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A celebrated theorem of Pippenger, and Frankl and Rödl states that every almost‐regular, uniform hypergraph H$\mathcal {H}$ with small maximum codegree has an almost‐perfect matching. We extend this result by obtaining a conflict‐free matching, where conflicts are encoded via a collection C$\mathcal {C}$ of subsets C⊆E(H)$C\subseteq E(\mathcal {H})$. We say that a matching M⊆E(H)$\mathcal {M}\subseteq E(\mathcal {H})$ is conflict‐free if M$\mathcal {M}$ does not contain an element of C$\mathcal {C}$ as a subset. Under natural assumptions on C$\mathcal {C}$, we prove that H$\mathcal {H}$ has a conflict‐free, almost‐perfect matching. This has many applications, one of which yields new asymptotic results for so‐called 'high‐girth' Steiner systems. Our main tool is a random greedy algorithm which we call the 'conflict‐free matching process'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given k$$ k $$ graphs G1,...,Gk$$ {G}_1,\dots, {G}_k $$ over a common vertex set of size n$$ n $$, what is the maximum value of ∑i∈[k]e(Gi)$$ {\sum}_{i\in \left[k\right]}e\left({G}_i\right) $$ having no "colorful" copy of H$$ H $$, that is, a copy of H$$ H $$ containing at most one edge from each Gi$$ {G}_i $$? Keevash, Saks, Sudakov, and Verstraëte denoted this number as exk(n,H)$$ {\mathrm{ex}}_k\left(n,H\right) $$ and completely determined exk(n,Kr)$$ {\mathrm{ex}}_k\left(n,{K}_r\right) $$ for large n$$ n $$. In fact, they showed that, depending on the value of k$$ k $$, one of the two natural constructions is always the extremal construction. Moreover, they conjectured that the same holds for every color‐critical graphs, and proved it for 3‐color‐critical graphs. They also asked to classify the graphs H$$ H $$ that have only these two extremal constructions. We prove their conjecture for 4‐color‐critical graphs and for almost all r$$ r $$‐color‐critical graphs when r>4$$ r>4 $$. Moreover, we show that for every non‐color‐critical non‐bipartite graphs, none of the two natural constructions is extremal for certain values of k$$ k $$. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For safe coexistence between robots and humans, it is important for robots to detect the presence of nearby humans as well as any physical contacts made to its body. The design of a modular textile sensor array and an algorithm for multi‐modal sensing of human touches and other contacts with their contact forces proposed. Each sensor module in the array is capable of multi‐modal sensing, and the entire array with multiple modules requires only two wires to read the outputs from all the modules using band‐stop filter circuits. The proposed sensor system shows the structural modularity, achieved by simple fabrication of sequential lamination of conductive and non‐conductive textile materials, realizing electrical connections through conductive snap buttons that connect the modules to the circuit. The functional modularity is also achieved through the compensation algorithm, derived from the analysis of the transfer function in the frequency domain. The algorithm significantly reduces signal interferences between modules. The multi‐modality, the textile‐based design, and the structural and functional modularity of the proposed system enable practical applications to various robotic systems, including robotic skin for a collaborative robot, a wearable sensor, a robot hand sensor, and a human–computer interface, as demonstrated in this study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A well‐known theorem of Whitney states that a 3‐connected planar graph admits an essentially unique embedding into the 2‐sphere. We prove a 3‐dimensional analogue: a simply‐connected 2‐complex every link graph of which is 3‐connected admits an essentially unique locally flat embedding into the 3‐sphere, if it admits one at all. This can be thought of as a generalisation of the 3‐dimensional Schoenflies theorem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to propose a hybrid framework that combines a data-driven pose estimation with model-based force calculation in order to predict the ski jumping force from a recorded motion video. A skeletal model consisting of five joints (ear, hip, knee, ankle, and toe) and four rigid segments (head/arm/trunk or HAT, thigh, shank, and foot) connecting each joint is developed. The joint forces are calculated from the dynamic equilibrium equations, which requires the time history of joint coordinates. They are estimated from a recorded motion video using a deep neural network for pose estimation trained with human motion data. Joint coordinates can be obtained by the proposed deep neural network directly from images of jumping motion without using any markers. The validity and usefulness of the proposed method are confirmed in lab experiments. Further, our method is practically applicable to the study in a real competition environment because it is not required to attach any sensor or marker to athletes. Highlights A method to predict the ski jumping force from a recorded motion video is proposed. It combines a data-driven pose estimation with a model-based force calculation. The proposed method does not require any markers and sensors to be attached to athletes. In a laboratory environment, the relative error in the maximum jumping force is less than 7%. The method can be easily applied to a field study in a real competition environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non‐small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC), which affects the brain, is fatal and resistant to anti‐cancer therapies. Despite innate, distinct characteristics of the brain from other organs, the underlying delicate crosstalk between brain metastatic NSCLC (BM‐NSCLC) cells and brain tumor microenvironment (bTME) associated with tumor evolution remains elusive. Here, a novel 3D microfluidic tri‐culture platform is proposed for recapitulating positive feedback from BM‐NSCLC and astrocytes and brain‐specific endothelial cells, two major players in bTME. Advanced imaging and quantitative functional assessment of the 3D tri‐culture model enable real‐time live imaging of cell viability and separate analyses of genomic/molecular/secretome from each subset. Susceptibility of multiple patient‐derived BM‐NSCLCs to representative targeted agents is altered and secretion of serpin E1, interleukin‐8, and secreted phosphoprotein 1, which are associated with tumor aggressiveness and poor clinical outcome, is increased in tri‐culture. Notably, multiple signaling pathways involved in inflammatory responses, nuclear factor kappa‐light‐chain‐enhancer of activated B cells, and cancer metastasis are activated in BM‐NSCLC through interaction with two bTME cell types. This novel platform offers a tool to elucidate potential molecular targets and for effective anti‐cancer therapy targeting the crosstalk between metastatic cancer cells and adjacent components of bTME. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flexible energy harvester can be able to produce continuous voltage output under the mechanical deformations. High temperature vulcanized (HTV) and room temperature vulcanized (RTV) silicone rubbers are used for making the flexible piezo‐electric energy harvester. A total of 1 and 2 phr of multi‐walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) are used as the electrode material mixed with the rubber solution for the preparation of flexible electrode. Cyclic loading machine is used for the application of 2 Hz of bi‐axial load and uniaxial compression load in the specimen. One centimeter depth of displacement is applied during the bi‐axial cyclic loading and 4 mm amplitude of displacement is applied during the compression loading. Tensile and compression tests are performed to determine the engineering properties of the material. Tensile load withstanding value of the silicone rubber is increasing as increasing the MWCNT filler in the rubber. Tensile value of the pure HTV silicone rubber is 10.020 N and for 2 phr MWCNT reinforced rubber is 22.106 N. Compressive withstanding load of pure HTV rubber is 189.565 N and for 2 phr MWCNT reinforced rubber is 287.066 N. HTV silicone rubber is the highly stiffness material on compares with RTV rubber based on the tensile and the compressive value. Transmission electron microscopy, optical micrographs, and scanning electron microscope show the morphology of MWCNT and surface image of specimen. A total of 2 mm substrate based 2 phr MWCNT reinforced HTV flexible energy harvester undergo decrease in voltage during the cyclic loading due to breakage of electrode. A total of 2 phr MWCNT electrode‐based sample can be able to produce more output voltage than 1 phr MWCNT electrode‐based sample during bi‐axial and compression loading. More voltage is produced in the compression specimen than bi‐axial one. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Here, we report the results of experiments regarding the chemical repositioning of 4‐(2‐hydroxyethyl)‐1‐piperazine ethane sulfonic acid (HEPES), a representative buffering agent. In this work, we confirmed that HEPES could disaggregate amyloid plaques, a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease, and we verified its sustained‐release system (release for up to 2 weeks) via hybridization with a biocompatible polymer (Eudragit S100). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is important to specify and control factors that significantly affect the performance and stability of organic solar cells (OSCs). Bulk heterojunctions (BHJs) prepared by spin‐coating donor/acceptor mixtures form vertically and laterally complex nanostructures, making them difficult to specify and control. Herein, various solvent‐dissolved PTB7‐th/PC70BM‐based sequentially processed OSCs are demonstrated and their thin‐film properties in terms of interfacial crystallinity are compared. The crystallinity of the donor/acceptor interfaces and PC70BM over‐layers is effectively controlled by varying the boiling points of the PTB7‐th solvents in sequential processes. It is found that the structures of the PTB7‐th layers formed by solvents with lower boiling points, as well as the PC70BM over‐layers, have a higher degree of crystallinity, consequently improving the performance to a degree resembling that of BHJ cells. In addition, sequentially processed samples show much higher thermal stability than BHJ cells, which constitute a nano‐blend of donor and acceptor materials. When compared with BHJ cells, whose power conversion efficiency deteriorates within the initial 5 h of thermal treatment, all sequentially processed devices deposited by solvents with different boiling points show significant thermal stability. This work provides comprehensive insight into the interfacial crystallinity of sequentially processed OSCs in terms of efficiency and stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Reinforcement learning (RL) is utilized in a wide range of real‐world applications. Typical applications include single agent‐based RL. However, most practical tasks require multiple agents for cooperative control processes. Multiple‐agent RL demands complicated design, and numerous design possibilities should be considered for its practical usefulness. We propose two RL implementations for a message‐queuing telemetry transport (MQTT) protocol system. Two types of implementations improve the communication efficiency of MQTT: (i) single‐broker‐agent implementation and (ii) multiple‐publisher‐agents implementation. We focused on different message priorities in a dynamic environment for each implementation. The proposed implementations improve communication efficiency by adjusting the loop cycle time of the broker or by learning the message importance. The proposed MQTT control scheme improves the battery efficiency of Internet‐of‐Things (IoT)‐based devices with relatively insufficient battery power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: The tight regulation of local auxin homeostasis and signalling maxima in xylem precursor cells specifies the organising activity of the vascular cambium and consequently promotes xylem differentiation and wood formation. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the local auxin signalling maxima in the vascular cambium are largely unknown.Here, we reveal that brassinosteroid (BR)‐activated WALLS ARE THIN1 (WAT1) facilitates wood formation by enhancing local auxin signalling in the vascular cambium in Solanum lycopersicum.Growth defects and low auxin signalling readouts in the BR‐deficient tomato cultivar, Micro‐Tom, were associated with a novel recessive allele, Slwat1‐copi, created by the insertion of a retrotransposon in the last exon of the SlWAT1 locus. Molecular and genetic studies by generating the gain‐of‐function and loss‐of‐function tomato mutants revealed that SlWAT1 is a critical regulator for fine tuning local auxin homeostasis and signalling outputs in vascular cambium to facilitate secondary growth. Finally, we discovered that BR‐regulated SlBZR1/2 directly activated downstream auxin responses by SlWAT1 upregulation in xylem precursor cells to facilitate xylem differentiation and subsequent wood formation.Our data suggest that the BR‐SlBZR1/2–WAT1 signalling network contributes to the high level of auxin signalling in the vascular cambium for secondary growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A recent result of Condon, Kim, Kühn, and Osthus implies that for any r≥(12+o(1))n, an n‐vertex almost r‐regular graph G has an approximate decomposition into any collections of n‐vertex bounded degree trees. In this paper, we prove that a similar result holds for an almost αn‐regular graph G with any α>0 and a collection of bounded degree trees on at most (1−o(1))n vertices if G does not contain large bipartite holes. This result is sharp in the sense that it is necessary to exclude large bipartite holes and we cannot hope for an approximate decomposition into n‐vertex trees. Moreover, this implies that for any α>0 and an n‐vertex almost αn‐regular graph G, with high probability, the randomly perturbed graph G∪G(n,O(1n)) has an approximate decomposition into all collections of bounded degree trees of size at most (1−o(1))n simultaneously. This is the first result considering an approximate decomposition problem in the context of Ramsey‐Turán theory and the randomly perturbed graph model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Purpose: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most prevalent disease associated with cognitive dysfunction. Current AD therapeutic agents have several gastrointestinal or psychological adverse effects and therefore, novel therapeutic agents with fewer adverse effects must be developed. Previously, we demonstrated that oleanolic acid, which is similar in chemical structure to maslinic acid, ameliorates cognitive impairment through the activation of tropomyosin receptor kinase (TrkB)-ERK-cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) phosphorylation and increased levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). In the present study, we investigate the effect of maslinic acid on cholinergic blockade-induced memory impairment in mice.Methods and Key Results: Maslinic acid reversed scopolamine-induced memory impairment, as determined by the Y-maze, passive avoidance and Morris water maze tests. In addition, we also observed that ERK-CREB, PI3K and PKB (Akt) phosphorylation levels were increased by maslinic acid administration in the mouse hippocampus. Moreover, we determined that the effects of maslinic acid on scopolamine-induced memory impairment in the passive avoidance test were abolished by a specific TrkB receptor antagonist (ANA-12). Additionally, we observed similar temporal changes in the expression levels between BDNF and tissue plasminogen activator in the hippocampus.Conclusion and Implications: These findings suggest that maslinic acid enhances cognitive function through the activation of BDNF and its downstream pathway signalling in the hippocampus and that it might be a potential therapeutic agent for cognitive decline, such as that observed in AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study approximate decompositions of edge‐colored quasirandom graphs into rainbow spanning structures: an edge‐coloring of a graph is locallyℓ‐bounded if every vertex is incident to at most ℓ edges of each color, and is (globally)g‐bounded if every color appears at most g times. Our results imply the existence of: (1) approximate decompositions of properly edge‐colored Kn into rainbow almost‐spanning cycles; (2) approximate decompositions of edge‐colored Kn into rainbow Hamilton cycles, provided that the coloring is (1−o(1))n2‐bounded and locally o(nlog4n)‐bounded; and (3) an approximate decomposition into full transversals of any n×n array, provided each symbol appears (1−o(1))n times in total and only o(nlog2n) times in each row or column. Apart from the logarithmic factors, these bounds are essentially best possible. We also prove analogues for rainbow F‐factors, where F is any fixed graph. Both (1) and (2) imply approximate versions of the Brualdi‐Hollingsworth conjecture on decompositions into rainbow spanning trees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For a collection G={G1,⋯,Gs} of not necessarily distinct graphs on the same vertex set V, a graph H with vertices in V is a G‐transversal if there exists a bijection ϕ:E(H)→[s] such that e∈E(Gϕ(e)) for all e∈E(H). We prove that for |V|=s⩾3 and δ(Gi)⩾s/2 for each i∈[s], there exists a G‐transversal that is a Hamilton cycle. This confirms a conjecture of Aharoni. We also prove an analogous result for perfect matchings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hard carbon is the most promising anode material for sodium‐ion batteries and potassium‐ion batteries owing to its high stability, widespread availability, low‐cost, and excellent performance. Understanding the carrier‐ion storage mechanism is a prerequisite for developing high‐performance electrode materials; however, the underlying ion storage mechanism in hard carbon has been a topic of debate because of its complex structure. Herein, it is demonstrated that the Li+‐, Na+‐, and K+‐ion storage mechanisms in hard carbon are based on the adsorption of ions on the surface of active sites (e.g., defects, edges, and residual heteroatoms) in the sloping voltage region, followed by intercalation into the graphitic layers in the low‐voltage plateau region. At a low current density of 3 mA g–1, the graphitic layers of hard carbon are unlocked to permit Li+‐ion intercalation, resulting in a plateau region in the lithium‐ion batteries. To gain insights into the ion storage mechanism, experimental observations including various ex situ techniques, a constant‐current constant‐voltage method, and diffusivity measurements are correlated with the theoretical estimation of changes in carbon structures and insertion voltages during ion insertion obtained using the density functional theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diverse artificial synapse structures and materials are widely proposed for neuromorphic hardware systems beyond von Neumann architecture owing to their capability to mimic complex information processing tasks such as image recognition, natural language processing, and learning. Nevertheless, temporal and spatial randomness in the movement of ion and electron particles that exist in materials usually prevents the solid‐state‐based synaptic devices from enabling the reliable modulation of synaptic plasticity. An aluminum nanoparticle (Al NP)‐embedded indium gallium zinc oxide (IGZO) synaptic transistor whose spike peak level and conductance change can be precisely modulated by the density of Al NPs within the IGZO channel is demonstrated. Essential synaptic functions including excitatory or inhibitory postsynaptic current, paired pulse facilitation, and short‐term potentiation or depression are also thoroughly emulated in the synaptic transistor device with the most optimized Al NP density: IGZO:Al NPs (6 nm). Moreover, controllable switching from short‐term to long‐term memory regimes essential for a learning task is demonstrated. Simulation results prove that this transistor can provide a decent recognition accuracy for neuromorphic computing. Indeed, the integrated IGZO:Al NP synaptic circuit with the effective synaptic plasticity will facilitate the implementation of a reconfigurable neuromorphic computing system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A classical result of Komlós, Sárközy, and Szemerédi states that every n‐vertex graph with minimum degree at least (1/2 + o(1))n contains every n‐vertex tree with maximum degree O(n/logn). Krivelevich, Kwan, and Sudakov proved that for every n‐vertex graph Gα with minimum degree at least αn for any fixed α > 0 and every n‐vertex tree T with bounded maximum degree, one can still find a copy of T in Gα with high probability after adding O(n) randomly chosen edges to Gα. We extend the latter results to trees with (essentially) unbounded maximum degree; for a given no(1)≤Δ≤cn/logn and α > 0, we determine up to a constant factor the number of random edges that we need to add to an arbitrary n‐vertex graph with minimum degree αn in order to guarantee with high probability a copy of any fixed n‐vertex tree with maximum degree at most Δ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We provide a degree condition on a regular n‐vertex graph G which ensures the existence of a near optimal packing of any family H of bounded degree n‐vertex k‐chromatic separable graphs into G. In general, this degree condition is best possible. Here a graph is separable if it has a sublinear separator whose removal results in a set of components of sublinear size. Equivalently, the separability condition can be replaced by that of having small bandwidth. Thus our result can be viewed as a version of the bandwidth theorem of Böttcher, Schacht and Taraz in the setting of approximate decompositions. More precisely, let δk be the infimum over all δ⩾1/2 ensuring an approximate Kk‐decomposition of any sufficiently large regular n‐vertex graph G of degree at least δn. Now suppose that G is an n‐vertex graph which is close to r‐regular for some r⩾(δk+o(1))n and suppose that H1,⋯,Ht is a sequence of bounded degree n‐vertex k‐chromatic separable graphs with ∑ie(Hi)⩽(1−o(1))e(G). We show that there is an edge‐disjoint packing of H1,⋯,Ht into G. If the Hi are bipartite, then r⩾(1/2+o(1))n is sufficient. In particular, this yields an approximate version of the tree packing conjecture in the setting of regular host graphs G of high degree. Similarly, our result implies approximate versions of the Oberwolfach problem, the Alspach problem and the existence of resolvable designs in the setting of regular host graphs of high degree. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highly dispersed, core–shell Ni@Al2O3 on activated carbon (AC) catalysts were prepared to develop an effective, external‐hydrogen‐free fractionation process for various types of lignocellulosic biomass. In a mixture of formic acid, ethanol, and water at 190 °C, the conversion of oak wood produced 23.4 C% lignin‐derived phenolic monomers (LDPMs) and highly delignified pulp‐rich solid. At an early stage, formic acid acted as a cocatalyst to enhance the delignification by solvolysis, and at a later stage, it acted as a hydrogen source to stabilize the phenolic monomers by hydrodeoxygenation and hydrogenation. Based on the positive correlation between spillover hydrogen on the catalysts and LDPM yields, a new suite of catalyst design criteria was proposed to develop highly active, non‐noble‐metal based catalysts for realizing economically viable biorefineries. Enzymatic saccharification of the pulp‐rich solid indicated that the pulp‐rich solid is an excellent source of fermentable sugars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The r-dynamic choosability of a graph G, written [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Komlós conjectured in 1981 that among all graphs with minimum degree at least [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An Si photoelectrode with a nanoporous Au thin film for highly selective and efficient photoelectrochemical (PEC) CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR) is presented. The nanoporous Au thin film is formed by electrochemical reduction of an anodized Au thin film. The electrochemical treatments of the Au thin film critically improve CO2 reduction catalytic activity of Au catalysts and exhibit CO Faradaic efficiency of 96% at 480 mV of overpotential. To apply the electrochemical pretreatment of Au films for PEC CO2RR, a new Si photoelectrode design with mesh-type co-catalysts independently wired at the front and the back of the photoelectrode is demonstrated. Due to the superior CO2RR activity of the nanoporous Au mesh and high photovoltage from Si, the Si photoelectrode with the nanoporous Au thin film mesh shows conversion of CO2 to CO with 91% Faradaic efficiency at positive potential than the CO2/CO equilibrium potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Density matrix purification is a linear scaling algorithm to solve the self-consistent field (SCF) electronic structure problem. A brief review is made of the two usages of the purification method in SCF calculations, namely in direct energy minimization and for iterative calculation of density matrix from Hamiltonian. Density matrix purification can be viewed as a minimization algorithm of the particularly defined objective function such as , and hence, this objective function plays a key role in the developments of purification polynomials. Indeed, in this perspective, we show that a carefully chosen objective function can lead to significantly improved algorithms and numerical results. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A graph G is - colorable if can be partitioned into two sets and so that the maximum degree of is at most j and of is at most k. While the problem of verifying whether a graph is (0, 0)-colorable is easy, the similar problem with in place of (0, 0) is NP-complete for all nonnegative j and k with . Let denote the supremum of all x such that for some constant every graph G with girth g and for every is -colorable. It was proved recently that . In a companion paper, we find the exact value . In this article, we show that increasing g from 5 further on does not increase much. Our constructions show that for every g, . We also find exact values of for all g and all . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of supercritical fluids on the production of renewable diesel-range hydrocarbons from natural triglycerides were investigated. Various supercritical fluids, which included CO2 (scCO2), propane (scC3H8) and n-hexane (scC6H14), were introduced with H2 and soybean oil into a fixed-bed reactor that contained pre-activated CoMo/γ-Al2O3. Among these supercritical fluids, scC3H8 and scC6H14 efficiently allowed the reduction of the reaction temperature by as much as 50 °C as a result of facilitated heat and mass transfer and afforded similar yields to reactions in the absence of supercritical fluids. The compositional analyses of the gas and liquid products indicated that the addition of scC3H8 during the hydrotreatment of soybean oil promoted specific deoxygenation pathways, decarbonylation and decarboxylation, which consumed less H2 than the hydrodeoxygenation pathway. As a result, the quantity of H2 required to obtain a high yield of diesel-range hydrocarbons could be reduced to 57 % if scC3H8 was used. As decarboxylation and decarbonylation are mildly endothermic reactions, the reduced heat transfer resistance in scC3H8 may drive the deoxygenation reaction to thermodynamically favourable pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrical characteristics of an electromagnetic bandgap (EBG) structure embedded in a high dielectric layer are studied using FDTD simulation methods. A low-profile loop antenna is designed above the embedded EBG structure. For diversity applications in wireless communications and biotelemetry, a printed dipole antenna is also incorporated with the low-profile loop antenna. The experimental results of the antennas are compared with the simulated results, to show how applicable embedded EBG structures are for low-profile antenna designs. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 49: 1085–1089, 2007; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI.10.1002/mop.22342 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The credible constraint of morally hazardous or opportunistic behavior can enhance efficiency. This idea is applied to an examination of local government institutions to identify how council-manager government constrains opportunism in economic development by substituting low-power bureaucratic incentives for high-power electoral incentives. A panel design isolates changes in the use of development strategies or instruments in 516 cities. The central argument presented here is that the Progressive ideology of the separation of politics and administration, institutionalized in the council-manager plan, allows administrators and elected officers to more easily resist opportunistic behavior. Economic and political forces have significant effects that are different for mayor-council communities than for council-manager communities. The influence of strategic planning is evident in council-manager cities, but not in mayor-council communities. Under council-manager government, development is carried out in a discriminating manner, leading to lower levels of financial incentives but more loan and business-attraction programs. In conclusion, the authors discuss how the career patterns of city managers are shaped by the incentive structures created by the council-manager plan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intercalation Mechanisms: Revealing the Intercalation Mechanisms of Lithium, Sodium, and Potassium in Hard Carbon (Adv. Keywords: density functional theory; ex situ characterization; hard carbon; intercalation mechanism; low-voltage plateau capacity EN density functional theory ex situ characterization hard carbon intercalation mechanism low-voltage plateau capacity 1 1 1 05/28/20 20200526 NES 200526 In article number 2000283 Sang Kyu Kwak, Jaehoon Kim and co-workers show that the interlayer spacing of hard carbon decreases after the initial intercalation of a few Li SP + sp ions at the edge of the graphene layer, whereas the interlayer spacing is expanded during the initial intercalation of a few Na SP + sp and K SP + sp ions into the graphene layer. Density functional theory, ex situ characterization, hard carbon, intercalation mechanism, low-voltage plateau capacity. [Extracted from the article]

In article number 1900195, Seok Chung, Seung Hyeok Seok, and co‐workers take the first step in providing direct evidence of sequential establishment of the pre‐metastatic niche triggered by monocytes and macrophages. The monocytes/macrophages‐mediated remodeling of endothelium‐interstitial matrix leads down a slippery slope for the circulating cancer cells to invade toward metastasis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The primed microenvironment of future metastatic sites, called the pre‐metastatic niche, is a prerequisite for overt metastasis. However, a mechanistic understanding of the contributions of recruited cells to the niche is hindered by complex in vivo systems. Herein, a microfluidic platform that incorporates endothelial cells and extracellular matrix (ECM) scaffolds is developed, and the distinct role of recruited monocytes and macrophages in establishing pre‐metastatic niches is delineated. It is observed that monocyte‐derived matrix metalloproteinase 9 facilitates cancer cell extravasation through destruction of endothelial tight junctions. Furthermore, subsequent cancer cell invasiveness is significantly enhanced. Close examination of ECM structures reveals that cancer cells move within characteristic "microtracks" generated by macrophages, suggesting that macrophages could serve as a compensatory mechanism for the reduced migratory capacity of cancer cells. Thus, the first evidence of monocyte/macrophage‐induced remodeling is shown, and these findings will open up new horizons for improving characterization of the pre‐metastatic niche and corresponding immunotherapies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In article number 1601103, Jihun Oh and co‐workers report that a remarkable CO2 reduction is achieved with over 90% Faradaic efficiency for CO production at CO2/CO redox potential (−0.11 V vs RHE) under 1 sun illumination in an aqueous solution. The image depicts a panel of Si photoelectrodes with a thin mesh‐type nanoporous Au film for photoelectrochemical CO2 reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]