Terms Of Potential Research Articles

Modelling animal contests based on spatio-temporal dynamics.

We present a general theoretical model for the spatio-temporal dynamics of animal contests. Inspired by interactions between physical particles, the model is formulated in terms of effective interaction potentials, which map typical elements of contest behaviour into empirically verifiable rules of contestant motion. This allows us to simulate the observable dynamics of contests in various realistic scenarios, notably in dyadic contests over a localized resource. Assessment strategies previously formulated in game-theoretic models, as well as the effects of fighting costs, can be described as variations in our model's parameters. Furthermore, the trends of contest duration associated with these assessment strategies can be derived and understood within the model. Detailed description of the contestants' motion enables the exploration of spatio-temporal properties of asymmetric contests, such as the emergence of chase dynamics. Overall, our framework aims to bridge the growing gap between empirical capabilities and theory in this widespread aspect of animal behaviour.

Development of carambola pomace based cookies and its consumer acceptability

Agro industrial waste material is a rich source of various bio active components and fibre rich. Carambola pomace is a by-product of carambola juice processing unit. Fruit juice industries generate considerable amount of Carambola pomace as waste from fresh Carambola (Averrhoa carambola L.). However, the nutritional assets of Carambola pomace that include antioxidants, mainly polyphenols, should not be neglected, and be further processed in developing food supplements. In this study, Carambola pomace was found to be indeed nutrient-rich. This pomace was subsequently employed in development of Carambola pomace cookies, as a functional snack. Carambola pomace with 5%, 10%, 15%, 20% and 25% were used to incorporate in cookies. The characterisation of the Carambola pomace cookies delineated their healthfulness in terms of antioxidant potential, and 5% Carambola pomace got maximum consumer acceptance. The present study highlights the importance of utilising a wasted bioresource in adding functional value to a common food that otherwise is only a fat-rich snack.

Higher-order evolution inequalities involving convection and Hardy-Leray potential terms in a bounded domain

AbstractWe consider a class of nonlinear higher-order evolution inequalities posed in $(0,\infty)\times B_1\backslash\{0\}$, subject to inhomogeneous Dirichlet-type boundary conditions, where B1 is the unit ball in $\mathbb{R}^N$. The considered class involves differential operators of the form \begin{equation*} \mathcal{L}_{\mu_1,\mu_2}=-\Delta +\frac{\mu_1}{|x|^2}x\cdot \nabla +\frac{\mu_2}{|x|^2},\qquad x\in \mathbb{R}^N\backslash\{0\}, \end{equation*}where $\mu_1\in \mathbb{R}$ and $\mu_2\geq -\left(\frac{\mu_1-N+2}{2}\right)^2$. Optimal criteria for the nonexistence of weak solutions are established. Our study yields naturally optimal nonexistence results for the corresponding class of elliptic inequalities. Notice that no restriction on the sign of solutions is imposed.

Steel Bridge-Coating Systems and Their Environmental Impacts: Current Practices and Future Trends

Coatings are essential for protecting structural steel bridges from corrosion in harsh environmental conditions. The selection of a suitable coating system can significantly impact the performance and longevity of a bridge as well as its environmental footprint. This study investigates the U.S. and Canada’s environmental ISO corrosivity map and the general environments to which bridges are exposed. Additionally, environmental data and road maintenance practices of transportation departments and the use of de-icing salts were investigated to examine the impact of micro-corrosive environments on bridge elements. The study reviews commonly examined coating systems and their expected service life in moderate and highly corrosive environments. This sheds light on factors influencing coating system selection, such as life-cycle cost analysis and maintenance practices for bridge elements. For the first time to our knowledge, an environmental life-cycle evaluation of one of the most commonly used coating systems with theoretical maintenance scheduling for a bridge project’s expected service life is presented to encourage the use of a quantitative tool for environmental impact assessment of coatings in terms of global warming potential (GWP). Additionally, perspectives on patented state-of-the-art and future steel-protective technologies and their potential role in bridge engineering are reviewed.

In-field strain and temperature measurements in a (RE)Ba2Cu3O7−x coil via Rayleigh-backscattering interrogated optical fibers

(RE)Ba2Cu3O7-x (REBCO) conductors have overcome technical challenges related to manufacturing quality, length homogeneity, scale-up of piece-length, and joints. There is one remaining technical challenge, however, which is common to all high temperature superconductors and lies in effective detection of failure to prevent material degradation. An innovative technique based on optical fibers interrogated by Rayleigh backscattering has been shown to have advantages over voltage taps at detecting incipient faults. Prior work has experimentally demonstrated the technique in several implementation scenarios, including direct integration of optical fibers into superconducting conductors and cables to create a class of ‘SMART’ conductors and cables that are able to monitor their own health. In this paper, the magnet monitoring technique based on Rayleigh backscattering interrogated optical fibers has been experimentally studied in a model coil subject to external magnetic field, where different fiber integration methods are used to increase selectivity of the fiber sensor to temperature. Results show that the spectral shift displays different features during strain and thermal transients. The implications of the results in terms of potential and limitations of each sensor as well as strain-temperature decoupling are discussed.

When One’s Not Enough: Colony Pool-Seq Outperforms Individual-Based Methods for Assessing Introgression in Apis mellifera mellifera

The human management of honey bees (Apis mellifera) has resulted in the widespread introduction of subspecies outside of their native ranges. One well known example of this is Apis mellifera mellifera, native to Northern Europe, which has now been significantly introgressed by the introduction of C lineage honey bees. Introgression has consequences for species in terms of future adaptive potential and long-term viability. However, estimating introgression in colony-living haplodiploid species is challenging. Previous studies have estimated introgression using individual workers, individual drones, multiple drones, and pooled workers. Here, we compare introgression estimates via three genetic approaches: SNP array, individual RAD-seq, and pooled colony RAD-seq. We also compare two statistical approaches: a maximum likelihood cluster program (ADMIXTURE) and an incomplete lineage sorting model (ABBA BABA). Overall, individual approaches resulted in lower introgression estimates than pooled colonies when using ADMIXTURE. However, the pooled colony ABBA BABA approach resulted in generally lower introgression estimates than all three ADMIXTURE estimates. These results highlight that sometimes one individual is not enough to assess colony-level introgression, and future studies that do use colony pools should not be solely dependent on clustering programs for introgression estimates.

Characteristics and source apportionment of ambient volatile organic compounds and ozone generation sensitivity in urban Jiaozuo, China

In recent years, many cities have taken measures to reduce volatile organic compounds (VOCs), an important precursor of ozone (O3), to alleviate O3 pollution in China. 116 VOC species were measured by online and offline methods in the urban area of Jiaozuo from May to October in 2021 to analyze the compositional characteristics. VOC sources were analyzed by a positive matrix factorization (PMF) model, and the sensitivity of ozone generation was determined by ozone isopleth plotting research (OZIPR) simulation. The results showed that the average volume concentration of total VOCs was 30.54 ppbv and showed a bimodal feature due to the rush-hour traffic in the morning and at nightfall. The most dominant VOC groups were oxygenated VOCs (OVOCs, 29.3%) and alkanes (26.7%), and the most abundant VOC species were acetone and acetylene. However, based on the maximum incremental reactivity (MIR) method, the major VOC groups in terms of ozone formation potential (OFP) contribution were OVOCs (68.09 µg/m3, 31.5%), aromatics (62.90 µg/m3, 29.1%) and alkene/alkynes (54.90 µg/m3, 25.4%). This indicates that the control of OVOCs, aromatics and alkene/alkynes should take priority. Five sources of VOCs were quantified by PMF, including fixed sources of fossil fuel combustion (27.8%), industrial processes (25.9%), vehicle exhaust (19.7%), natural and secondary formation (13.9%) and solvent usage (12.7%). The empirical kinetic modeling approach (EKMA) curve obtained by OZIPR on O3 exceedance days indicated that the O3 sensitivity varied in different months. The results provide theoretical support for O3 pollution prevention and control in Jiaozuo.

Electromigration Reliability of Barrierless Ruthenium and Molybdenum for Sub-10 nm Interconnection

Cu interconnects suffer from increased resistance and poor reliability at a sub-10 nm width. Ru and Mo have been highlighted recently as the next interconnection material candidate due to their various advantages over Cu; they have lower resistance than Cu at sub-10 nm, do not diffuse into SiO2, and are etchable. Here, we evaluated the electromigration (EM) reliability of Ru and Mo to confirm their feasibility for the next-generation interconnection. The activation energy for EM failure is calculated by measuring the mean time to failure (MTTF) of film and wire structures while factoring in temperature increases with thermal coefficient of resistance (TCR) measurements. In addition, we investigate the EM properties in terms of resistivity-increasing parameters that originate from geometry and additional fabrication processes. Furthermore, we evaluate the EM performance in terms of electrochemical potential. Our findings confirm the feasibility of Ru as a promising candidate for next-generation interconnection applications, providing enhanced reliability compared to conventional Cu interconnects.

Multiplicity Results for Nonlinear Nonhomogeneous Robin Problems with Indefinite Potential Term

Multiplicity Results for Nonlinear Nonhomogeneous Robin Problems with Indefinite Potential Term

Design and Characterization of an Ethosomal Gel Encapsulating Rosehip Extract

Rising environmental awareness drives green consumers to purchase sustainable cosmetics based on natural bioactive compounds. The aim of this study was to deliver Rosa canina L. extract as a botanical ingredient in an anti-aging gel using an eco-friendly approach. Rosehip extract was first characterized in terms of its antioxidant activity through a DPPH assay and ROS reduction test and then encapsulated in ethosomal vesicles with different percentages of ethanol. All formulations were characterized in terms of size, polydispersity, zeta potential, and entrapment efficiency. Release and skin penetration/permeation data were obtained through in vitro studies, and cell viability was assessed using an MTT assay on WS1 fibroblasts. Finally, ethosomes were incorporated in hyaluronic gels (1% or 2% w/v) to facilitate skin application, and rheological properties were studied. Rosehip extract (1 mg/mL) revealed a high antioxidant activity and was successfully encapsulated in ethosomes containing 30% ethanol, having small sizes (225.4 ± 7.0 nm), low polydispersity (0.26 ± 0.02), and good entrapment efficiency (93.41 ± 5.30%). This formulation incorporated in a hyaluronic gel 1% w/v showed an optimal pH for skin application (5.6 ± 0.2), good spreadability, and stability over 60 days at 4 °C. Considering sustainable ingredients and eco-friendly manufacturing technology, the ethosomal gel of rosehip extract could be an innovative and green anti-aging skincare product.

Combining MXene nanosheets with iron-based metal-organic frameworks for enhanced electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction

Although the electrochemical water splitting is considered as one of the ideal hydrogen production methods, the high costs and low reserves of precious metals-based electrocatalysts severely hamper its large scale commercial application, which motivates the exploration and usage of high-efficiency non-precious metal electrocatalysts. Herein, we report a robust and controllable bottom-up strategy to fabricate a delicate two-dimensional porous nanoarchitecture constructed from iron-based metal-organic frameworks (MIL-100) and Ti3C2Tx MXene nanosheets (MIL/Ti3C2Tx) via an in situ solvothermal assembly process. The intercalated MIL-100 nanocrystals not only inhibit the interlayer restacking and agglomeration of Ti3C2Tx nanoflakes but also create a large number of interconnected pore channels for the adequate exposure of catalytic active sites, thus affording remarkable synergistic coupling effects. By the structural virtues of two-dimensional thin-sheet configuration, large specific surface area, high porosity, uniform MIL-100 dispersion, and exceptional electrical conductivity, the as-produced MIL/Ti3C2Tx nanoarchitecture exhibits enhanced electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution properties in terms of a low onset potential of 29 mV, an operating overpotential of 107 mV at 10 mA/cm2, a small Tafel slope of 61 mV/dec, and a long working life, all of which are significantly superior to those of bare MIL-100 and Ti3C2Tx electrocatalysts.

Antioxidant, Anti-Inflammatory and Anti-Obesity Potential of Extracts Containing Phenols, Chlorophyll and Carotenoids from Mexican Wild Populations of Bacopa monnieri (L.) Wettst.

Some of the species of the genus Bacopa have been used in Pharmacopoeia worldwide. However, in Mexico, Bacopa monnieri has neither been extensively cultivated nor studied, nor has their use in traditional medicine been reported. The aim of this work was to assess the taxonomic verification of the four wild populations of B. monnieri, the chemical content of their pigments and phenols and to provide an analysis of their potential bioactivity. B. monnieri wild populations from Mexico were validated using molecular markers. Chromatographic profiling using HPLC-PDA revealed 21 compounds comprising 12 chlorophylls and nine carotenoids; of the latter, the major ones were lutein (0.921 ± 0.031 μg/mg of dry extract) and β-carotene (0.095 ± 0.003 μg/mg of dry extract). The total phenolic content, determined using the Folin-Ciocalteu assay, ranged from 54.8 ± 5.8 to 70.3 ± 2.2 µg of gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/mg. Plant extracts scavenged from the free radical DPPH in IC50 ranged from 130.6 ± 3.0 to 249.9 ± 12.1 µg dry extract/mL. In terms of the anti-inflammatory potential, the most effective extract was from a soil-based plant from Jalisco (BS), reduced from nitric oxide in a RAW 264.7 culture medium, with an IC50 value of 134 µg of dry extract/mL. The BS extract showed a significant neutral lipid-reducing activity in the zebrafish model, ranging from 3.13 μg/mL p < 0.05 to 100 μg/mL p < 0.0001. Overall, the extracts analyzed here for the first time seem promising for future use because of their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-obesity potential.

An Aerodynamic Equation of State—Part III: Applications to Fluid Statics and Dynamics

&lt;div&gt;The aerodynamic equation of state is introduced in Part I and applies to selected aerospace systems. Part II applies it to the flapping of hovering and forward-flying biological fliers. This last Part III expands the aerodynamic equation of state by adding the potential energy term, assumed up to this point to be zero as the system and its trajectory is placed coplanar with an arbitrary reference potential plane. Part III applies the expanded equation of state to familiar and well-trodden fluid-static and fluid-dynamic cases selected from fluid mechanic textbooks.&lt;/div&gt;

Estimating paleotidal constituents from Pliocene “tidal gauges”—an example from the paleo-Orinoco Delta, Trinidad

The Neogene Orinoco Delta is one of the typical river deltas where both the records of modern and ancient tidal processes can be studied. A ∼5 m.y./&amp;gt;10-km-thick succession on the island of Trinidad contains remnants of paleo-Orinoco deltaic deposition preserving both tide- and wave-influenced delta lobes within the same time intervals, just like the modern Orinoco Delta that has both wave-dominated and tidal-dominated lobes. The tide-influenced delta lobes and estuaries preserve some spectacular tidal bedding signals, including tidal rhythmites. The tidal record encoded within the tidal rhythmites is preserved well enough that the primary tidal constituents responsible for the tidal currents that deposited the rhythmic facies can be inferred. Lower to upper Pliocene tidal rhythmites were examined in two main paleo-Orinoco sub-environments: (1) estuarine and delta lobe deposits of Morne L’Enfer Formation at Erin Bay, and (2) abandoned tidal channels associated with tide-influenced delta-front deposits from the Telemaque Sandstone Member of the Manzanilla Formation at Matura Bay. Both wave- and river-current signals are also present in most of the study areas. Tidal constituent analysis of unusually well-preserved paleo-Orinoco tidal rhythmites reveals a hierarchy of tidal signals that include semidiurnal, diurnal, fortnightly (neap−spring), monthly (perigee−apogee), semi-yearly, and possibly seasonal and yearly cycles that span thickness intervals ranging from millimeters to meters. The tidal constituents were dominated by, in decreasing importance, M2, S2, and likely K1 rather than O1. The modern tidal data clearly show that K1 is more important in terms of tide-generating potential than O1, as was likely so in the Pliocene. In both the rock and modern records, N2 is more significant than O1, P1, and K2 in terms of tide-generating potential. The comparison between the constituent analysis of the ancient tidal record and the modern tidal measurements reveals their similarities in tidal patterns and constituent types. From this, we deduce that the tidal constituents responsible for the Pliocene Orinoco Delta tides were mixed semidiurnal tidal cycles similar to those found today in Trinidad (Atlantic type of synodically dominated) rather than the Caribbean (tropically dominated) type.

Black and pinto beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) unique mexican varieties exhibit antioxidant and anti-inflammatory potential

Oxidative stress and inflammation play a key role in diverse pathological conditions such as cancer and metabolic disorders. The objective of this study was to determine the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory potentials of crude extract (CE) and phenolic-enriched extract (PHE) obtained from the seed coats (SCs) of black bean (BB) and pinto bean (PB) varieties. Delphinidin-3-O-glucoside (46 mg/g SC), malvidin-3-O-glucoside (29.9 mg/g SC), and petunidin-3-O-glucoside (7.5 mg/g SC) were found in major concentrations in the PHE-BB. Pelargonidin (0.53 mg/g SC) was only identified in the PHE-PB. PHE from both varieties showed antioxidant and radical scavenging capacities, with strong correlations associated with total phenolic content (TPC). Polyphenolics, including catechin, myricetin, kaempferol, quercetin, and isorhamnetin glucosides, were identified in the extracts. In terms of the anti-inflammatory potentials, PHE-PB had an IC50 of 10.5 µg dry extract/mL (µg DE/mL) for cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibition. The inhibition values for cyclooxygenase-1 (COX-1) ranged from 118.1 to 162.7 µg DE/mL. Regarding inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) inhibition, PHE-BB had an IC50 of 62.6 µg DE/mL. As determined via in silico analysis, pelargonidin showed binding affinities of −7.8 and −8.5 kcal/mol for COX-1 and iNOS, respectively, and catechin had a value of −8.3 kcal/mol for COX-2. Phenolic-enriched extracts from seed coats of black and pinto beans showed good antioxidant and anti-inflammatory potential that warrants in vitro and in vivo studies.

Landis-type conjecture for the half-Laplacian

In this paper, we study the Landis-type conjecture, i.e., unique continuation property from infinity, of the fractional Schrödinger equation with drift and potential terms. We show that if any solution of the equation decays at a certain exponential rate, then it must be trivial. The main ingredients of our proof are the Caffarelli-Silvestre extension and Armitage’s Liouville-type theorem.

Exact duality and local dynamics in SU(N) lattice gauge theory

We construct exact duality transformations in pure SU(N) Hamiltonian lattice gauge theory in ($2+1$) dimension. This duality is obtained by making a series of iterative canonical transformations on the SU(N) electric vector fields and their conjugate magnetic vector potentials on the four links around every plaquette. The resulting dual description is in terms of the magnetic scalar fields or plaquette flux loops and their conjugate electric scalar potentials. Under SU(N) gauge transformations they both transform like adjoint matter fields. The dual Hamiltonian describes the nonlocal self-interactions of these plaquette flux loops in terms of the electric scalar potentials and with inverted coupling. We show that these nonlocal loop interactions can be made local and converted into minimal couplings by introducing SU(N) auxiliary gauge fields along with new plaquette constraints. The matter fields can be included through minimal coupling. The techniques can be easily generalized to ($3+1$) dimensions.

CoNi nanocrystal anchoring on MOF derived carbon skeleton autocatalytic growth N-doped carbon nanotubes for efficient bifunctional electrocatalyst towards methanol oxidation/oxygen reduction

In this paper, a novel bifunctional catalyst consisting of nitrogen doped carbon nanotubes (NCNTs) in situ grafted on CoNi-MOF derivative (named CoNi@NC/NCNTs) is controllable synthesized by simple two-steps. Characterization analysis reveal that the interconnected three-dimensional CoNi@NC-NCNTs heterostructure not only atomically dispersed CoNi nanocrystalline, but also autocatalytic grow NCNTs on its surface. The size of CoNi alloy is less than 10 nm, and the crystallization degree of coated graphene carbon layer is extraordinary high. Especially, NCNTs wrapped on CoNi@NC in dihydrodiamine vapour atmosphere form a spatial conductive network, which make the optimized CoNi@NC/NCNTs-400 deliver faster catalytic kinetics toward methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) and oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) compared with the CoNi@NC and Co@NC. The peak current density is as high as 58.37 mA cm−2 at the scanning rate is 30 mV s−1 in 0.5 M KOH + 1 M CH3OH solution. Furthermore, the CoNi@NC/NCNTs-400 hybrids display excellent ORR catalytic efficiency in terms of half-wave potential (E1/2 = 0.810 V vs RHE) and high stability. The satisfactory electrocatalytic activity is ascribed to the synergetic effect between CoNi nanoparticles embedded in nitrogen-doped carbon framework and NCNTs, which includes the high conductivity, highly dispersed active sites, optimized electronic configuration and reaction pathways.

Model of a module for dynamic generation of personalized offers of additional services for airline passengers

Aim. The presented study aims to develop an optimal model of a software module for generating personalized offers.Tasks. The authors investigate the functional requirements of a module for dynamic generation of personalized offers; analyze the necessary integrations (inputs and outputs); choose the optimal architecture for the module based on the tasks assigned to it and best practices; develop a model of a module for the specified types of generated offers.Methods. This study uses general scientific methods (analysis, synthesis, monographic method, grouping). Best practices of building recommendation systems designed to work with big data are investigated, and the most promising approaches in terms of further development and potential for integration are highlighted.Results. The functional requirements of a module for dynamic generation of personalized offers and the tasks performed by it are formulated. Best practices of building recommendation systems designed to work with big data are analyzed. The most promising technological configuration of a module for dynamic generation of personalized offers is determined. A model of a module for generating personal offers is developed.Conclusions. The capabilities of processing large amounts of data make it possible to significantly increase the effectiveness of marketing tools, particularly by training software to automatically generate advertising offers of additional services, choosing the optimal delivery channel, type, class of service, and stage of the customer lifecycle. A module for generating personalized offers can work only as part of software that performs several advanced functions (such as collecting, storing and processing customer data, clustering customers, collecting feedback on customer actions, training based on user actions, and many others). Therefore, the architecture of a dynamic offer generation module should be designed for effective integration with software and work with large amounts of data generated by the airline. During the study, a model of a module for generating personalized offers satisfying the requirements described above is developed.

A BIM-based Techno-Economic Framework and Tool for Evaluating and Comparing Building Renovation Strategies

Building renovation presents real challenges for project participants which frequently generate high cost and schedule overruns. The disruption caused to occupants is one of the main challenges for the planning and management of renovation works. To better manage occupant interference and enable the acceleration of renovation works, this study aims to develop a novel framework for the assessment and optimisation of renovation strategies using BIM. The concept of disruption is formalised through a renovation ontology using the UML language. To enable process automation, the renovation ontology is then populated, and knowledge related to renovation tasks, constraints, duration, cost, equipment, and disruption are captured, structured and validated with industry partners. A digital tool and a set of Key Performance Indicators are also developed so as to facilitate the identification, assessment and optimisation of renovation scenarios in terms of cost, project duration and disruptive potential. Using a step-by-step process, detailed descriptions of the methodologies and workflows of the proposed framework are finally provided and demonstrated on a live case study located in Greece. The findings show no spatial correlation exist for the disruption concept and also confirm the disruptive nature of building floor renovation which can lead to a low rate of retrofitting them. Furthermore, the findings question the general applicability of the Whiteman et al.’s heuristic suggesting to prioritise the planning and execution of the most disruptive renovation activities as early as possible in the renovation process, and of the preference of Fawcett for a one-off renovation strategy recommending to conduct renovation works in one go as quickly as possible. Ultimately, the TEA framework will be further demonstrated and tested by end-users on three additional European case studies within the RINNO project which will particularly help validating the added value and benefits of the TEA framework from a user perspective.