Search Results (202,498)

Kazakhstan’s asbestos industry produces over 3 million tons of waste annually. The primary component of asbestos ore waste (AOW) is magnesium rich minerals. In this study, the extraction of magnesium from AOW with nitric acid (HNO₃) was for the first time systematically studied. A series of experiments were conducted to optimize acid concentration (300–600 g/L), leaching temperature (55–95 °C), leaching time (60–180 min), solid-to-liquid ratio (1:3–1:7), and particle size, with the overall goal of maximizing magnesium extraction and cost efficiency. Our results provide dependence of magnesium extraction in the order of acid concentration  >  temperature  >  time  >  solid-to-liquid ratio, while particle size was found to be negligible. The cost-efficiency optimization demonstrated the positive impact of the relatively low acid concentrations (< 450 g/L) and temperatures between 65 and 85 °C, while the Protodyakonov model validated a linear dependence of the extraction rate on temperature and acid concentration. Our model demonstrates that extraction efficiencies of up to 90% can be achieved while reducing reagent use and lowering the overall cost of magnesium production. Leaching of magnesium by HNO₃ also opens a pathway to a closed-cycle process, due to the formation of magnesium nitrate. The thermal decomposition of Mg(NO₃)₂ provides valuable products such as MgO and NO₂ reused in HNO₃ regeneration for subsequent cycles. The proposed model predicts magnesium extraction from asbestos ore depending on leaching parameters with reasonable accuracy. Full article

Europe’s decarbonization calls for an increase in the resources used to ensure a fairer transition. The objective of this study is to evaluate the role of public finance in the decarbonization process, considering the context of various uncertainties. Data from 1995 to 2023 for selected European countries were analyzed in this sense. We used the cross-sectional dependence–consistent Driscoll–Kraay estimator as the main econometric approach and Feasible Generalized Least Squares (FGLS) as a robustness test. The results revealed a positive impact of public debt, world uncertainty, and gross domestic product on renewable energy usage in European countries. Additionally, general fiscal pressure is shown to have a negative impact on the renewable energy used during the analyzed period. The results showcase the importance of public finance tools adjustments in supporting the race to zero breakthroughs and dawdling climate change. Several policy recommendations were made in this regard. Full article

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are a global health concern, with over 150 million cases annually, primarily caused by Escherichia coli. Due to anatomical differences, females, especially children and postmenopausal women, are four times more susceptible. Crucially, E. coli has developed widespread antimicrobial resistance (AMR), including resistance to broad-spectrum agents and the emergence of Extended-Spectrum Beta-Lactamase (ESBL)-producing strains. This retrospective study analyzed hospital records from 95 female patients with positive urine cultures at Siblin Governmental Hospital in 2024. Patients were stratified into three age categories: children (≤18 years), adults (18–64 years) and elderly patients (>64 years). Statistical analysis using SPSS focused on descriptive resistance patterns and differences across age groups. Overall, cephalothin (85.7%) and cefaclor (78.49%) exhibited the highest resistance rates. Conversely, tigecycline (97.22%) and ertapenem (91.67%) showed the highest susceptibility. Resistance patterns varied significantly by age. For instance, elderly patients showed high resistance to agents like Augmentin (52.5%) and cefixime (66.1%), while the pediatric group (≤18 years) displayed exceptionally high resistance to cefixime (90.0%). E. coli isolates show high resistance to conventionally used antibiotics, complicating UTI treatment. These findings highlight the need for continuous local surveillance, particularly focusing on third-generation cephalosporins and beta-lactamase production. Ultimately, age is a critical factor that must be considered when determining empirical antibiotic therapy for UTIs. Full article

Integrating positive welfare indicators into dairy science is gaining attention, yet the biological correlates of affective states in commercial herds remain poorly understood. This study explored associations between dairy cows’ emotional states quantified through the Positive Affect Index (PAI) derived from the Qualitative Behaviour (QBA) Assessment and milk biomarkers, yield, and udder health indicators across 37 commercial farms. Descriptive statistics, housing-adjusted linear regressions, and partial Spearman correlations were used to explore these relationships. Higher PAI values, indicating more positive herd-level emotional states, were significantly associated with lower SCC (22% reduction, p = 0.016) and lower odds of elevated DSCC (OR = 0.69, p = 0.002), reflecting improved udder health. Positive affect was also linked to a higher lactose concentration (p < 0.001) and an increased fat-to-protein ratio (FPR). A tendency for higher milk yield (+1.07 L per milking, p = 0.077) and slightly lower protein content was observed, consistent with a dilution effect. These associations remained robust after sensitivity analyses and were independent of housing type. The results demonstrate that milk composition and udder health biologically reflect positive emotional states, supporting the integration of behavioural assessments and milk biomarkers as a non-invasive framework for advancing welfare-oriented and precision dairy farming. Full article

Emotionally expressive avatars are often used to increase engagement in virtual environments, but their effects on users’ emotional outcomes and experience during evaluative tasks are not well established. This study examined whether differences in avatar emotional expressiveness are associated with affective responses and user experience during a socially evaluative speech task in virtual reality (VR), and how individual characteristics and emotional variables relate to performance and user experience. Sixty-three university students were randomly assigned to deliver a five-minute self-presentation, simulating a job interview, in front of a virtual mirror while embodied in either a high-expressive or low-expressive avatar. In the present study, the manipulation of avatar expressiveness was implemented using Meta Quest 2 and Meta Quest Pro headsets, differing mainly in facial-tracking capability. Participants completed a structured three-phase protocol: pre-avatar embodiment (baseline questionnaires), avatar embodiment (speech task), and post-avatar embodiment (post-task measures). Emotional state and trait variables, speech fluency and engagement during the task, and user experience variables were assessed. No significant effects of avatar expressiveness were found on emotional or experiential variables. Correlation analyses revealed a positive association between extraversion and avatar embodiment. These findings contribute to our understanding of the factors that are associated with user experience and behaviour in avatar-based VR environments and suggest that individual traits, such as extraversion, should be considered when designing VR applications for training, education, and therapeutic purposes. Full article

This research applies the stress appraisal framework to examine how perceived status threats, triggered by high-performing new employees, affect incumbent employees’ work engagement and withdrawal behaviors. The investigation proposes that coping approaches, specifically proactive adaptation strategies and disengagement tactics, serve as mediating mechanisms, with stress perception orientation playing a moderating role. By reversing traditional research perspectives to concentrate on incumbent employees rather than new employees, this analysis identifies the key drivers of perceived occupational vulnerability and investigates their behavioral consequences. Through a time-lagged research methodology, we garnered responses from 266 incumbent employees spanning multiple sectors. The results demonstrate a strong positive correlation between the competence of new employees and incumbent employees’ perceived status of threat, which subsequently elevates work engagement via approach-focused strategies, while simultaneously increasing disengagement behaviors through avoidance mechanisms. Notably, employees’ fundamental beliefs about stress significantly weaken the association between perceived competitive threats and passive coping methods. These discoveries highlight critical implications for managing workplace dynamics and optimizing team performance through an enhanced understanding of perceived status challenges. Full article

To address the issues of high labor intensity, high missed harvest rates, and high damage rates associated with traditional subsurface crop harvesters, this paper takes carrots as the research object and designs an automatic row-following device based on collaborative perception and intelligent control. Firstly, the physical characteristic parameters and planting agronomic requirements of carrots in a harvest period were systematically measured and analyzed, and a collaborative control architecture with ‘lateral row-following and longitudinal profiling’ as the core was established. The architecture was composed of a lateral detection mechanism and a ridge surface floating detection mechanism. Building on this, this paper designed a control system with a STC12C5A60S2 single-chip microcomputer as the control core and a fusion fuzzy PID algorithm. By collaboratively driving the lateral and vertical stepper motors, the system achieved a precise control of the digging device’s position and posture, significantly improving the response speed and control stability under complex ridge conditions. Through the simulation of SolidWorks (2019) and RecurDyn (2023), the structural reliability and dynamic profiling effect of key components were validated from both static and dynamic perspectives, respectively. The parameter optimization results based on the response surface method show that the lateral motor speed and the forward speed are the dominant factors affecting the lateral accuracy and the vertical accuracy, respectively. Under the optimal parameter combination, the mean lateral deviation of the device measured in the field test was 1.118 cm, and the standard deviation was 0.257 cm. The mean vertical deviation is 0.986 cm, and the standard deviation is 0.016 cm. This study provides a feasible technical solution for the mechanized agronomic operation of carrots and other subsurface crops. Full article

Based on the cognitive-behavioral model of pathological internet use (PIU), this study examined the longitudinal impact of parenting styles on college students’ PIU and the roles played by rumination and environmental sensitivity. A total of 652 freshmen were tracked three times over one year by means of Parenting Style Questionnaire, the Pathological Internet Use Scale, the Rumination Thinking Scale and the High Sensitivity Personality Questionnaire. T1 positive parenting significantly negatively predicted T3 PIU, while T1 negative parenting significantly positively predicted T3 PIU; T2 rumination partially mediated the longitudinal relationship between T1 parenting styles and T3 PIU; environmental sensitivity plays a moderating role in both the direct pathway and the first half pathway of the mediating effect of parental rearing styles on pathological Internet use through rumination thinking, and the results of the moderating effect support the differential susceptibility model. We found that the indirect effect of parenting styles on PIU among college students through rumination was moderated by environmental sensitivity. Specifically, environmental sensitivity strengthened the pathway from parenting styles and rumination to PIU. Full article

Wood is a renewable and sustainable environmentally friendly building material. With proper design, it can help buildings achieve lower carbon emissions. However, since wood is a flammable material, its combustion performance in fires has attracted attention. In modern timber structures, glulam is a widely used engineered wood product. Thus, in this paper, glulam specimens made of four kinds of commonly used soft-wood species were used to compare their combustion performance, and the cone calorimeter method was employed. The indicators including time to ignition, heat release rate per unit area, total heat release per unit area, specific extinction area per unit mass, mass of residue, yield of CO and yield of CO₂ were evaluated and compared. The results showed that all the glulam specimens would experience cracking wood and adhesive layer. The time to ignition and peak mass loss rate of the four softwood species in the study was positively correlated with their density. Among these species, Spruce exhibited the highest peak heat release rate and the highest peak CO₂ yield but lowest smoke production, while Douglas fir had a relatively late CO production time and the lowest mass loss percentage, Larch had the lowest heat release rate and total heat release. This study provides fundamental data for the selection of wood structural materials and for future research on wood flame-retardant treatments. Full article

The intensifying global warming and the increasing frequency of extreme weather events have created an urgent need for targeted resilience building in mountainous villages. This study focuses on three typical villages in the Hengduan Mountains region. From the perspective of individual villagers, a disaster resilience evaluation index system was constructed, encompassing four dimensions: disaster prevention capacity, disaster resistance capacity, disaster relief capacity, and recovery capacity. Using the entropy method and a village disaster resilience assessment model, the disaster resilience levels of each village were quantitatively evaluated. The results indicate the following: (1) Disaster resistance capacity is the key factor constraining the disaster resilience level of mountain villages. (2) The overall disaster resilience of mountain villages is at a medium level, with minor differences among villages. (3) Significant disparities exist in capacity dimensions across villages: Qina Village demonstrates the strongest disaster resistance capacity, while Xiamachang Village excels in disaster prevention capacity but shows relative weakness in recovery capacity. (4) Household material endowment has a significant positive impact on disaster prevention, resistance, relief, and recovery capacities, while individual self-rescue capability and individual–government collaboration capacity also significantly enhance disaster prevention, resistance, and relief capacities. We propose the following: Leveraging the rural revitalization strategy as a pivotal point, this approach promotes the diversified development of the village economy. It facilitates the increase in villagers’ income through the implementation of employment skill training programs, thereby strengthening household material foundations to enhance individual disaster resilience. By relying on the mass monitoring and mass prevention mechanism and a disaster information sharing platform, real-time exchange of disaster situation information is achieved, which enhances communication and collaboration between villagers and the government, consequently improving the synergistic efficiency between individuals and governmental bodies. Simultaneously, a villager-centered disaster prevention system is constructed. Through measures such as disaster prevention publicity and practical disaster response drills, villagers’ awareness of disasters and their capabilities for self and mutual rescue are elevated, ultimately strengthening the overall disaster resilience of rural areas in the Hengduan Mountains region. Full article

This study explores the transformation of Beijing’s metropolitan commuting network resulting from the relief of the non-essential capital functions policy. The aim is to understand how this policy has contributed to the development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei urban agglomeration. Using China Unicom’s mobile signaling data from 2017 to 2021, we apply complex network analysis to quantify changes in commuting patterns from the perspectives of node importance, link strength, and community structure. The results indicate a shift from a monocentric to a polycentric network (e.g., in-degree centrality in areas outside Beijing increased by 49.5%; global network efficiency rose from 0.66 to 0.69), with peripheral employment centers gaining prominence while central districts lose their dominant position. However, administrative boundaries hinder full regional integration, as only select areas form interconnected clusters. These findings suggest that the policy supports optimized job-housing spatial structures, reduced urban congestion, and improved resource efficiency, contributing to sustainable urban development. The findings highlight the role of enhanced rail transit and governance in further strengthening connectivity and minimizing environmental impacts, while also providing empirical evidence for urban planning strategies aimed at fostering resource-efficient, low-waste metropolitan areas. Full article

This study investigates additive-free cold calendering of ELT-derived rubber powders across three particle size fractions (<0.5 mm, 0.5–0.71 mm, and 0.71–0.90 mm) using a two-roll mill without external heating or virgin polymers, aiming to obtain a cohesive material. Results demonstrate particle size effects on material properties. The finest fraction exhibited the highest crosslink density (5.30 × 10⁻⁴ mol·cm⁻³), approximately 18% greater than coarser fractions, correlating with superior hardness (≈65 ShA) and elastic modulus (≈7.5 MPa). Tensile properties ranged from 1.6–1.8 MPa stress and 60–75% elongation at break, positioning calendered sheets between low-temperature compression-molded GTR and high-pressure sintered materials reported in the literature. The cold calendering process achieves competitive mechanical performance with reduced energy consumption, simplified processing, and complete retention of recycled content. These findings support the development of regulation-compliant ELT recycling technologies, with potential applications in nonstructural construction panels, vibration-damping components, and protective barriers, advancing circular economy objectives while addressing emerging microplastic concerns. Full article

Background/Objectives: In this work, a series of six new indazole-benzimidazole hybrids (M1–M6) were designed, synthesized, and fully characterized. The design of these compounds was based on the combination of two pharmacophoric units, indazole and benzimidazole, both known for their broad spectrum of biological activities. Methods: The molecular hybridization strategy was planned to combine these scaffolds through an effective synthetic pathway, using 6-nitroindazole, two 2-mercaptobenzimidazoles, and 1,3- or 1,5-dihaloalkanes as key precursors, affording the desired hybrids in good yields and with enhanced biological activity. Quantum chemical calculations were performed to investigate the structural, electronic, and electrostatic properties of M1–M6 molecules using Density Functional Theory (DFT) at the B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) level. The antimicrobial activity efficacy of these compounds was assessed in vitro against four Gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis, Bacillus cereus, and Lactobacillus plantarum), four Gram-negative bacteria (Salmonella enteritidis, Escherichia coli, Campylobacter coli, Campylobacter jejuni), and four fungal strains (Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Candida albicans, Candida tropicalis, and Candida glabrata) using ampicillin and tetracycline as reference standard drugs. Results: Among the series, compound M6 exhibited remarkable antimicrobial activity, with minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of 1.95 µg/mL against S. cerevisiae and C. tropicalis, and 3.90 µg/mL against S. aureus, B. cereus, and S. enteritidis, while the standards Ampicillin (AmB) (MIC ≥ 15.62 µg/mL) and Tetracycline (TET) (MIC ≥ 7.81 µg/mL) exhibited higher MIC values. To gain molecular insights into the compounds, an in silico docking study was performed to determine the interactions of M1–M6 ligands against the antimicrobial target beta-ketoacyl-acyl carrier protein (ACP) synthase III complexed with malonyl-COA (PDB ID: 1HNJ). Molecular modeling data provided valuable information on the structure-activity relationship (SAR) and the binding modes influencing the candidate ligand-protein recognition. Amino acid residues, such as Arg249, located in the solvent-exposed region, were essential for hydrogen bonding with the nitro group of the 6-nitroindazole moiety. Furthermore, polar side chains such as Asn274, Asn247, and His244 participated in interactions mediated by hydrogen bonding with the 5-nitrobenzimidazole moiety of these compound series. Conclusions: The hybridization of indazole and benzimidazole scaffolds produced compounds with promising antimicrobial activity, particularly M6, which demonstrated superior potency compared to standard antibiotics. Computational and docking analyses provided insights into the structure–activity relationships, highlighting these hybrids as potential candidates for antimicrobial drug development. Full article

Background: Germline genetic variants impacting splicing are a frequent cause of disease. The clinical interpretation of such variants is challenging for many reasons including the immense complexity of splicing mechanisms. While recent advances in splicing algorithms have improved the accuracy of splice prediction, predicting the nature and abundance of aberrant splicing remains challenging. As RNA testing becomes more mainstream in the clinical diagnostic setting, the complexities of interpretation are coming to light. Methods: Data from patients undergoing concurrent DNA and RNA testing were retrospectively reviewed for unusual splicing impacts to underscore some of these complexities and serve as exemplars in how to avoid pitfalls in the interpretation of sequence variants. Results: Seven rare variants with unusual splicing impacts are presented: a variant at a consensus donor nucleotide position lacking a splice impact (NF1 c.888+2T>C); a mid-exonic missense variant creating a novel donor site and a cryptic acceptor site resulting in pseudo-intronization (BRIP1 c.727A<G p.Ile243Val); one variant creating a spliceosome switch from U12 to U2 (LZTR1 c.2232G>A p.Ala744Ala); two variants that would be expected to result in nonsense-mediated-mRNA-decay triggering splicing impacts that obviated nonsense-mediated-decay (APC c.1042C>T p.Arg348Ter and BRCA2 c.6762del; c.6816_6841+1534del); and two variants causing splicing impacts through pyrimidine tract optimization (NF1 c.5750-184_5750-178dup and ATM c.3480G>T p.Val1160Val). Conclusions: Paired DNA and RNA testing revealed unexpected splice events altering variant interpretation, expanding our knowledge of clinically important splicing mechanisms and highlighting the benefit of RNA testing. Full article

Building cycling-friendly street environments is crucial for promoting sustainable urban mobility. However, existing studies exploring the influence of the built environment on cycling have paid limited attention to the three-dimensional characteristics of street landscapes and have mostly relied on linear assumptions. To address these gaps, this study employs street view imagery and interpretable machine learning methods to investigate the nonlinear and interaction effects of street landscape elements on residents’ cycling preferences in Xiamen Island, China. The results reveal that the visual indices of buildings, sky, vegetation, and roads are the most influential variables affecting cycling preferences. These factors exhibit pronounced nonlinear relationships with cycling preference. For instance, buildings exhibit a threshold effect, with positive influences on cycling preference when the building index is below 0.12 and negative effects when it exceeds 0.12. A low sky index significantly suppresses cycling preference, whereas higher values offer only limited additional benefits, with an optimal range of 0.1–0.25. Vegetation contributes positively only at relatively high levels, suggesting that its index should ideally exceed 0.3. The road index shows a V-shaped relationship: values between 0.15 and 0.25 reduce cycling preference, whereas values below 0.15 or above 0.25 enhance it. Moreover, clear interaction effects among these variables are observed, suggesting that the combined visual composition of the streetscape plays an important role in shaping cycling preferences. These findings deepen the understanding of how street landscape characteristics influence cycling behavior and provide nuanced, practical insights for designing cycling-friendly streets and promoting sustainable travel in urban environments. Full article