The interactions with calf thymus DNA (CT-DNA) of three Schiff bases formed by the condensation of hesperetin with benzohydrazide (HHSB or L¹H₃), isoniazid (HIN or L²H₃), or thiosemicarbazide (HTSC or L³H₃) and their Cu^II complexes (CuHHSB, CuHIN, and CuHTSC with the general formula [CuLⁿH₂(AcO)]) were evaluated in aqueous solution both experimentally and theoretically. UV–Vis studies indicate that the ligands and complexes exhibit hypochromism, which suggests helical ordering in the DNA helix. The intrinsic binding constants (K_b) of the Cu compounds with CT-DNA, in the range (2.3–9.2) × 10⁶, from CuHTSC to CuHHSB, were higher than other copper-based potential drugs, suggesting that π–π stacking interaction due to the presence of the aromatic rings favors the binding. Thiazole orange (TO) assays confirmed that ligands and Cu complexes displace TO from the DNA binding site, quenching the fluorescence emission. DFT calculations allow for an assessment of the equilibrium between [Cu(LⁿH₂)(AcO)] and [Cu(LⁿH₂)(H₂O)]⁺, the tautomer that binds Cu^II, amido (am) and not imido (im), and the coordination mode of HTSC (O⁻, N, S), instead of (O⁻, N, NH₂). The docking studies indicate that the intercalative is preferred over the minor groove binding to CT-DNA with the order [Cu(L¹H₂^am)(AcO)] > [Cu(L²H₂^am)(AcO)] ≈ TO ≈ L¹H₃ > [Cu(L³H₂^am)(AcO)], in line with the experimental K_b constants, obtained from the UV–Vis spectroscopy. Moreover, dockings predict that the binding strength of [Cu(L¹H₂^am)(AcO)] is larger than [Cu(L¹H₂^am)(H₂O)]⁺. Overall, the results suggest that when different enantiomers, tautomers, and donor sets are possible for a metal complex, a computational approach should be recommended to predict the type and strength of binding to DNA and, in general, to macromolecules. Full article

This paper describes an integrated monitoring system designed for individualized environmental risk assessment and management in the workplace. The system incorporates monitoring devices that measure dust, noise, ultraviolet radiation, illuminance, temperature, humidity, and flammable gases. Comprising monitoring devices, a server-based web application for employers, and a mobile application for workers, the system integrates the registration of workers’ health histories, such as common diseases and symptoms related to the monitored agents, and a web-based recommendation system. The recommendation system application uses classifiers to decide the risk/no risk per sensor and crosses this information with fixed rules to define recommendations. The system generates actionable alerts for companies to improve decision-making regarding professional activities and long-term safety planning by analyzing health information through fixed rules and exposure data through machine learning algorithms. As the system must handle sensitive data, data privacy is addressed in communication and data storage. The study provides test results that evaluate the performance of different machine learning models in building an effective recommendation system. Since it was not possible to find public datasets with all the sensor data needed to train artificial intelligence models, it was necessary to build a data generator for this work. By proposing an approach that focuses on individualized environmental risk assessment and management, considering workers’ health histories, this work is expected to contribute to enhancing occupational safety through computational technologies in the Industry 5.0 approach. Full article

Complete surgical resection in the context of a multimodal approach has been associated with excellent long-term survival in children diagnosed with pancreatoblastoma (PB). Traditionally, curative intent surgery for PB implies standard pancreatic resections such as pancreaticoduodenectomies and distal pancreatectomies with splenectomies, surgical procedures that may lead to significant long-term pancreatic functional deficiencies. Postoperative pancreatic functional deficiencies are particularly interesting to children because they may interfere with their development, considering their long life expectancy and the significant role of pancreatic functions in their nutritional status and growth. Thus, organ-sparing pancreatectomies, such as spleen-preserving distal pancreatectomies and central pancreatectomies, are emerging in specific tumoral pathologies in children. However, data about organ-sparing pancreatectomies’ potential role in curative-intent PB surgery in children are scarce. Based on the literature data, the current review aims to present the early and late outcomes of pancreatectomies in children (including long-term deficiencies and their potential impact on the development and quality of life), particularly for PB, and further explore the potential role of organ-sparing pancreatectomies for PB. Organ-sparing pancreatectomies are associated with better long-term pancreatic functional outcomes, particularly central pancreatectomies, and have a reduced impact on children’s development and quality of life without jeopardizing their oncological safety. The long-term preservation of pancreatic functions should not be disregarded when performing pancreatectomies for PB in children. A subset of patients with PB might benefit from organ-sparing pancreatectomies, particularly from central pancreatectomies, with the same oncological results as standard pancreatectomies but with significantly less impact on long-term functional outcomes. Full article

Housing different animal groups in close-by facilities is common in wildlife centers. However, the impact on animal welfare is insufficiently studied in the literature. In this study, we analyzed the behavior of two adjacently housed chimpanzee groups to investigate how intergroup interactions may affect their behavior and, thus, their welfare. We recorded occurrences of abnormal and self-directed behaviors, two well-known indicators of stress in chimpanzees. Furthermore, we explored the social responses to said intergroup interactions by recording all inter- and intragroup affiliative and agonistic behaviors. Finally, we measured the number of vigilance occurrences that individuals directed towards other chimpanzees as an indicator of interest. Generalized Linear Mixed Models (GLMMs) were used to assess whether and how social interactions between neighboring groups might influence their behaviors, taking gender, age, group, and intergroup participation into account. Our results suggest that intergroup interactions promoted the occurrence of affiliative behaviors between group members. However, intergroup interactions caused the chimpanzees to exhibit a higher number of abnormal and self-directed behaviors and increased vigilance towards their group members when agonistic intergroup interactions occurred. Thus, adjacent housing does impact the chimpanzees’ behavior and welfare and should be continuously monitored and assessed to promote and maximize welfare. Full article

The development of cell-based biomaterial alternatives holds significant promise in tissue engineering applications, but it requires accurate mechanical assessment. Herein, we present the development of a novel 3D-printed confined compression apparatus, fabricated using clear resin, designed to cater to the unique demands of biomaterial developers. Our objective was to enhance the precision of force measurements and improve sample visibility during compression testing. We compared the performance of our innovative 3D-printed confined compression setup to a conventional setup by performing stress relaxation testing on hydrogels with variable degrees of crosslinking. We assessed equilibrium force, aggregate modulus, and peak force. This study demonstrates that our revised setup can capture a larger range of force values while simultaneously improving accuracy. We were able to detect significant differences in force and aggregate modulus measurements of hydrogels with variable degrees of crosslinking using our revised setup, whereas these were indistinguishable with the convectional apparatus. Further, by incorporating a clear resin in the fabrication of the compression chamber, we improved sample visibility, thus enabling real-time monitoring and informed assessment of biomaterial behavior under compressive testing. Full article

Satellite computing represents a recent computational paradigm in the development of low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites. It aims to augment the capabilities of LEO satellites beyond their current transparent relay functions by enabling real-time processing, thereby providing low-latency computational services to end users. In LEO constellations, a significant deployment of computationally capable satellites is orchestrated to offer enhanced computational resources. Challenges arise in the optimal allocation of terminal services to the most suitable satellite due to overlapping coverage among neighboring satellites, compounded by constraints on satellite energy and computational resources. The satellite service allocation (SSA) problem is recognized as NP-hard, yet assessing allocation methods through results allows for the application of deep reinforcement learning (DRL) to obtain improved solutions, partially addressing the SSA challenge. In this paper, we introduce a satellite computing capability model to quantify satellite computational resources. A DRL model is proposed to address service demands, computational resources, and resolve service allocation conflicts, strategically placing each service on appropriate servers. Through simulation experiments, numerical results demonstrate the superiority of our proposed method over baseline approaches in service allocation and satellite resource utilization, showcasing advancements in this field. Full article

Ammonia is a very promising alternative fuel for internal combustion engines, but there are some disadvantages, such as difficulty in ignition and slow combustion rate when ammonia is used alone. Aiming to address the problem of ammonia combustion difficulty, measures are proposed to improve ammonia combustion by blending hydrogen. A one-dimensional turbocharged ammonia-hydrogen engine simulation model was established, and the combustion model was corrected and verified. Using the verified one-dimensional model, the effects of different ratios of hydrogen to ammonia, different rotational speeds and loads on the combustion performance are investigated. The results show that the ignition delay and combustion duration is shortened with the increase of the hydrogen blending ratio. The appropriate amount of hydrogen blending can improve the brake’s thermal efficiency. With the increase in engine speed, increasing the proportion of hydrogen blending is necessary to ensure reliable ignition. In conclusion, the ammonia-hydrogen fuel engine has good combustion performance, but it is necessary to choose the appropriate hydrogen blending ratio according to the engine’s operating conditions and requirements. Full article

The aging intensity (AI), defined as the ratio of the instantaneous hazard rate and a baseline hazard rate, is a useful tool for the describing reliability properties of a random variable corresponding to a lifetime. In this work, the concept of AI is introduced in step-stress accelerated life testing (SSALT) experiments, providing new insights to the model and enabling the further clarification of the differences between the two commonly employed cumulative exposure (CE) and tampered failure rate (TFR) models. New AI-based estimators for the parameters of a SSALT model are proposed and compared to the MLEs in terms of examples and a simulation study. Full article

In everyday life, we recurrently perform two tasks simultaneously, which is called dual-tasking. A common dual task is smartphone use while standing or walking. According to previous studies, this task can compromise postural stability. However, few studies have analyzed lower limb muscle activity during dual-tasking using smartphones. This study aimed to assess the postural sway and muscle activity during dual-tasking in young adults. Thirty-six healthy young adults (23.08 ± 3.92 years) participated in this study. They performed a single task (ST: keeping a quiet standing posture) and a dual task (DT: keeping the ST while simultaneously performing a cognitive task on their smartphone). Postural sway was assessed through the center of pressure (CoP) analysis using a force platform: total CoP displacement, CoP displacement in the anterior–posterior and medial–lateral directions, mean total velocity of the CoP, mean velocity of the CoP in the anterior–posterior and medial–lateral directions, and 95% confidence ellipse sway area. A surface electromyography system recorded the muscle activity of the lumbar spinal erector and five muscles of the lower limb (bilaterally). The results showed an increase in postural sway from the ST to the DT in all CoP variables (p < 0.05), and muscle activity in most muscles analyzed decreased from the ST to the DT (p < 0.05). In conclusion, our results reflect a decentralization of attention from motor performance once postural sway increased and muscle activity decreased in dual-task conditions. Full article

Trust plays a crucial role in effectively responding to public health emergencies. Drawing on COVID-19 survey data conducted in Hubei, China, during August 2020 with a sample size of 5494, this study investigated the influence of individuals’ socioeconomic status on trust in acquaintances, strangers and institutions, and how this relationship is moderated by epidemic prevention, policy perception and family structure. The findings showed that individuals with higher socioeconomic status tend to have higher levels of trust. Those with higher income but being married demonstrate higher trust. When perceiving epidemic prevention policies as stringent, those with higher income display increased trust in acquaintances and institutions; similarly, those with lower education levels exhibit heightened trust in acquaintances and strangers. Individuals working in social organizations express higher trust in strangers; however, their trust is compromised under stringent epidemic prevention policies due to potentially heavier work burdens. Full article

Grasslands in China cover an extensive area and rank second globally. They constitute the second-largest carbon reservoir in China after forests, holding about 8% of the total carbon stock of the world’s grassland ecosystems. This study focuses on the grasslands of Wuchuan County, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of Northern China. This study compares the carbon stock and density characteristics across different communities based on plot survey and GIS vector data. It also anticipates the region’s carbon sequestration potential using biomass-to-carbon conversion and extrapolation methods. The findings indicate that (1) the total carbon stock in the study area is 1805.65 × 10⁴ tons with an average carbon density of 77.50 t/ha. The distribution of carbon density and stock follows a pattern: soil layer > herbaceous layer > litter layer; (2) the Stipa krylovii + Leymus chinensis community exhibits the highest carbon stock and density; (3) there is a positive correlation between herbaceous carbon density and NPP (Net Primary Productivity) values in the study area; and (4) the overall carbon stock in the region is projected to increase, with growth rates accelerating annually. These results contribute to our understanding of the formation, turnover, stability maintenance, and regulation mechanisms of grassland soil organic carbon. Furthermore, they hold significant implications for enhancing the carbon sequestration capacity of ecosystems. Full article

The Maronite Church states that it is an Antiochene and Syriac Church. This article traces, in chronological and discursive fashion, the emergence of the Maronite tradition. It explores the life and significance of St Maroun (d. ca AD 418–23), giving consideration to thinkers who helped to understand his outlook and methods and assessing what we know of the St Maroun monastery (Dayr Mar Maroun) and its vicissitudes down to the sixth century. The piece then treats Maronites in the context of the seventh-century monothelite controversy, following their foundational developments up to the time of their first patriarch Yohanna Maroun (flor. 680s). The paper considers not only the ascetic and monastic currents in the early Maronite community but also touches on the influence of Syriac typology and its gradual displacement by analytic and dogmatic theology. Full article

The widespread vibration is one of the most promising energy sources for IoT and small sensors, and broad-frequency vibration energy harvesting is important. Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) can convert vibration energy into electrical energy through triboelectricity and electrostatic induction, providing an effective solution to the collection of broad-frequency vibration energy. Also, the power supply in constrained and compact spaces has been a long-standing challenge. Here, a miniaturized power supply (MPS) based on a broad-frequency vibration-driven triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) is developed. The size of the MPS is 38 mm × 26 mm × 20 mm, which can adapt to most space-limited environments. The TENG device is optimized through theoretical mechanical modeling for the external stimuli, it can efficiently harvest vibrational energy in the frequency range of 1–100 Hz and has a high output power density of 134.11 W/cm³. The developed device demonstrates its practical application potential in powering small electronics like LEDs, watches, and timers. Full article

This cross-sectional study evaluated the validity of three alternative methods compared to the gold standard 24-h urine collection for estimating dietary sodium intake, a modifiable risk factor for hypertension, among middle-aged and older adults with elevated blood pressure. These included spot urine collection (using Kawasaki, Tanaka, and INTERSALT equations), 24-h dietary recall, and food frequency questionnaire responses, compared to 24-h urine collection in a subset of 65 participants (aged 50–75 years, 58.5% women, 61.6% hypertensive) from the DePEC-Nutrition trial. The validity of the methods was assessed using bias, the Spearman correlation coefficient (SCC), the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), and Bland–Altman analysis. Among the alternative methods, spot urine collection using the Kawasaki equation showed the strongest correlation (SCC 0.238; ICC 0.119, 95% CI −0.079 to 0.323), but it exhibited a significant bias (1414 mg/day, p-value < 0.001) relative to 24-h urine collection. Conversely, dietary surveys had a smaller bias but wider limits of agreement. These findings underscore the complexities of accurately estimating dietary sodium intake using spot urine collection or dietary surveys in this specific population, suggesting that a combination or the refinement of existing methodologies might improve accuracy. Further research with larger samples is necessary to develop more reliable methods for assessing sodium intake in this high-risk group. Full article

The biflavonoid extraction from ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba L.) leaves using solvent-based extraction with 70% ethanol, alone and in combination with enzyme-assisted, ultrasound-assisted, mechanical-assisted, and chemically assisted methods was investigated and the influence of extraction duration was explored. The total content of polyphenols, flavonoids, and phenolic acids in the extracts was determined spectrophotometrically, while individual biflavonoids were identified and quantified using HPLC-DAD. Amentoflavone, bilobetin, ginkgetin, isoginkgetin, and sciadopitysin were identified in all our extracts. Among these, sciadopitysin emerged as the most prevalent biflavonoid with an amount above 1 mg g⁻¹ dw, followed by isoginkgetin. Comparative analysis of the extraction methods revealed that, except for chemically assisted extraction, similar levels of compounds were obtained after 45 min of extraction. However, enzymatic (EAE) and mechanical-assisted extraction (MAE) exhibited significantly higher individual (EAE: 19–41% higher; MAE: 22–67% higher) and total biflavonoid (EAE: 29% higher; MAE 50% higher) levels after just 5 min, suggesting their potential to abbreviate extraction duration and facilitate the efficient retrieval of target compounds. However, as extraction efficiency varies between individual biflavonoids, our findings also underscore the importance of considering specific compounds and extraction kinetics in the optimization of ginkgo leaf extraction processes. Full article

The article presents the results of obtaining a composite material by sintering nickel-containing raw materials mixed with carbon-containing materials, namely using coke and semi-coke. The sintering process was performed at a charge layer height of 240 mm and the temperature of the lower layer was T = 1200 °C. The results of the sieve analysis showed (a fraction of 10 mm) that the yield of a suitable composite material using coke was 68.3% and with semi-coke 67.0%. The average nickel and chromium content in the composite materials was 1.42% and 3.07%, accordingly. As a result of determining the strength characteristics of the obtained composite materials with various reducing agents by dropping from a height of 2 m onto a steel pallet, it was found that the obtained composite materials have high mechanical properties in terms of strength of 81% and 89.2%. The results of the elemental composition at the studied points and the thermal analysis of the studied composite material are presented. The mineralogical composition of the composite material is presented in the form of serpentine and nontronite, and the empty rock is made of quartz and talc. The activation energy of thermal analysis by the method of non-isothermal kinetics were calculated. The results of experiments on the production of composite materials from nickel-containing raw materials will be recommended for obtaining the optimal composition of composite materials at the stage of pilot tests and industrial development of the developed technology for processing nickel ores of the Republic of Kazakhstan. For the processing of nickel-poor nickel ores, it is of great importance to obtain optimal technological and technical and economic indicators that ensure low cost of nickel in the resulting product. Full article

In unstructured environments, robots need to deal with a wide variety of objects with diverse shapes, and often, the instances of these objects are unknown. Traditional methods rely on training with large-scale labeled data, but in environments with continuous and high-dimensional state spaces, the data become sparse, leading to weak generalization ability of the trained models when transferred to real-world applications. To address this challenge, we present an innovative maximum entropy Deep Q-Network (ME-DQN), which leverages an attention mechanism. The framework solves complex and sparse reward tasks through probabilistic reasoning while eliminating the trouble of adjusting hyper-parameters. This approach aims to merge the robust feature extraction capabilities of Fully Convolutional Networks (FCNs) with the efficient feature selection of the attention mechanism across diverse task scenarios. By integrating an advantage function with the reasoning and decision-making of deep reinforcement learning, ME-DQN propels the frontier of robotic grasping and expands the boundaries of intelligent perception and grasping decision-making in unstructured environments. Our simulations demonstrate a remarkable grasping success rate of 91.6%, while maintaining excellent generalization performance in the real world. Full article

The paper presents a critical review and new accomplishments on the equivalence of the first-order displacement-based zigzag theories for laminated composite and sandwich structures. Zigzag theories (ZZTs) have widely spread among researchers over the last few decades thanks to their accuracy in predicting the response of multilayered composite and sandwich structures while retaining the simplicity of their underlying equivalent single-layer (ESL) theory. The displacement field consists of two main contributions: the global one, able to describe the overall structural behaviour, and the local layer-wise one that considers the transverse shear continuity at the layer interfaces that describe the “zigzag” displacement pattern typical of multilayered structures. In the framework of displacement-based linear ZZTs, various assumptions have been made on the local contribution, and different theories have been deduced. This paper aims to provide a unified formulation for first-order ZZTs, highlighting some common aspects and underlying equivalencies with existing formulations. The mathematical demonstrations and the numerical examples prove the equivalence of the approaches to characterising local zigzag enrichment. Finally, it is demonstrated that the kinematic assumptions are the discriminants of the ZZTs’ accuracy. Full article

In this paper, experimental results about the performance of a Takagi–Sugeno Fuzzy Controller (TSFC) for an EV3 Ballbot Robotic System (EV3BRS) are reported. The physical configuration of the EV3BRS has the form of an inverted pendulum mounted on a ball. The EV3BRS is an underactuated robotic system with four outputs and two control torques. In this work, following the Takagi–Sugeno (TS) fuzzy control design methodology, the Parallel Distributed Compensation (PDC) approach is used in the design of the TSFC. The EV3BRS’s TS Fuzzy Model (TSFM) design comes from linearization of the nonlinear model around two operation points near the upright position of EV3BRS’s body. The Linear Matrix Inequality (LMI) approach was used to obtain the feedback gains for every local linear controller, guaranteeing, via a conservative stability condition, the global asymptotic stability of the overall fuzzy control system. The main goal of the control task consists of maintaining the EV3BRS’s body at its upright position. Measurement and control data from and to the EV3BRS are transferred via telecontrol and telemetry. The appropriate performance of the controller design is corroborated via experimentation. Full article

In this paper, we provide a blow-up criterion for the density-dependent incompressible magnetohydrodynamic system with zero viscosity. The proof uses the $L^p$-method and the Kato–Ponce inequalities in the harmonic analysis. The novelty of our work lies in the fact that we deal with the case in which the resistivity $\eta$ is positive. Full article

This paper presents a methodology for generating virtual ground control points (VGCPs) using a binocular camera mounted on a drone. We compare the measurements of the binocular and monocular cameras between the classical method and the proposed one. This work aims to decrease human processing times while maintaining a reduced root mean square error (RMSE) for 3D reconstruction. Additionally, we propose utilizing COLMAP to enhance reconstruction accuracy by solely utilizing a sparse point cloud. The results demonstrate that implementing COLMAP for pre-processing reduces the RMSE by up to 16.9% in most cases. We prove that VGCPs further reduce the RMSE by up to 61.08%. Full article