A stepped reflective cup is designed to improve the industry situation that it is difficult to have both lighting angle and lighting uniformity of miner’s lamp. The luminous characteristics of LED ...light source and the lighting requirements of underground working conditions of coal mine are considered in the design. The simulation is carried out with TracePro. The simulation results show that after the secondary light distribution through the reflective cup, the light source energy is redistributed, and the far central range, wide illumination range and the uniformity of main illumination areas can be obtained at the same time. The idea of applying image recognition technology to analyze lighting uniformity is proposed for the first time, and the designed reflective cup is verified by compiling relevant programs in MATLAB. The results show that the lighting uniformity of miner’s lamp using stepped reflective cup can reach 82.17%, which is about 10 percentage points higher than that of common deep light cup and
Epidermal sensing devices offer great potential for real‐time health and fitness monitoring via continuous characterization of the skin for vital morphological, physiological, and metabolic ...parameters. However, peeling them off can be difficult and sometimes painful especially when these skin‐mounted devices are applied on sensitive or wounded regions of skin due to their strong adhesion. A set of biocompatible and water‐decomposable “skin‐friendly” epidermal electronic devices fabricated on flexible, stretchable, and degradable protein‐based substrates are reported. Strong adhesion and easy detachment are achieved concurrently through an environmentally benign, plasticized protein platform offering engineered mechanical properties and water‐triggered, on‐demand decomposition lifetime (transiency). Human experiments show that multidimensional physiological signals can be measured using these innovative epidermal devices consisting of electro‐ and biochemical sensing modules and analyzed for important physiological signatures using an artificial neural network. The advances provide unique, versatile capabilities and broader applications for user‐ and environmentally friendly epidermal devices.
A set of degradable epidermal electronics consisting of both physical and biochemical sensors is presented as skin‐friendly electronics. Featuring stable operation and on‐demand decomposition, strong adhesion and easy detachment are achieved concurrently through a genetically engineered plasticized copolymer. Human experiments show that multidimensional physiological signals can be measured using these devices and analyzed for important states using a machine learning algorithm.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
•A green space optimization model is developed to evaluate the daytime and nighttime cooling trade-offs.•Optimally adding 1% of new green space will lead to 1–2°C surface temperature reduction.•A ...dispersed pattern of green space leads to greater regional cooling than a clustered pattern.
The urban heat island effect is especially significant in semi-arid climates, generating a myriad of problems for large urban areas. Green space can mitigate warming, providing cooling benefits important to reducing energy consumption and improving human health. The arrangement of green space to reap the full potential of cooling benefits is a challenge, especially considering the diurnal variations of urban heat island effects. Surprisingly, methods that support the strategic placement of green space in the context of urban heat island are lacking. Integrating geographic information systems, remote sensing, spatial statistics and spatial optimization, we developed a framework to identify the best locations and configuration of new green space with respect to cooling benefits. The developed multi-objective model is applied to evaluate the diurnal cooling trade-offs in Phoenix, Arizona. As a result of optimal green space placement, significant cooling potentials can be achieved. A reduction of land surface temperature of approximately 1–2°C locally and 0.5°C regionally can be achieved by the addition of new green space. 96% of potential day and night cooling benefits can be achieved through simultaneous consideration. The results also demonstrate that clustered green space enhances local cooling because of the agglomeration effect; whereas, dispersed patterns lead to greater overall regional cooling. The optimization based framework can effectively inform planning decisions with regard to green space allocation to best ameliorate excessive heat.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPUK, ZRSKP
Skin vision can be found in many invertebrates, such as earthworms, jellyfish, and octopuses using light‐sensitive rod cells in the skin. It enables optical perception and colorimetric responses, ...providing intriguing capabilities that human skin does not have. A bioinspired wireless, battery‐free, artificial skin vision (ASV) device consisting of flexible optical and optoelectronic components which essentially mimic the hierarchical structures and biological functions of rod cells in a skin‐like configuration for light sensing and signal processing is developed. The ASV device can collect sweat with integrated microfluidic channels and allow real‐time measurement of on‐skin fluids by monitoring the intrinsic optical properties via a customizable microprism light filter. The device also shows sensitive colorimetric responses to input stimulus at chosen detection wavelengths and demonstrates a capacity for in situ quantitative analysis of biomarkers in sweat through alternative colorimetric light filters. Multiple ASVs together create a body area network with a collection of wireless sensors that can work in parallel to acquire multidimensional human physiological signals and predict fitness variations using a specified deep learning neural network. The system has potential applications in biomimetic engineering, physiological monitoring, and intelligent personalized diagnostics.
Skin vision can be found in many invertebrates, providing intriguing capabilities that human skin does not have. A bioinspired wireless, battery‐free, artificial skin vision device that essentially mimics the hierarchical structures and biological functions of rod cells in a skin‐like configuration to acquire human physiological signals and predict fitness variations using a specified deep learning neural network is developed.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Salient segmentation aims to segment out attention-grabbing regions, a critical yet challenging task and the foundation of many high-level computer vision applications. It requires semantic-aware ...grouping of pixels into salient regions and benefits from the utilization of global multi-scale contexts to achieve good local reasoning. Previous works often address it as two-class segmentation problems utilizing complicated multi-step procedures, including refinement networks and complex graphical models. We argue that semantic salient segmentation can instead be effectively resolved by reformulating it as a simple yet intuitive pixel-pair-based connectivity prediction task. Following the intuition that salient objects can be naturally grouped via semantic-aware connectivity between neighboring pixels, we propose a pure Connectivity Net (ConnNet). ConnNet predicts the connectivity probabilities of each pixel with its neighboring pixels by leveraging multi-level cascade contexts embedded in the image and long-range pixel relations. We investigate our approach on two tasks, namely, salient object segmentation and salient instance-level segmentation, and illustrate that consistent improvements can be obtained by modeling these tasks as connectivity instead of binary segmentation tasks for a variety of network architectures. We achieve the state-of-the-art performance, outperforming or being comparable to existing approaches while reducing inference time due to our less complex approach.
Domestic chickens (Gallus gallus) are among those species subject to intensive selection for production. Among the most widely used broiler strains are the Ross308 and the Hybro. From the perspective ...of animal production, Ross308 were superior to Hybro in weight gain, final body mass, and feed conversion. Intensive selection is thought to also cause behavioral changes and to negatively affect cognitive abilities. Up to date, though, no evidence has been provided on broiler breeds. The aim of this study was to explore cognitive differences among Hybro and Ross308 chickens by assessing their ordinal-numerical abilities.
Chicks learned learnt to find a food reward in the 4th container in a series of 10 identical and sagittally aligned containers. We designed a standard training procedure ensuring that all chicks received the same amount of training. The chicks underwent 2 tests: a sagittal and a fronto-parallel one. In the former test, the series was identical to that experienced during training. In the fronto-parallel test, the series was rotated by 90°, thus left-to-right oriented, to assess the capability of transferring the learnt rule with a novel spatial orientation.
In the sagittal test, both chicken hybrids selected the 4th item above chance; interestingly the Hybro outperformed the Ross308 chicks. In the fronto-parallel test, both strains selected the 4th left and the 4th right container above chance; nevertheless, the Hybro chicks were more accurate.
Our results support the hypothesis that intense selection for production can influence animal cognition and behavior, with implications on animal husbandry and welfare.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Object recognition is among the basic survival skills of human beings and other animals. To date, artificial intelligence (AI) assisted high-performance object recognition is primarily visual-based, ...empowered by the rapid development of sensing and computational capabilities. Here, we report a tactile-olfactory sensing array, which was inspired by the natural sense-fusion system of star-nose mole, and can permit real-time acquisition of the local topography, stiffness, and odor of a variety of objects without visual input. The tactile-olfactory information is processed by a bioinspired olfactory-tactile associated machine-learning algorithm, essentially mimicking the biological fusion procedures in the neural system of the star-nose mole. Aiming to achieve human identification during rescue missions in challenging environments such as dark or buried scenarios, our tactile-olfactory intelligent sensing system could classify 11 typical objects with an accuracy of 96.9% in a simulated rescue scenario at a fire department test site. The tactile-olfactory bionic sensing system required no visual input and showed superior tolerance to environmental interference, highlighting its great potential for robust object recognition in difficult environments where other methods fall short.
The thermal degradation behavior and kinetics of spruce glucomannan (SGM) and its methylated derivatives were investigated using thermogravimetric analysis to characterize its temperature-dependent ...changes for use in specific applications. The results were compared with those obtained for commercial konjac glucomannan (KGM). The SGM and the KGM exhibited two overlapping peaks from 200 to 375°C, which correspond to the intensive devolatilization of more than 59% of the total weight. Differences in the pyrolysis-product distributions and thermal stabilities appeared as a result of the different chemical compositions and molecular weights of the two GMs. The Friedman and Flynn-Wall-Ozawa isoconversional methods and the Coats-Redfern were adopted to determine the kinetic triplet of the intensive devolatilization region. Both GMs can be modeled using a complex mechanism that involves both a Dn-type and an Fn-type reaction. The comparative study of partially methylated GM indicated higher homogeneity and thermal resistance for the material with the higher degree of substitution.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPUK
An association of various blood types and the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has been found in a number of publications. The aim of this literature review is to summarize key findings ...related to ABO blood types and COVID-19 infection rate, symptom presentation, and outcome. Summarized findings include associations between ABO blood type and higher infection susceptibility, intubation duration, and severe outcomes, including death. The literature suggests that blood type O may serve as a protective factor, as individuals with blood type O are found COVID-19 positive at far lower rates. This could suggest that blood type O individuals are less susceptible to infection, or that they are asymptomatic at higher rates and therefore do not seek out testing. We also discuss genetic associations and potential molecular mechanisms that drive the relationship between blood type and COVID-19. Studies have found a strong association between a locus on a specific gene cluster on chromosome three (chr3p21.31) and outcome severity, such as respiratory failure. Cellular models have suggested an explanation for blood type modulation of infection, evidencing that spike protein/Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2)-dependent adhesion to ACE2-expressing cell lines was specifically inhibited by monoclonal or natural human anti-A antibodies, so individuals with non-A blood types, specifically O, or B blood types, which produce anti-A antibodies, may be less susceptible to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection due to the inhibitory effects of anti-A antibodies.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
Cities worldwide are piloting the use of solar reflective coatings on roads to mitigate the Urban Heat Island (UHI). Solar reflective pavement has been praised as simple, low-cost solution with a ...demonstrated ability to reduce surface temperature. Less well understood is the effect of solar reflective coatings on radiant heat, which influences human thermal exposure and comfort. We present the first biometeorological observations of solar reflective coating to investigate its thermal performance from a pedestrian perspective. Hourly transects were conducted in two Los Angeles neighborhoods with MaRTy, a mobile platform that measures air, surface, and mean radiant temperature. Transects were performed on July 30, 2019, a typical summer day with low wind speeds and maximum air temperature of 31 °C. The surface temperature of coated asphalt concrete was 4 °C to 6 °C lower than that of regular asphalt concrete, but coated surfaces reflected 118 Wm−2 more shortwave radiation on average and up to 168 Wm−2 more at noon. In the evening, MaRTy observed 20 to 30 Wm−2 of added reflected shortwave radiation on sidewalks next to the reflective pavement. Mean radiant temperature over reflective pavement was 4 °C higher during midday. Although air temperature was reduced by 0.5 °C in the afternoon, after-sunset cooling was negligible. Findings illustrate the benefits and disadvantages of reflective pavement with respect to various thermal performance metrics. Cities should weigh the tradeoffs of UHI mitigation, thermal exposure, implementation and maintenance costs, lifecycle, and other competing priorities in the context of space use.
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