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ABSTRACTUrban space is often the cause of disputes. The underlying causes of these disputes are conflicting interests, attitudes and needs regarding the way it is used. Among the various functions performed by cities, tourism activities have been distinguished as the foremost in the cities of historical value. Mass tourism has developed in the last decade and its excessive flow of tourists has in turn led to overtourism which as described in literature is a negative phenomenon. The causes of conflicts related to the development of tourism and their scale are very diverse. The freezing of the tourism economy during the COVID-19 pandemic created an opportunity to balance its development in the future. As described in the article, this research aims at identifying the attitudes and expectations of Krakow's residence towards the tools of balancing the tourism economy in the post pandemic period. The statistical analysis of the acquired data collected through questionnaires from 386 respondents during July 2020 revealed that most of the respondents support the preservation of cultural heritage and landscapes over business and profit making.

In this paper, a matter of biomass torrefaction and gasification is closely looked at from different points of view during low load and low equivalence ratio regime, defined as λ=0.08. Considering gas production, the hot gas efficiency of conversion (30%) and its energy content (4.14 MJ m−3) were not quite satisfying, however, this matter of fact was compensated by an interesting yield of biochar. This material was generated in 0.387 and 0.314 rates for torrefaction and torrefaction + gasification processes, respectively, which, in both cases, represents an attractive, alternative approach to the functional energy storage. It was determined that a CO2offset of 721 kg and 660 kg could be achieved per 1 tonne of woodchips for gasification of raw woodchips and a 2-stage process with torrefaction and gasification, respectively. The measured data from both technological complexes were compared with the computational model, applying equilibrium reactions for gas components determination. In addition, the question of tar compounds contained within the producer gas, is investigated through GC–MS analysis on both qualitative and quantitative basis.

The relevanceof the research lies in the development of the current question about the influence of microclimate quality on the efficiency of residential units. The aimof the study is to examine how the microclimate parameters affect the efficiency of residential buildings. Findings.The results obtained are essential for the design of energy-efficient and comfortable residential buildings. The scientific novelty and practical importance of research resides in the thorough study of microclimate in low-rise residential buildings. Microclimate deviation charts for residential buildings have been produced.

This article analyzes the operating modes of the energy storage. The aim was to conduct laboratory tests in conditions similar to real energy storage and to analyze its basic electrical parameters. A special measuring system has been created for laboratory testing. Real tests took place in the traction substation in Mińsk Mazowiecki, where the energy storage was included in the traction substation system. Based on the laboratory tests carried out and in real conditions it was found that the use of energy storage in the electric traction supply system is justified. It is adapted to work as a device supporting the operation of the traction substation and the section cabin.

Cross-flow microfiltration of fast pyrolysis bio-oil is a physical treatment pathway capable of reducing the filtered product’s solids content to acceptable levels for fuel utilization and/or upgrading. However, the overall throughput of the process is hindered by the fouling that occurs on and/or within the filtration media over short operating periods. To improve the throughput from fast pyrolysis bio-oil cross-flow microfiltration, the use of off-line and on-line cleaning techniques were experimentally evaluated. On-line cleaning strategies using permeate, solvent, and compressed air confirmed the reversibility of the accumulated fouling layer over a small (<10) number of cleaning cycles. The use of compressed air as a simple on-line cleaning strategy was further examined over extended operating times, including a total of 31 consecutive backflushing cycles. Compared to the reference case (no cleaning), on-line compressed air backflushing increased the overall throughput of low solids permeates by more than 100%. Ultimately, the demonstration of an on-line fouling remediation strategy for fast pyrolysis bio-oil cross-flow microfiltration increases the likelihood that it could be a viable treatment pathway for suspended solids and/or ash removal in pyrolysis liquids before end-use and/or upgrading of the biofuel.

ABSTRACTThis article explores how a second-order minority, northern Iraq’s Christians, mobilized to protect homelands during state breakdown and state recalibration. It examines how an Iraqi Christian political party, the Assyrian Democratic Movement (ADM), responded to the rise and spread of the Islamic State. More specifically, it analyzes the ADM’s creation of a self-defense force, the Nineveh Plains Protection Units (NPU), and how the party positioned itself for the post-conflict state. Ethnographic fieldwork conducted in Iraq combined with existing primary and secondary sources reveals a detailed process whereby notions of historic homelands were manipulated around security threats and a legacy of distrust of both the central government and Kurdistan Regional Government to drive mobilization. The name “Nineveh Plains Protection Units” also served a strategic purpose. A territorial-based identity connected contemporary Christians to an ancient Mesopotamian past. Combined with a shared Christian faith, this served to supersede intragroup/sectarian cleavages and “the ethnic Assyrian debate” without rejecting them. It also acted as a bridge to the country’s other ethno-sectarian groups, finding a way to assert Assyrian and Christian belonging within and to Iraq. Nevertheless, mobilization and the long-term goal of self-determination in the Nineveh Plain were both ultimately contingent upon allying with either Baghdad or Erbil. Although the ADM chose Baghdad, it was left alone to navigate the Nineveh Plain’s position within the Kurdistan independence referendum.

Retinal diseases constitute a genetically and phenotypically diverse group of clinical conditions leading to vision impairment or blindness with limited treatment options. Advances in reprogramming of somatic cells to induced pluripotent stem cells and generation of three‐dimensional organoids resembling the native retina offer promising tools to interrogate disease mechanisms and evaluate potential therapies for currently incurable retinal neurodegeneration. Next‐generation sequencing, single‐cell analysis, advanced electrophysiology, and high‐throughput screening approaches are expected to greatly expand the utility of stem cell‐derived retinal cells and organoids for developing personalized treatments. In this review, we discuss the current status and future potential of combining retinal organoids as human models with recent technologies to advance the development of gene, cell, and drug therapies for retinopathies. Retinal organoids offer a unique human model system to study mechanisms of disease pathogenesis and for developing therapies.

The presence of suspended char particulate and ash in fast pyrolysis bio-oil produced from the fast pyrolysis of high ash forestry materials poses a significant technical challenge for the direct utilization and/or catalytic upgrading of these low-carbon renewable fuels. Cross-flow microfiltration is a physical upgrading process strategy that can remove suspended solids and ash from the fast pyrolysis bio-oil. To develop data sets on operational characteristics of fast pyrolysis bio-oil cross-flow microfiltration, experimental research was undertaken. Using a variety of filtration media with nominal pore sizes between 1 and 40 μm, typical solids and ash rejection ranged from 80 to 95% and 4–45%, respectively. An empirical modeling procedure was developed to predict the throughput and resistance associated with cross-flow microfiltration of fast pyrolysis bio-oil, which demonstrated good agreement with generated experimental data. Key operating parameters were also studied, and it was found that transmembrane pressures less than 1 bar and fluid preheat temperatures up to 60 °C were ideal for maximizing the pseudo steady-state flux of the process. Furthermore, the use of low viscosity, miscible solvents, and/or initial solids reduction pathways prior to microfiltration offered additional routes to potentially improve the throughput of such a process.

Retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) differentiated from human induced pluripotent stem cells, called induced retinal pigment epithelium (iRPE), is being explored as a cell-based therapy for the treatment of retinal degenerative diseases, especially age-related macular degeneration. The success of RPE implantation is linked to the use of biomimetic scaffolds that simulate Bruch's membrane and promote RPE maturation and integration as a functional tissue. Due to difficulties associated with animal protein-derived scaffolds, including sterility and pro-inflammatory responses, current practices favor the use of synthetic polymers, such as polycaprolactone (PCL), for generating nanofibrous scaffolds. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that plant protein-derived fibrous scaffolds can provide favorable conditions permissive for the maturation of RPE tissue sheets in vitro. Our natural, soy protein-derived nanofibrous scaffolds exhibited a J-shaped stress–strain curve that more closely resembled the mechanical properties of native tissues than PCL with significantly higher hydrophilicity of the natural scaffolds, favoring in vivoimplantation. We then demonstrate that iRPE sheets growing on these soy protein scaffolds are equivalent to iRPE monolayers cultured on synthetic PCL nanofibrous scaffolds. Immunohistochemistry demonstrated RPE-like morphology and functionality with appropriate localization of RPE markers RPE65, PMEL17, Ezrin, and ZO1 and with anticipated histotypic polarization of vascular endothelial growth factor and pigment epithelium-derived growth factor as indicated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Scanning electron microscopy revealed dense microvilli on the cell surface and homogeneous tight junctional contacts between the cells. Finally, comparative transcriptome analysis in conjunction with principal component analysis demonstrated that iRPE on nanofibrous scaffolds, either natural or synthetic, matured more consistently than on nonfibrous substrates. Taken together, our studies suggest that the maturation of cultured iRPE sheets for subsequent clinical applications might benefit from the use of nanofibrous scaffolds generated from natural proteins.Impact statementInduced retinal pigment epithelium (iRPE) from patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) may yield powerful treatments of retinal diseases, including age-related macular degeneration. Recent studies, including early human clinical trials, demonstrate the importance of selecting appropriate biomaterial scaffolds to support tissue-engineered iRPE sheets during implantation. Electrospun scaffolds show particular promise due to their similarity to the structure of the native Bruch's membrane. In this study, we describe the use of electroprocessed nanofibrous soy protein scaffolds to generate polarized sheets of human iPSC-derived iRPE sheets. Our evaluation, including RNA-seq transcriptomics, indicates that these scaffolds are viable alternatives to scaffolds electrospun from synthetic polymers.

Li+is a biologically active and medically important cation. Experiments show that Li+modulates some phospholipid bilayer properties in a manner similar to divalent cations, rather than other monovalent cations. We previously performed a comparative simulation study of the interaction of several monovalent cations with palmitoyl-oleoyl-phosphatidylcholine bilayers and reported that Li+exhibited the highest association with lipids and formed a unique tetrahedral coordinated structure with lipid head groups. Here we extend these studies to two biologically important divalent cations, Mg2+and Ca2+, and observe that, just like monovalent cations, Mg2+and Ca2+reduce bilayer areas and increase chain order. Bilayer area changes induced by cations are strongly correlated with the amount of charge inside the headgroup region; however, Mg2+and Li+are clear outliers. At the same time though, Mg2+adsorption in the bilayer is the smallest among all cations, which is in contrast to Li+that binds strongly to lipids. In fact, in contrast to all other cations, Mg2+remains fully hydrated in the lipid headgroup region. However, Li+and Mg2+share high overlap between their inner-shell coordination topologies. This suggests that Li+can structurally replace Mg2+, which is bound to other biomolecules with up to fourfold coordination, provided such replacement is energetically feasible. We compute structural topologies and compare them quantitatively using a new weighted-graphs-based method. Finally, we find that the specificity of cation interaction with lipid head groups exhibit consistent trend with the solvation shell energetics of ions in lipid headgroup and bulk water regions.

It is important for medical providers to distinguish between accidental and abusive mechanisms of injury in children. In the absence of a serious trauma, an isolated tongue laceration and oromaxillofacial trauma in a young, edentulous infant raises significant concern for abuse. The presented case demonstrates a unique injury pattern and serves as an opportunity to explore the multidisciplinary approach to infant trauma in Otolaryngology. Presented is an edentulous infant who sustained a deep splitting laceration of the oral tongue as a result of being dropped a short distance onto carpeted floor. This injury pattern, in the absence of other trauma, raised concern for abuse. Hospital social work and Child Abuse Pediatrics further investigated the matter. A surveillance camera video was produced which demonstrated the blunt force of the fall, coupled with the friction sliding on the floor, ripped open the infant's tongue and left a pattern otherwise suspicious for sharp object laceration. To our knowledge, this is the first report describing a full-thickness tongue laceration after a fall from a caregiver’s arms onto carpeted ground. This case underscores the responsibility of the astute provider coupled with a multidisciplinary team to identify or rule out potential child abuse.

Recent advances in the physical vapor deposition (PVD) of protective fluoride films have raised the far-ultraviolet (FUV: 912–1600 Å) reflectivity of aluminum-based mirrors closer to the theoretical limit. The greatest gains, at more than 20%, have come for lithium fluoride-protected aluminum, which has the shortest wavelength cutoff of any conventional overcoat. Despite the success of the NASA FUSE mission, the use of lithium fluoride (LiF)-based optics is rare, as LiF is hygroscopic and requires handling procedures that can drive risk. With NASA now studying two large mission concepts for astronomy, Large UV-Optical-IR Surveyor (LUVOIR) and the Habitable Exoplanet Imaging Mission (HabEx), which mandate throughput down to 1000 Å, the development of LiF-based coatings becomes crucial. This paper discusses steps that are being taken to qualify these new enhanced LiF-protected aluminum (eLiF) mirror coatings for flight. In addition to quantifying the hygroscopic degradation, we have developed a new method of protecting eLiF with an ultrathin (10–20 Å) capping layer of a nonhygroscopic material to increase durability. We report on the performance of eLiF-based optics and assess the steps that need to be taken to qualify such coatings for LUVOIR, HabEx, and other FUV-sensitive space missions.

In recent years, light-emitting diodes (LEDs) have been introduced as a new source of supplemental lighting in winter greenhouse crop production to improve yield and quality. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of light supplementation with LEDs on the yield and the concentration of several health-promoting compounds in two cultivars of lamb’s lettuce (Valerianella locusta, L.), ‘Noordhollandse’ and ‘Holländisher’ in a greenhouse cultivation in winter. Four different LED spectra used to extend the photoperiod (16 h day/8 h night) were tested: 10R:0B (100% red), 9R:1B (90% red, 10% blue), 8R:2B (80% red, 20% blue), and 7R:3B (70% red, 30% blue). The control plants were illuminated by high-pressure sodium (HPS) lamps. The photosynthetic photon flux density at the plant canopy level was approximately 200 μmol·m -2·s -1in all treatments. The plants were harvested on the 45 thday of light treatment (60 days after sowing). In both cultivars, the 10R:0B LED light treatment resulted in the highest yield, but low concentrations of ascorbic acid, xantophylls, and phenolic compounds. Supplemental lighting with HPS lamps resulted in high concentrations of nitrate and carotenoids, but low fresh mass, ascorbic acid, and total phenols content. The addition of blue light in the spectrum increased antioxidant properties; however, certain effects were cultivar-dependent. High yields with the most satisfactory composition of soluble sugars, ascorbic acid, carotenoids, and polyphenols, as well as high antioxidant properties and reduced nitrate levels, in the leaves of the tested cultivars were obtained with 8R:2B LED lighting. Thus, supplemental lighting with 80% red and 20% blue light may be advantageous in greenhouse-cultivated V. locusta‘Noordhollandse’ and ‘Holländisher’ cultivars.

The theory of cyclostationarity provides many valuable tools for fault detection in rotating machines. Cyclostationarity indicators and bi-frequency maps help to quantify fault-related modulations of vibration signals. High quality and robustness of these tools are achieved at a relatively high computational cost. Thus, industrial application of cyclostationarity is limited to off-line analysis in the post-processing stage. In this paper an on-line updating of cyclostationary tools is investigated alternatively to the moving block approach. As an exemplary cyclostationary tool the cyclic modulation spectrum is involved. The filter bank approach is proposed in order to carry out the sample-by-sample updating. We compare properties of the newly proposed method with the one based on sliding discrete Fourier transform.

A series of thermovision images of a test plate were analyzed in this work. The imaged object was an aluminum plate with glued metallic and non-metallic samples. The back surface of the plate was heated by an electrical heater. In our experiment periodical heating was applied at 10 mHz, 20 mHz, 30 mHz and 50 mHz and series of images were registered using thermaCAMTMSC 2000 IR infrared camera. Obtained time series were then analyzed using fast Fourier transform (FFT) algorithm and were converted into amplitude and phase images. Differences between images in time and frequency domains were discussed. Possibility of obtaining quantitative information about the sample from frequency analysis was also considered.

Collaborative efforts by school counselors and school administrators that are grounded in social capital principles have the potential to better support students’ educational success, health, and well-being in the wake of challenging and adverse events, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this study was to assess perceptions of school counselors and administrators to determine the extent to which they had a shared vision of the challenges and strengths in their school’s initial response to the pandemic. We also explored their sense of the anticipated future needs within the context of social capital theory and trauma-informed practices. Participants included 381 current pre-K–12 school administrators and school counselors throughout the United States who completed a mixed-methods survey in spring 2020. Use of these findings can help school stakeholders continue to foster students’ social/emotional, academic, and career and college readiness development during continued and future mass trauma events.

Referring to Gutenberg there are three elementary production factors: material, equipment and human workforce. They all have a significant influence on the product quality. Nevertheless, in machining research they have been given differing attention, depending on the focused scope. This paper presents the results of an empirical study of the human error probability (HEP) in a Cellular Manufacturing environment. First, it is shown that the influence of human work on the resulting product quality in machining so far has only been given little attention. Therefore a content analysis according to Mayringhas been conducted on publications in the domains of production technology and ergonomics. Second, various schemes for the classification of human errors are presented and evaluated in terms of their applicability to human tasks in machining. Finally the design and results of an empirical study which has been conducted at the Cellular Manufacturing reference line, consisting of two lathes and four milling machines, in the Center for industrial Productivity (CiP) at TU Darmstadt are presented. Overall 2700 human-machine interactions have been observed and evaluated in terms of their influence on product quality. Results show that there is a significant influence of the human worker as three percent of these interactions incorporated a spurious action.