Widefield Array Research Articles

Fourier Transform Coherent Anti-Stokes Raman Scattering Spectroscopy: A Comprehensive Review.

Fourier transform coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (FT-CARS) spectroscopy is a powerful spectroscopic method that combines the principles of Fourier transform spectroscopy with coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS). This method stands out in spectroscopy for its ability to rapidly acquire coherent Raman spectra, achieving an impressive rate of over 10 000 spectra per second. The method involves scanning the optical delay between two femtosecond pulses; the initial pulse induces a vibrational coherence in the sample, while the subsequent pulse probes this coherence over increasing delays. The anti-Stokes scattering intensity generated is modulated by the vibrational dynamics of the sample, enabling the retrieval of Raman spectra through Fourier transformation. Over the past two decades, FT-CARS spectroscopy has undergone substantial evolution, paving the way for its application in a wide array of fields, including material analysis and flow cytometry. In this comprehensive Review, we explore the fundamental principles and diverse applications of FT-CARS spectroscopy and delve into the potential future advances and challenges associated with this emerging method.

Structural Integrities of Symmetric and Unsymmetric trans-Bis-pyridyl Ethylene Powders Exposed to Gamma Radiation: Packing and Electronic Considerations Assisted by Electron Diffraction.

Radiation detection (dosimetry) most commonly uses scintillating materials in a wide array of fields, ranging from energy to medicine. Scintillators must be able to not only fluoresce owing to the presence of a suitable chromophore but also withstand damage from radiation over prolonged periods of time. While it is inevitable that radiation will cause damage to the physical and chemical properties of materials, there is limited understanding of features within solid-state scintillators that afford increased structural integrity upon exposure to gamma (γ) radiation. Even fewer studies have evaluated both physical- and atomistic-level properties of organic solid-state materials. Previous work demonstrated cocrystalline materials afford radiation resistance in comparison to the single component counterparts, as realized by trans-1,2-bis(4-pyridyl)ethylene (4,4'-bpe). To support the rational design of radiation-resistant scintillators, we have examined all symmetric and unsymmetric isomers of trans-1-(n-pyridyl)2-(m-pyridyl)ethylene (n,m'-bpe, where n and/or m = 2, 3, or 4) solid-state crystalline materials. Experimental methods employed include single-crystal, powder, and electron diffraction as well as solid-state fluorimetry. Periodic density functional theory (DFT) calculations were used to understand the atomistic-level differences in bond lengths, bond orders, and packing. Electron diffraction was also utilized to determine the structure of a nanocrystalline sample. The results provide insights into possible trends involving factors such as molecular symmetry which provides radiation resistance as well as information for rationally designing single and multicomponent scintillators with the intent of minimizing changes upon γ-radiation exposure.

МЕТОД ФОРМУВАННЯ ПУЛУ ВИБІРКОВИХ НАВЧАЛЬНИХ ДИСЦИПЛІН НА ОСНОВІ ГЕНЕТИЧНОГО АЛГОРИТМУ

This paper gives an in-depth analysis on the development and application of a method for creating a comprehensive elective course pool, which is fundamentally based on a genetic algorithm, and efficiently incorporated within an information system. The significance and extent of this research becomes prominent due to the surging interest and increased demand in employing efficacious management techniques to streamline educational curricula in higher education institutions, thereby catering to students' particular educational needs and predetermined objectives. Genetic algorithms, which have been extensively applied and have achieved noteworthy success in a wide array of fields, have shown significant potential for an automated selection of disciplines, ultimately leading to a precise alignment with a student's individual objectives and enhancing their overall educational experience. The study dedicates a significant portion of its focus to the implementation phases of the method. It illustrates an exhaustive analysis of the pre-existing methodologies applied in curriculum development. Furthermore, it offers a well-rounded assessment of the potentials and inherent limitations of genetic algorithms in the context of curriculum development. The research elaborates on the design and deployment of a specialized information system that efficaciously supports the automated compilation of an elective discipline pool. A substantial part of the study also delves into conducting an empirical risk analysis, and identifies an array of key factors that weigh in on the selection of disciplines. Some of these influential factors include specific characteristics of students, availability of faculty members, accessibility and allocation of institutional resources, and various budget constraints. The research results demonstrate that employing a genetic algorithm for curriculum formation can enhance the quality of education by providing greater individualization and alignment with students' educational needs.

“Seeing Eye to Eye” About Our Relationship Is Good for Us and Everyone Else: An Examination of LMX Agreement and Views of Fair Treatment

Research across a wide array of fields has established the organizational importance of fair treatment and why it should be a primary consideration of supervisors. As such, scholars have begun to unpack characteristics of organizations, supervisors, and employees that may promote fair treatment. Although this literature has been informative and is growing, we know little about how the dyadic interplay between leaders and followers—and, in particular, how both parties’ perceptions of that joint interplay—may facilitate or hinder views of fairness. The lack of clarity on this phenomenon is particularly problematic when one considers that there are several features of dyadic relationships within work units that—by their nature—work against the facilitation of fair treatment (e.g., supervisors inevitably provide some employees more/less information, support, and attention than others because they cannot establish high-quality exchange relationships with every employee). Drawing from common threads found in theories of fairness and role theory surrounding expectation alignment, we posit that the key to facilitating views of fair treatment at any level of relationship quality is for supervisors and employees to “see eye to eye” on LMX quality-LMX agreement. We further theorize that each party’s views of fair treatment flowing from LMX agreement (within the dyad) will ultimately result in leaders being more efficacious about their fairness-related abilities and employees performing at higher levels (beyond the dyad). Results of three field studies (and two supplemental preregistered experiments) largely support our theorizing and further show that fair treatment can result in a self-reinforcing positive fairness-efficacy spiral for supervisors. Funding: This research was partially funded by the University of Georgia's Institute for Leadership Advancement Research Scholar Award. Supplemental Material: The online appendix is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2021.15475 .

Sequential extraction of hesperidin, pectin, lignin, and cellulose from orange peels: towards valorization of agro‐waste

AbstractTo maximize the reuse of citrus fruit processing waste, which is generated in large amounts due to juice production, this work shows the results of a new renewable approach for the extraction of high‐added‐value compounds present in orange biomass, specifically in orange peels (OP). The method is based on the use of diluted Ca2+, acid, and base solutions for the extraction of hesperidin (HSD), pectin, lignin, and cellulose sequentially, without generating any organic solid waste at the end, and without the need for air drying the starting biomass. Good yields of hesperidin were recovered (~1.56%), with excellent purity (up to 95%), as well as lignin (yield ~2.2%) and cellulose (yield ~12%). Pectin obtained by this process showed a high amount of galacturonic acid (~88%) and a low degree of methylation (~16%). All products were thoroughly characterized by applying Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and solid‐state cross‐polarization/magic angle spinning carbon‐13 nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (CP/MAS 13C‐NMR). The products recovered from OP can be applied in a wide array of fields, such as food, medicine, and pharmaceuticals, among others.

Solvatochromic Behavior of Solid-State Nitrogen-Doped Carbon Nanoparticles: Initial Study

Carbon nanoparticles (CNPs) have garnered significant attention among researchers due to their cost-effectiveness and tunable properties, rendering them applicable in a wide array of fields, including biomedicine, optoelectronics, catalysis, and sensing. The solvatochromic effect denotes the phenomenon of a compound exhibiting a color change or a shift in its photoluminescence spectrum. In this study, we investigated the solvatochromic behavior of CNPs doped Nitrogen synthesized through the solid-state route using citric acid and urea, dissolved in solvents with varying polarity indices. Significant differences in emission were analyzed using a photoluminescence (PL) spectrometer. The results exhibit the emission shifting towards longer wavelengths (red region) as the solvent’s polarity index increased. This study of solvatochromic behavior in CNPs holds substantial significance for further research into their application as sensors.

What is a blink? Classifying and characterizing blinks in eye openness signals

Blinks, the closing and opening of the eyelids, are used in a wide array of fields where human function and behavior are studied. In data from video-based eye trackers, blink rate and duration are often estimated from the pupil-size signal. However, blinks and their parameters can be estimated only indirectly from this signal, since it does not explicitly contain information about the eyelid position. We ask whether blinks detected from an eye openness signal that estimates the distance between the eyelids (EO blinks) are comparable to blinks detected with a traditional algorithm using the pupil-size signal (PS blinks) and how robust blink detection is when data quality is low. In terms of rate, there was an almost-perfect overlap between EO and PS blink (F1 score: 0.98) when the head was in the center of the eye tracker’s tracking range where data quality was high and a high overlap (F1 score 0.94) when the head was at the edge of the tracking range where data quality was worse. When there was a difference in blink rate between EO and PS blinks, it was mainly due to data loss in the pupil-size signal. Blink durations were about 60 ms longer in EO blinks compared to PS blinks. Moreover, the dynamics of EO blinks was similar to results from previous literature. We conclude that the eye openness signal together with our proposed blink detection algorithm provides an advantageous method to detect and describe blinks in greater detail.

Effect of the Aligned Magnetic Field over a Stretching Sheet through Porous Media in Casson Fluid Flow

Researchers in the thermo-fluidic field have dedicated considerable effort to exploring methods for improving heat transfer in diverse thermal systems. Among these methods, incorporating porous mediums into thermal systems stands out as particularly effective. The movement of substances through these porous materials, which encompass both fluid and solid components, can be described by either assuming that both phases are at the same temperature or that they are at different temperatures. The significance of heat and mass flux arises from their association with chemical potential and temperature gradient respectively. These connections hold value within a wide array of fields, including electrical power generation, solar power technology, chemical engineering, petrology and many more. In the present study, aligned magnetic effects have been investigated on local thermal non-equilibrium (LTNE) circumstances on steady, incompressible, laminar flow of a non-Newtonian Casson fluid across a stretching sheet in a porous medium. The LTNE conditions are implemented to generate two distinct temperature profiles for both fluid and solid phases. By choosing appropriate similarity transformations, the governing partial differential equations are transformed into ordinary differential equations for the flow parameters and are solved using numerical method Runge-Kutta-4 with shooting technique. The flow attributes are thoroughly inspected graphically in response to the influence of the developing factors. As aligned magnetic parameter and porosity parameter values increase, heat transmission improves, but velocity decreases. In the flow zone, as values of angle increases, magnetic field intensity increased. The heat flux in both fluid and solid phases decreases as the Dufour number rises. As the Soret number rises, the mass transfer rate falls.

Cognitive and Integrated Intervention Therapy in the Geriatric Population and its Benefits on Daily Living Activities and Quality of Life: A Narrative Review

Physiotherapists have expanded their scope into a wide array of fields, including various cognitive-based therapies and mixed integrated intervention therapies. Multiple databases were used in present literature review, including Medline, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Pedro, which consisted of research studies, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses published between 2002 and 2022. The keywords searched were: cognitive, geriatric, daily living activities, life quality, integrated therapy. Out of the 163 articles retrieved, 52 primary matching articles were included in the review, and 111 articles were excluded as they did not meet the inclusion criteria. Among the matching articles, 39 showed benefits in Quality of Life (QoL) in geriatric individuals with interventions of cognitive therapy and other integrated therapies such as art therapy and music therapy, using valid and reliable outcome scales. The findings and corroborations from these studies indicated the positive effects of cognitive therapy and various integrated intervention therapies on daily living activities and life quality in the elderly population. There is limited data in the literature about the effects of cognitive and integrated intervention therapy in the elderly population. The primary aim of present review study was to analyse the existing available resources and evidence concerning the effects of cognitive therapy and integrated intervention therapy in geriatric individuals.

Potential of plant mediated biosynthesis of iron nanoparticles and their application in dye degradation process

ABSTRACT In recent years, nanotechnology has emerged as cutting-edge technology with multifarious applications in a wide array of fields. Green synthesis of iron nanoparticles (FeNP) are an upcoming cost effective and eco-friendly technique and recently gained significant importance. In the present study, green FeNPs were prepared using leaf litter which is one of the major seasonal waste contributors in urban built-up areas. Shedding trees during winter months (January – March) were selected. Most abundant trees were Pongamia pinnata (Indian beech), Morus alba (mulberry), Prosopis juliflora (mesquite) and Kigelia africana (sausage tree). Synthesized FeNPs were further used for degrading two commercial dyes, eosin yellow and fuchsin basic, via Fenton’s mechanism. The study showed that the prepared nanoparticles were of iron oxides, but also reported presence of polyphenols as a capping agent. Dye degradation efficiency of nanoparticles synthesized by P. pinnata leaf litter was recorded to be highest, whereas the efficiency of nanoparticles synthesized by K. africana leaf litter was lowest. Chances of iron leaching during dye degradation process was also tested and observed that Fe was present in treated water below the standard guidelines. Thus, FeNPs can serve as a low-cost solution to remediate water pollutants with a green approach. Implications: Nanoparticles prepared in the study were showed as a promising adsorbent and demonstrating high surface area and well-developed porosity. The prepared adsorbent will have a great impact on wastewater treatment technology and possible applications at a large scale. There are several applications of nanoparticles in pollution remediation and at the same time it can solve solid waste issues as it required to prepare nanoparticles. One of the major applications at policy level can be water pollution remediation which is urgently needed.

Optimization of a high-throughput shotgun immunoproteomics pipeline for antigen identification

Identification of proteins which initiate and/or perpetuate adaptive immune responses has potential to greatly impact pre-clinical and clinical work across numerous fields. To date, however, the methodologies available to identify antigens responsible for driving adaptive immune responses have been plagued by numerous issues which have drastically limited their widespread adoption. Therefore, in this study, we sought to optimize a shotgun immunoproteomics approach to alleviate these persistent issues and create a high-throughput, quantitative methodology for antigen identification. Three individual components of a previously published approach, namely the protein extraction, antigen elution, and LC-MS/MS analysis steps, were optimized in a systematic manner. These studies determined that preparation of protein extracts using a one-step tissue disruption method in immunoprecipitation (IP) buffer, eluting antigens from affinity chromatography columns with 1% trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), and TMT-labeling & multiplexing equal volumes of eluted samples for LC-MS/MS analysis, resulted in quantitative longitudinal antigen identification, with reduced variability between replicates and increased total number of antigens identified. This optimized pipeline provides a multiplexed, highly reproducible, and fully quantitative approach to antigen identification which is broadly applicable to determine the role of antigenic proteins in inciting (i.e., primary antigens) and perpetuating (i.e., secondary antigens) a wide range of diseases. SignificanceUsing a systematic, hypothesis-driven approach, we identified potential improvements for three individual steps of a previously published approach for antigen-identification. Optimization of each step created a methodology which resolved many of the persistent issues associated with previous antigen identification approaches. The optimized high-throughput shotgun immunoproteomics approach described herein identifies more than five times as many unique antigens as the previously published method, greatly reduces protocol cost and mass spectrometry time per experiment, minimizes both inter- and intra-experimental variability, and ensures each experiment is fully quantitative. Ultimately, this optimized antigen identification approach has the potential to facilitate novel antigen identification studies, allowing evaluation of the adaptive immune response in a longitudinal manner and encourage innovations in a wide array of fields.

Design thinking as an effective method for problem-setting and needfinding for entrepreneurial teams addressing wicked problems

Organizations in a wide array of fields and disciplines are increasingly using design thinking as an innovative process to create products or services that address wicked problems in their industries. Design thinking, a method of creative and collaborative problem solving originating in the tactics of designers, is a product design and development process that is, more and more, being used as a tool to move innovation forward and structure creation processes in diverse disciplines, from product development to food creation to social science research. Increasingly design thinking has become popular beyond the confines of creative and design disciplines and into the realm of wicked problems in social and ecological systems. While design thinking has many forms and applications, this study uses a refined version built upon the key themes of inspiration, ideation, and implementation as defined by Tim Brown, CEO of IDEO (2009), and situates it within the social science discipline—namely, systems thinking, organizational learning, and action research. Through a distilled design structure this flexible methodology combines insights from organizational development, social psychology, systems theory, and design research. By embedding learning and reflective practices into the structure of design thinking, a hybrid model of design thinking emerges that is a more effective tool for framing, setting in context, and solving these types of problems within teams.

Nanocomposites of Cu2O with plasmonic metals (Au, Ag): design, synthesis, and photocatalytic applications.

Metal-semiconductor nanocomposites have been utilized in a multitude of applications in a wide array of fields, prompting substantial interest from different scientific sectors. Of particular interest are semiconductors paired with plasmonic metals due to the unique optical properties that arise from the individual interactions of these materials with light and the intercomponent movement of charge carriers in their heterostructure. This review focuses on the pairing of Cu2O semiconductor with strongly plasmonic metals, particularly Au and Ag. The design and synthesis of Au-Cu2O and Ag-Cu2O nanostructures, along with ternary nanostructures composed of the three components, are described, with in-depth discussion on the synthesis techniques and tunable parameters. The effects of compositing on the optical and electronic properties of the nanocomposites in the context of photocatalysis are discussed as well. Concluding remarks and potential areas for exploration are presented in the last section.

OmniUV: A Multipurpose Simulation Toolkit for VLBI Observation

We present OmniUV, a multipurpose simulation toolkit for space and ground VLBI observations. It supports various kinds of VLBI stations, including Earth (ground) fixed, Earth orbit, Lunar fixed, Lunar orbit, Moon–Earth, and Earth–Sun Lagrange 1 and 2 points, etc. The main functionalities of this toolkit are: (1) trajectory calculation; (2) baseline uv calculation, by taking the availability of each station into account; (3) visibility simulation for the given uv distribution, source structure, and system noise; (4) image and beam reconstruction. Two scenarios, namely the space VLBI network and the wide-field array, are presented as the application of the toolkit at completely different scales. OmniUV is the acronym of “Omnipotent UV.” We hope it could work as a general framework, in which various kinds of stations could be easily incorporated and the functionalities could be further extended. The toolkit has been made publicly available.

Look to the ravens: reconceptualizing communities of practice into ecosystems of practice

The academic idea of a community of practice—a group of people who come together to share and learn from one another—has been used to understand learning structures in a wide array of fields. This conceptual framework, however, is rooted in human exceptionalism, considering anything other-than-human to be a resource instead of an active and critical participant. Working to remove this anthropocentric language and better fit with Indigenous epistemologies, I propose to reconceptualize communities of practice to ecosystems of practice: communities of practice that consider other-than-human actors to be key participants in the situated learning process. I ground this definition through a case study of a Gwich’in hunting and fishing ecosystem of practice by showing clear inclusion of other-than-human members and highlighting their importance in educational processes. Actively redefining and reconceptualizing community of practice theory shifts overall cultural perspectives to better embrace other-than-human entities and fosters environmental empathy.

Catalytic Decarboxylative Fluorosulfonylation Enabled by Energy-Transfer-Mediated Photocatalysis.

Sulfonyl fluorides are useful building blocks in a wide array of fields. Herein, we report a catalytic decarboxylative fluorosulfonylation approach for converting abundant aliphatic carboxylic acids to the corresponding sulfonyl fluorides. This transformation is enabled by simple preactivation as aldoxime esters and energy-transfer-mediated photocatalysis. This operationally simple method proceeds with high functional-group tolerance under mild and redox-neutral conditions.

GREEN SYNTHESIS APPROACH, CHARACTERIZATION, AND APPLICATIONS OF MgO NANO PARTICLES USING CURRY LEAF (MURRAYA KOENIGII)

Nanotechnology has emerged as a state-of-the-art and cutting-edge technology with multifarious applications in a wide array of fields. The goal of this study was to create magnesium oxide nanoparticles using an aqueous extract of curry leaves (murraya koenigii or bergera koenigii). The morphology, elemental content, shape, and size of the produced MgO nanoparticles were determined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy analysis (EDX). According to the SEM data, the MgO nanoparticle forms were well disseminated, with a spherical shape and particle sizes ranging from 20 to 100 nm. While the EDX pattern infers the sample’s elemental composition, the average occurrence of Mg was 32.45 percent. Plant extracts were used to successfully produce MgO nanoparticlse, which is an essential alternative technique because it is non-toxic, biocompatible, and environmentally benign.

Ingroup, outgroup, or ally? An inquiry on the identity content of the People’s Protection Units (YPG) supporters on social media

ABSTRACT Since the Syrian civil war broke out in 2011, the People’s Protection Units (Yekîneyên Parastina Gel‎, the YPG) has been one of the most notable groups in Syria. The group has become increasingly known especially after playing a significant role in the fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria and, later on, declaring autonomy in northern Syria in 2014. While various political, economic, and social dimensions of the Rojava struggle and of the YPG have been examined within a wide array of fields, the group and its identity have not been adequately examined through a social-psychological lens thus far. In this study, we seek to fill this gap by examining how YPG supporters represent, understand, and express the identity and behaviour of their own group and their adversaries on social media, particularly on Twitter. In light of social identity theory, we explore YPG supporters’ (1) ingroup representations (both ingroup members and allies), (2) ingroup social norms, (3) outgroup representations, and (4) outgroup social norms. Thus, we not only present the first empirical study in this regard, but also discuss the meanings of identity content and social norms in relation to the processes of mobilization and solidarity among YPG supporters.

Plant-Mediated Synthesis of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles and Evaluation of the Antimicrobial Activity: A Review

In this review, we examine ‘greener’ routes to nanoparticles of iron oxides, in the recent years; nanotechnology has emerged as a state-of-the-art and cutting edge technology with multifarious applications in a wide array of fields. Natural products or extracted from natural products, such as different plant extracts, have been used as reductants and as capping agents during synthesis. A very easy, efficient, and environment-friendly protocol was developed to synthesize green nanoparticles (NPs) with an aqueous extract of various plant, phenolic compounds extracted from plants play a major role as non-toxic reducing and capping agents for nanoparticles. Nanoparticles and their compounds are known to exert a strong inhibitory and microbial activity on bacteria, viruses, and fungi. In today's world, because of the epidemic of infectious diseases caused by different pathogenic bacteria and the development of antibiotic resistance, green synthesis, characterization, and application of nanoparticles (NPs) are becoming an important challenge in nanotechnology. Green synthesis of nanoparticles is made in large quantities worldwide for a wide range of applications. This technique is very safe and environmentally friendly.

“How Do We Play this Thing?”: The State of Historical Research on Videogames

Abstract Though previously overlooked by academia, scholars from a wide array of fields now consider videogames as a serious subject of inquiry. The emergence of game studies as a standalone discipline has led to the publication of high-quality work on the medium, yet the field of videogame history is still immature. Initial attempts to introduce critical historical analysis of videogames in a field dominated by journalistic accounts were themselves plagued by an overemphasis on videogame canons and on the United States and Japan. In effect, early writings by videogame historians resembled “great man” theory, something one could qualify as “great game” theory. Over the last decade, this situation has started to be redressed and there are now growing efforts to produce solid historical scholarship on videogames. Still, game scholars and game historians need to collaborate, engage in conversation, and develop and adapt proper methods to conduct historical research on videogames in order to write relevant histories of this relatively young medium.