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The surfaces of poly(l-lactic acid) (PLLA) and poly(hydroxybutyrate-co-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV) were modified by oxygen and nitrogen plasma treatments. The physical and chemical surface characteristics were evaluated by contact angle tests, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The plasma treatments caused an increase in both
The results of the investigation of radiation hazard of forest fires in the radioactive contaminated areas in the article are presented. The activity concentration of long-lived radionuclides in forest fuel materials is shown. Airborne concentration of 137Cs produced by the combustion of forest fuel materials with different contamination density can exceed the permissible activity levels of 137Cs
Sustainability of future aviation platforms is heavily dependent on the lower emission capabilities of aeroengines which can be addressed by means of utilizing jet fuels of biological origin. Thus, an extensive experimental and numerical investigation campaign utilizing the Triple Annular Research Swirler (TARS) burner is started to understand the thermochemical properties and combustion character
The avoidance of financial gain in the human body is an international ethical standard that underpins efforts to promote equity in donation and transplantation and to avoid the exploitation of vulnerable populations. The avoidance of financial loss due to donation of organs, tissues, and cells is also now recognized as an ethical imperative that fosters equity in donation and transplantation and s
In this work, we consider the problem of localizing multiple signal sources based on time-difference of arrival (TDOA) measurements. In the blind setting, in which the source signals are not known, the localization task is challenging due to the data association problem. That is, it is not known which of the TDOA measurements correspond to the same source. Herein, we propose to perform joint local
Background Urine cadmium (Cd) and renal function biomarkers, mostly analysed in urine spot samples, are well established biomarkers of occupational exposure. Their use and associations at low environmental level are common, but have recently been questioned, particularly in terms of physiological variability and normalisation bias in the case of urine spot samples. Aim To determine the appropriate
Risk management has reduced vulnerability to floods and droughts globally1,2, yet their impacts are still increasing3. An improved understanding of the causes of changing impacts is therefore needed, but has been hampered by a lack of empirical data4,5. On the basis of a global dataset of 45 pairs of events that occurred within the same area, we show that risk management generally reduces the impa
The aim of this chapter is twofold. First, it deliberates the insufficiency of the ethnically loaded hyphenated identity of ‘Euro-Turks’ in defining the diverse diasporic community of Turkey’s citizens and/or their descendants in Europe. Second, it lays out the advantages and disadvantages of using the Türkiyeli concept as an alternative to the hyphenated identity Euro-Turks, which allows peoples
Multigene assays for molecular subtypes and biomarkers can aid management of early invasive breast cancer. Using RNA-sequencing we aimed to develop single-sample predictor (SSP) models for clinical markers, subtypes, and risk of recurrence (ROR). A cohort of 7743 patients was divided into training and test set. We trained SSPs for subtypes and ROR assigned by nearest-centroid (NC) methods and SSPs
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are important in plant nutrient uptake, but their function is prone to environmental constraints including soil factors that may suppress AMF transfer of phosphorus (P) from the soil to the plant. The objective of this study was to disentangle the biotic and abiotic components of AMF-suppressive soils. Suppression was measured in terms of AMF-mediated plant uptak
As a state where the ruling communist party operates in a central planning mode, the policies of the ruling party and central government exert a great influence on national affairs with a long historical tradition in China, which can be even more obviously illustrated in the issues of climate change. But on the other hand, there is still no specific national climate legislation in China, which is
The interactions between oppositely charged multi-indented lock- and spherical key-particles are investigated by means of Monte Carlo simulations at low volume fractions. The specificity of the interactions is initially investigated in an excess of either lock- or key-particles, and we find ordered clusters with highly directional bonds. This suggests electrostatics alone to be capable of inducing
This thesis presents a set of microfluidic tools and experimental studies for preparing (> 20 kbp) for genetic analysisas well as the transport of high-concentration, long-DNA solutions in pillar arrays.Long-DNA sample preparation with conventional gel-based techniques is slow (tens of hours to days) and laborious. Ifsize-selective separation is to be achieved, it is also expensive. Long-DNA prepa
Extracting speaker-dependent paralinguistic information out of a person's voice, provides an opportunity for adaptive behaviour related to speaker information in speech processing applications. For instance, in audio-based conversational applications, adapting responses to the attributes of the correspondent is an integral part in making the conversations effective. Two speaker attributes that hum
Who are the guardians of separatism in Abkhazia and South Ossetia? These de facto states can be seen as self-determination movements or as outgrowths of Russian imperialism. We arbitrate between these competing scripts using a dataset that profiles officials in charge of high politics decision-making inside Georgia’s separatist entities from 1992 through 2020 (N=608). We find that most are sons of
