years for microbiome investigation-including the advent of long-read sequencing technologies-this work aimed to identify current trends and practices undertaken in female genital tract microbiome investigations. Areas like sample collection and transport, DNA extraction, 16S amplification vs. metagenomics, NGS library preparation, and bioinformatic analysis demonstrated a detrimental lack of uniformity. The lack of uniformity present is a significant limitation characterised by gap discrepancies in generation and interpretation of results. Minimal consistency was observed in primer design, DNA extraction techniques, sample transport, and bioinformatic analyses. With third-generation sequencing technology highlighted as a promising tool in microbiota-based research via full-length 16S rRNA sequencing, there is a desperate need for future studies to investigate and optimise methodological approaches of the genital tract microbiome to ensure better uniformity of methods and results interpretation to improve clinical impact.

Games Design Frameworks: A Novel Approach for Games Design Pedagogy

The discipline of Games Design has surged in popularity in higher education as a route to industry for aspiring game developers. Notably, at the time of writing 138 UK Universities are now offering game design degrees, and many further education institutions. This growth is not only in volume but also in the diversity of students who enrol in these courses. Young learners, coming from various backgrounds and with differing levels of professional and academic experience, are drawn to games as a field of study. Games disciplines (such as Games Art, Design, and Programming) are often seen as more accessible than their comparative parent disciplines (such as Computer Science). This diversity presents both an opportunity and a challenge for educators: to develop teaching methodologies that not only cater to a wide range of experiences but also effectively prepare students for the creative and technical demands of the games industry. This paper introduces a pioneering design concept utilized in the pedagogy of game design, namely the use of game frameworks. A framework is a structure built in a video games engine, containing a pre-made, playable game experience, which students are taught to build upon and modify. Frameworks abstract and modularise fundamental, complex elements of the game creation process, allowing new learners to quickly become engaged with the iterative process of designing gameplay. It also allows educators to focus on a specific area of interest. For example, a student can focus just on the UI elements of the game for a whole module of study, without needing to have built the entire game first. This allows students to focus on the elements being taught, without introducing a significant amount of non-assessed content just to enable to learning. This position paper discusses our application of this approach, including the process of framework design, supportive assessment, successes and challenges.

Eğitim Yönetiminde Eleştirel Düşünmeyi Değerlendirme Yöntemlerinin İncelenmesi

Critical thinking has been an area of special interest for many people and institutions since the existence of humanity. In particular, it has followed a parallel course to the development of humanity in the educational management processes. Many scientists and thinkers related to critical thinking have been engaged in intensive and in-depth efforts. Critical thinking is a complex mental negotiation process involving various skills and attitudes. It is a cognitive activity associated with using the mind. Critical thinking; it requires applying analysis and evaluation methods that include mental skills such as learning, attention, classification, selection, judgment. Although some people may be able to develop critical thinking more effectively, they avoid it for various reasons, regardless of ability. Especially personal, emotional and affective reasons can be the basis for this situation. In the content of the study, the methods of evaluating critical thinking in educational management will be discussed in an explanatory way in the special of the relevant tables. Key Words: Educational Management, Critical Thinking, Evaluation Methods

The research trend on neurobrucellosis over the past 30 years (1993-2023): a bibliometric and visualization analysis.

Brucellosis is a zoonotic disease caused by Brucella infection, which is common in pastoral areas. Neurological involvement in brucellosis is relatively rare. But since 1993, continuous studies have been reporting neurological complications of brucellosis, collectively referred to as neurobrucellosis. A bibliometric analysis of existing literature outlines current research progress and gaps and provides guidance for the clinical treatment of neurobrucellosis, promoting patient health in the process of guiding clinical practice, and improving their quality of life. CiteSpace and VOSviewer are software tools to visualize research trends and networks. By selecting specific areas of interest and configuring the right parameters, the tools can visualize past research data. The study retrieved the literature from the Web of Science Core Collection Database and downloaded it in plain text file format. Citespace6.1.6, VOSviewer v1.6.20, and Microsoft Excel 16.59 were used for analyzing the following terms: countries, institutions, authors' cooperation, journals, keywords, and co-citation. There are eight key results. (1) The publication volume shows a general upward trend. (2) Turkey is the country with the highest publication volume and contributing institutions. (3) Giambartolomei GH, Gul HC, and Namiduru M are the authors with the highest number of publications. (4) Neurology is the journal that published the highest number of related articles (n = 12). (5) "Diagnosis," "meningitis," and "features" are the top three frequently occurring keywords. (6) Keyword clusters show "antibiotic therapy" and "cerebrospinal fluid" have future study value. (7) The burst analysis of the keywords also indicates that "cerebrospinal fluid" may become a prominent keyword in future research. (8) The co-citation analysis concludes three categories of the cited articles, which are diagnosis, therapy, and complications, indicating the past research direction. This study highlights the complexity of neurobrucellosis, presenting the need for advanced diagnostic techniques and multifaceted treatment approaches. While antibiotics remain the cornerstone of therapy, the use of corticosteroids to mitigate inflammatory responses shows promise, albeit with concerns about potential sequelae and relapse. Future research should focus on refining therapeutic strategies that address both the direct effects of infection and the broader immunological impacts to improve patient outcomes and quality of life.

Exploring the rheology characteristics of Flowzan and Xanthan polymers in drilling water based fluids at high-temperature and high-shear rates

The study of drilling fluid behaviour across various temperature conditions is of paramount importance for industries such as oil and gas extraction, mineral exploration, and large-scale construction projects. To address this need, a custom-designed viscometer known as the Australian University of Kuwait Taylor-Couette System (AUTCS) was developed. The AUTCS apparatus incorporates a Taylor-Couette system, consisting of two co-axial cylinders with a testing liquid capacity of 100 ml. The inner cylinder can be rotated at speeds ranging from 0 to 3000 rpm. This configuration provides an economical testing system that is particularly suitable for studying expensive drilling fluids. To investigate high-temperature (HT) conditions, the apparatus is equipped with a controllable heating film jacket capable of warming fluids up to 350 F. One specific area of interest in the drilling industry is the exploration of less commonly used polymers, such as Flowzan and Xanthan, in water-based mud (WBM). Flowzan has gained increasing attention due to its potential applications in drilling fields. To facilitate the study of Flowzan and Xanthan, the AUTCS viscometer was fine-tuned using the standard conventional lab viscometer, FANN, that has limitations in terms of rotational speed range (0–600 RPM) and temperature range. The rheology characteristics of Flowzan and Xanthan including consistency charts, viscosity, and darcy friction factor are obtained and presented at temperatures of 79 F, 104 F, and 150 F, across a range of speeds from 0 to 3000 RPM. The findings were examined across several correlation functions. It is found that the Herschel–Bulkley model best represent Flow Zan and Xanthan polymers. These correlations contribute to a comprehensive understanding of the new polymers’ performance under different temperature and speed conditions in drilling applications.

A Survey Among Psychiatrists to Assess the Need for Psychiatry Sub/Super-specialization Courses in India.

India's landscape of sub/super-specialization courses is expanding rapidly. Numerous courses spanning various domains of psychiatry exist, and this trend is poised to continue its upward trajectory. We aimed to assess the need for sub/super-specialization courses in psychiatry in India and explore the structural components of the courses. This was a cross-sectional study. A total of 142 psychiatrists/psychiatry residents from India were surveyed using an online questionnaire after approval from the Institutional Ethics Committee. "Good" and "intense" need for specialization courses was reported to be highest for child and adolescent psychiatry (68.3%), followed by addiction psychiatry (56.4%) and psychotherapy (55.6%). A 1-year post-doctoral fellowship was reported to be the most preferred course format. Practical examination was suggested to be the preferred summative assessment method for different course formats. The availability of sub/super-specialization courses presents an opportunity to enhance psychiatrists' training in specific areas of interest. Offering a variety of course options enables psychiatrists to select the most suitable program based on their individual requirements and career goals.

Long-Term Safety of Risankizumab in Patients with Psoriatic Disease: A Comprehensive Analysis from Clinical Trials.

Risankizumab has demonstrated a favourable safety profile in patients with psoriatic disease (moderate-to-severe psoriasis [PsO] and psoriatic arthritis [PsA]). We evaluated the long-term safety of risankizumab in psoriatic disease. Long-term safety was evaluated by analysing data from 20 (phase 1-4) clinical trials for plaque PsO and four (phase 2-3) trials for PsA. Treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) and AEs in areas of special interest were reported among patients receiving ≥ 1 dose of risankizumab. Exposure-adjusted event rates were presented as events (E) per 100 patient-years (PY). The long-term safety data analyses included 3658 patients with PsO (13,329.3 PY) and 1542 patients with PsA (3803.0 PY). The median (range) treatment duration for patients with PsO and PsA was 4.1 (0.2-8.8)years and 2.8 (0.2-4.0)years, respectively. In the PsO population, rates of TEAEs, serious AEs and AEs leading to discontinuation were 145.5 E/100 PY, 7.4 E/100 PY and 1.9 E/100 PY, respectively; in the PsA population, these rates were 142.6 E/100 PY, 8.6 E/100 PY, and 1.8 E/100 PY, respectively. The rates of serious infections (excluding COVID-19-related infections) in the PsO and PsA populations were 1.2 and 1.4 E/100 PY, respectively. The rates of opportunistic infections (excluding tuberculosis and herpes zoster) were low (< 0.1 E/100 PY) in both populations. The rates of both nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC) and malignant tumours excluding NMSC were 0.6 and 0.5 E/100 PY in PsO and PsA, respectively, which are within the benchmarks of prior epidemiological studies. Adjudicated major cardiovascular event rates were 0.5 E/100 PY in PsO and 0.3 E/100 PY in PsA, which are within the epidemiologic reference benchmarks for both indications. No additional safety concerns were identified with this long-term exposure. The results support the favourable safety profile of risankizumab for long-term treatment of psoriatic disease with no new safety concerns and similar safety profiles among both PsO and PsA populations.

Preface: 3rd International Conference on Financial Technology and Market Management (FTMM 2024)

The 2024 3rd International Conference on Financial Technology and Market Management (FTMM 2024) have been conducted during July 27-28, 2024, in San Francisco, USA. This conference aims to bring together leading academic scientists, researchers, and scholars to exchange and share their experiences and research results on all aspects of economics, business, and marketing management. It also provides a premier interdisciplinary platform for researchers, practitioners, and educators to present and discuss the most recent innovations, trends, and concerns as well as practical challenges encountered and solutions adopted in the fields of economics, business, and marketing management. More than 180 participants from China, Japan, Malaysia, France, and some other countries attended FTMM 2024. About 36 presentations including 6 plenary talks were presented. The presentations are grouped into 9 areas of particular interest: (1): Economic and monetary crisis, (2): Taxes and regulation, (3): Emerging markets issues, (4): Corporate finance and governance, (5): Asset pricing, investment, and portfolio management, (6): Financial markets, (7): Risk management and quantitative finance, (8) Econometric modeling and empirical issues, (9): Mathematical Finance. With best regards, Conference Organizing Chair San Francisco, USA

Flashlight model: Integrating attention distribution and attention resources for pilots’ visual behaviour analysis and performance prediction

Pilot performance is almost the last line of defense in aircraft safety. Recent years have seen a surge in research aimed at utilizing eye-tracking technology to predict pilot performance, enhancing aviation safety margins. A decline in pilot performance is often attributed to either misdirected attention towards irrelevant tasks or inefficient information processing owing to limited attention resources. Previous research has shown that eye-tracking data can effectively capture these issues and provide accurate performance predictions. Nevertheless, the existing studies either focus on attention distribution or attention resources separately, neglecting the complex interactions between them. To address this gap, our study proposes a synthesized Flashlight model-based eye-tracking analysis for pilot performance prediction, integrating the two perspectives. Accordingly, the combined AOI-gaze metrics are proposed to offer a more nuanced analysis of information processing across specific Areas of Interest (AOIs), thereby enhancing the analysis of gaze metrics. We examined the efficacy of the combined AOI-gaze metrics in the Gradient-boosted decision trees(GBDT) model for pilot performance prediction and compared them with other widely used eye-tracking metrics in a simulated flight experiment case study. Moreover, we employed the SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) method to identify the most influential eye-tracking measurements for pilots’ performance prediction. The result demonstrated that the selected eye-tracking measurements obtained the highest accuracy in performance prediction.

(Digital Presentation) Investigation of the Damage of Focus Ion Beam (FIB) on Nanocrystals Formed in Terbium-Doped Silicon Oxide Thin Films

Terbium-doped oxygen-rich silicon oxide (ORSO:Tb) thin films were fabricated using Integrated magnetron sputtering and electron cyclotron plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (IMS ECR-PECVD) method. To investigate damage from focus ion beam (a comparison is made between mechanical and FIB methods measurements, which did not reveal crystal damage induced by FIB.Silicon-based thin films are fundamental materials in electronics and photonics, and doping is a common method to enhance silicon-based thin film’s luminescence. Terbium (Tb), characterized by well-defined emission lines, ranging from 400 to 620 nm (green emission), provides compelling reasons for using Tb as a dopant in silicon-based thin films (1).TEM is a method employed for studying. Preparation methods are required to make a TEM sample that is transparent to the electron beam (with a thickness of approximately 100 to 200 nm) (2). While conventional techniques, like electrolytic polishing and mechanical milling, are commonly used for preparing TEM samples, they fall short of achieving the precise preparation of a TEM sample in a specific area of interest with high spatial resolution.FIB has been used for preparing TEM specimens, which is fast and reliable. By scanning the beam across the cross-section, it becomes possible to reduce the thickness of the sample to prepare it for TEM (4)(5). The primary issue is due to the impact of ion beams accelerated to high energy therefore, examination effect of FIB on structure is important. Damages resulting from using FIB have mainly been studied on Silicon-based materials (6)(7)(8).In this paper, Tb-doped silicon oxide (oxygen-rich) thin film deposited by IMS ECR-PECVD offers a more uniform distribution and well-controlled rare-earth doping (9). To investigate the damages induced in the preparation process, ORSO:Tb annealed at 1200 °C was divided into two parts, and then a comparison between the mechanical and FIB preparations for TEM samples was made.ORSO:Tb were fabricated using an IMS ECR-PECVD system, employing 2 sccm SiH4 at 30% Ar and 28 sccm O2 at 10% as silicon (Si) and oxygen (O) precursors. These gas sources were delivered to the ECR chamber, pure Tb target with a sputtering power of 30 W and the substrate temperature was set at 350 °C. Following deposition, the thin film underwent annealing at 1200 °C for 1 hour.The TEM samples prepared by mechanical method and annealed at 1200 ⁰C, Fig. 1(a), showed a well-defined crystal structure. The dark points on the sample represent the nanocrystals of terbium disilicate. The average thickness of the sample is approximately 168.88 nm. Fig. 1(b) displays the ORSO:Tb annealed at 1200 ⁰C, showing the cross-sectional morphology of well-ordered nanostructures on the specimen with Tb doping, prepared by FIB. The cross-section of the thin film is well-ordered, and the FIB process did not disrupt the crystal structure of the sample annealed at high temperature, nor did it lead to the formation of a new structure. Furthermore, a comparative analysis between the TEM-prepared sample employing the mechanical method and the one prepared using FIB makes it evident that the FIB-prepared sample possesses superior resolution. The size distribution of particles is approximately the same, while due to the higher resolution of the TEM sample prepared through FIB, exhibits a particle distribution with a greater range with more details. In contrast, particle size determination in the mechanical method is more challenging due to its lower resolution, determining details and size characterization more difficult. Conclusion The ORSO:Tb sample was fabricated using the IMS ECR-PECVD system at 1200 degrees. Based on the findings presented in the paper, the effect of FIB, particularly at high annealing temperatures, does not induce significant damage to the crystal structure of ORSO:Tb thin film. The particle size distribution in the TEM sample prepared with FIB is broader and more detailed than in the mechanical due to its higher resolution. Particle size determination using the mechanical method is more challenging due to its lower resolution, making it more difficult to distinguish details and characterize sizes. Additionally, atomic composition analysis indicated the accurate abundance of oxygen in oxygen-rich silicon oxide. Figure 1

Source Profile Analysis, Source Apportionment, and Potential Health Risk of Ambient Particle-Bound Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Areas of Specific Interest

Ambient particulate matter (PM10) and its chemical composition in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were studied in areas of specific interest, between September 2015 and July 2016. The principal aim of this study was to assess the different PAH source profiles in each area, as well as their potential health risk. In particular, the studied areas were (a) the semiurban industrialized zone of the Municipality of Peloponnese (Meligalas, Messini) of Messinia prefecture, due to the intensive olive-productive activity in the extensive area, (b) the industrialized zone of Oinofyta in Voiotia prefecture, and (c) the urban/traffic center of Athens (Aristotelous). Intense spatial and seasonal variations in PAH levels were observed among the study areas collectively, but also for each one individually. During the winter period, the total PAHs average concentration was 11.45 and 9.84 ng/m3 at Meligalas–Skala (S1, S2 stations), 8.84 ng/m3 at Messini (S3 station), and 6.30 ng/m3 at the center of Athens (Aristotelous). During the summer campaign, the corresponding levels were 0.99, 1.20, and 0.70 ng/m3 (S1, S2, and S3 stations), and 5.84 ng/m3 (Aristotelous), respectively. The highest potential cancer risk of the PAHs mixture was estimated based on winter season measurements taken at the Municipality of Peloponnese. In order to determine PAH sources, two different source apportionment techniques were applied, i.e., diagnostic ratios (DRs) and the positive matrix factorization (PMF) model.

Child Migrants in Family Detention in the US: Addressing Fragmented Care.

Migrant children in family detention facilities often experience frequent relocations and prolonged stays in precarious living conditions. This frequent relocation results in fragmentation of necessary medical care, leading to delays and inadequate medical care. We aim to highlight the critical need for comprehensive medical documentation in immigration detention facilities, a fragmented health care system and potential harm to these children without appropriate medical documentation. We conducted a retrospective review of 165 medical records from children detained at the Karnes County Family Residential Center between June 2018 and October 2020 to evaluate the adequacy of pediatric medical documentation in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) family detention facility. Specific areas of interest included acute care, nutrition, immunization, developmental screening, and tuberculosis screening. Simple descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data. Only 25% of 418 acute medical care visits included specific diagnoses. There was no documentation regarding follow-up recommendations upon release. 97% of children had a chest X-ray completed for tuberculosis screening, however no follow-up recommendations were documented for those with granulomas. Vaccination histories were inconsistently documented. No nutritional categorizations were completed despite 16% of children being at risk for malnutrition or already malnourished. Our findings revealed significant gaps in documentation, particularly in medical decision-making and clinical reasoning. In a fragmented medical system, inadequate documentation can result in avoidable errors in diagnosis and management. Improving documentation practices is crucial to ensure that all children, regardless of immigration status, receive quality healthcare aligned with national and international standards.

Cooperative Mission Planning Using Rollout Policy Optimization

This paper proposes a novel cooperative mission planning for uncrewed aerial systems (UAS), using roll-out policy optimization and a blend of straight and double-Archimedean-spiral (DAS) paths. Typical mission tasks using UAS, possibly multiple, include visiting distinct locations/waypoints and covering specific areas of interest (AOIs). For the UAS, to guarantee the coverage of the AOI, the algorithm generates a DAS path that even accounts for the sensor’s field-of-view constraints. A scalar spiral density parameter in the algorithm effectively provides customized adjustments to the length of the DAS over an AOI while developing mission plans. A lower and upper bound value for the spiral density parameter and the dependency of the parameter on the coverage of an AOI are derived. This scalar parameter gives the users potential flexibility in the design of mission plans. Roll-out policy optimization minimizes the overall path length for the cooperative UAS mission and, as a direct consequence, minimizes time and fuel. This method leads to finding a near-optimal path in that the computation time does not grow exponentially with the number of UAS. Results from the simulation studies with several cooperative mission scenarios, including multiple UASs visiting several waypoints and AOIs starting from identical and distinct initial locations, demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed concept. The results from a data-based complex test case using the LiDAR data set further demonstrate the adaptability of the proposed mission planning approach in a real-world setting.

Aerial Remote Sensing Archaeology—A Short Review and Applications

Aerial and remote sensing archaeology are tools for identifying marks on images of archaeological remains covered by soil. In other words, they are archaeological prospection tools that fall into the category of non-destructive research methods. In this paper, a short review of these valuable research tools is carried out, presenting the way marks appear, and also the categories of aerial and remote sensing archaeology, depending on the medium of storage of images and the type of platform of transfer of sensors. The timing of the emergence of each category is determined and examples of relevant surveys are presented. Focusing on the use of an Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) with a multispectral sensor (aerial remote sensing archaeology), their partial utilization is revealed for collecting images in areas outside of the visible spectrum, aiming at the identification of covered archaeological remains. To this end, examples of the use of UAS with different sensors are presented and indexes that have been used so far in respective applications are gathered. Aerial remote sensing archaeology took place in two areas of particular interest in Northern Greece. UAS WingtraOne GEN II was used to collect multispectral images. In both study areas, soil and vegetation or crop marks were detected, possibly covered archaeological remains, initially in RGB orthophotomosaics and then more clearly in the index maps, such as the normalized difference vegetation index, simple ratio, brightness index, second brightness index, and anthocyanin reflectance index 2b.

Satellite mapping and demarcation analysis for coastal regulation zones assessment

Rapid urbanization and expanding tourism have led to widespread encroachments, particularly in flood-prone areas, where land degradation is more likely. Conventional methods of on-foot inspections for detecting these encroachments are intricate and time-consuming. A scarcity of data has resulted in undocumented violations, prompting the need for advanced technologies like satellite remote sensing. The current paper focuses on demonstrating the effectiveness of satellite remote sensing in detecting large-scale encroachments near flood-prone zones. Due to frequent undetected illegal constructions, Coastal Regulation Zones (CRZ) are a specific area of interest. This study employs a well-established method of analysis acquired from an extensive literature review to investigate illegal construction and encroachments via remote sensing advances. The research advocates for a practical analysis to combat illegal constructions in CRZs, presenting a comprehensive database through a concise portal for easy accessibility and analysis. The case study in Kerala, India, a region prone to natural disasters like monsoon floods, provides crucial data for measuring the boundaries required to preserve the ecosystem. The research underscores the significance of satellite remote sensing in efficiently addressing environmental threats posed by encroachments, offering insights applicable to regions facing similar challenges. This analysis has proven effective in diverse global settings and offers a standardized approach for demarking CRZ throughout the globe. Its adaptability and reliability across different terrain types and climatic conditions underscore its potential as a valuable tool in mapping encroachments. The current study contributes to the discourse on sustainable urban development, aiming to inform policies promoting resilience and ecological consciousness in rapid urbanization and tourism expansion.

Low-error, high-speed, and large-scale hardware implementation of retinal photoreceptor cells: Cone and rod cells

In recent times, there has been a significant focus on creating prosthetics and medical interventions to aid in the treatment of diseases, recovery, and the improvement of biological functions. Researchers have particularly directed their attention toward developing hardware models for delicate biological parts such as the brain, heart, nervous system, and. One area of particular interest is the retina, which is the thinnest and innermost layer of the eye. This research paper focuses on the development of a high-speed and low-error hardware implementation for retinal cone and rod cells. Current mathematical models often use multiple nonlinear functions to describe the behavior of these cells. However, these nonlinear functions can sometimes be limiting in terms of speed. In this study, we explore the use of trigonometric functions to approximate the non-linear properties of retinal cone and rod cells, allowing for improved performance. The results of the simulation show that the suggested model is in line with the functioning of primary cone and rod cells, particularly in relation to time characteristics, dynamic response, and margin of error. By implementing the proposed model in Large-Scale (300 cell) on a Virtex-5 Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) board, notable benefits were observed. One of these advantages includes increasing the synthesis frequency of the proposed model by 3.35 and 3.44 times faster than the original model for the cone cell and rod cell, respectively. Another advantage is the ability to implement 300 cells of the proposed models on the FPGA, compared to the implementation of a single cell of the original models, with only a two-fold increase in the amount of hardware resources used. The proposed framework is legitimate and features a compact hardware size and suitable network frequency, as demonstrated by the outcomes from implementing the hardware on the Virtex-5 reconfigurable board (FPGA).

Monitoring of three-dimensional live-cell cultures using a multimode, multiscale imaging system combining confocal fluorescence microscopy and optical coherence microscopy

Live-cell monitoring involves long-term observation and analysis of living cells in tissue cultures, which develop cells or tissues in an artificial environment and are essential for tissue engineering. Fluorescence microscopy (FM) is widely used as a monitoring tool owing to its powerful ability to visualize protein distribution within cells and tissues, thereby providing information on their functions in biological processes. To reduce the photobleaching effect, which is a major limiting factor in FM, FM is generally combined with other imaging modalities, such as phase contrast and differential interference contrast microscopy, which are nondestructive to fluorochromes, to selectively use fluorescence signals only in specific areas of interest within a sample. However, these methods are restricted to thin samples and cannot produce depth-resolved images. Here, we propose a method to determine three-dimensional (3D) positions in volumetric samples for application in high-resolution 3D fluorescence imaging using a multimode and multiscale imaging system that combines optical coherence microscopy (OCM) and line confocal FM (LC–FM). We also demonstrate the benefits of multimodal imaging in 3D cell culture monitoring. To evaluate the performance of the proposed system and method, we rapidly and accurately located the regions of interest in 3D tissue culture models, such as tumor spheroids and microvascular bed, and instantaneously acquired volumetric high-resolution fluorescence images. We also used an integrated system to monitor tumor spheroids mixed with extracellular matrix (ECM) over five days of the culture process, and the FM–OCM integrated technique successfully imaged the overall 3D structures, such as the distribution and boundaries of the spheroids and ECM as well as stained tumor cells. This complementary information is useful for understanding the relationship between cellular behaviors, such as the proliferation and migration of tumor cells, and microenvironments, such as the ECM.