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Copyright of CEDRUS is the property of Mediterranean Civilisations Research Institute and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Athar alrafedain is the property of Republic of Iraq Ministry of Higher Education & Scientific Research (MOHESR) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Plastics Science & Technology / Suliao Ke-Ji is the property of Plastics Science & Technology Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Germicidal ultraviolet (UV) devices have been widely used for pathogen disinfection in water, air, and on food and surfaces. Emerging UV technologies, like the krypton chloride (KrCl*) excimer emitting at 222 nm, are rapidly gaining popularity due to their minimal adverse effects on skin and eyes compared with conventional UV lamps emitting at 254 nm, opening opportunities for UV disinfection in occupied public spaces. In this study, inactivation of seven bacteria and five viruses, including waterborne, foodborne and respiratory pathogens, was determined in a thin‐film aqueous solution using a filtered KrCl* excimer emitting primarily at 222 nm. Our results show that the KrCl* excimer can effectively inactivate all tested bacteria and viruses, with most microorganisms achieving more than 4‐log (99.99%) reduction with a UV dose of 10 mJ cm−2. Compared with conventional UV lamps, the KrCl* excimer lamp exhibited better disinfection performance for viruses but was slightly less effective for bacteria. The relationships between UV sensitivities at 222 and 254 nm for bacteria and viruses were evaluated using regression analysis, resulting in factors that could be used to estimate the KrCl* excimer disinfection performance from well‐documented UV kinetics using conventional 254 nm UV lamps. This study provides fundamental information for pathogen disinfection when employing KrCl* excimers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two krypton‐chloride germicidal excimer lamp units (Care222 TRT‐104C11‐UI‐U3, USHIO Inc.) were installed in the examination room of an ophthalmology department. The irradiation dose was set not to exceed the former (i.e., before 2022) threshold limit value (TLV) (22 mJ cm−2/8 h) recommended by the ACGIH. Section 1: The eyes and lids of the six ophthalmologists (5 wore glasses for myopic correction) who worked in the room for a mean stay of 6.7 h week−1 were prospectively observed for 12 months. Slitlamp examinations revealed neither acute adverse events such as corneal erosion, conjunctival hyperemia, and lid skin erythema nor chronic adverse events such as pterygium, cataract, or lid tumor. The visual acuity, refractive error, and corneal endothelial cell density remained unchanged during the study. Section 2: The irradiation of samples placed on the table or floor using the same fixtures in the room (5–7.5 mJ cm−2) was associated with >99% inhibition of φX174 phage and >90% inhibition of Staphylococcus aureus. In conclusion, no acute or chronic health effects in human participants was observed in a clinical setting of full‐room ultraviolet germicidal irradiation by 222‐nm lamp units, and high efficacy in deactivation of microorganisms was determined in the same setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Corvids have long impressed scientists with their flexibility in problem-solving and innovative tool use. Opportunistic observations of five wild house crows (Corvus splendens), a couple of them approaching burning oil lamps and delicately lifting the flaming wick and extinguishing it to consume the cotton wick are reported here. Although similar behaviour has been reported earlier in a few species, this is the first report of such an observation in house crows. Wild crows probably with no experience performing this fire manipulation, wary of nearby humans, could put the bird or its surroundings in jeopardy. Anecdotal reports of crows setting haystacks and thatched roofs ablaze are popular. The crow's manoeuvres on the burning lamp and the skilful manipulation of the burning wick without getting hurt are commendable and warrant further research. Studies on the nonhuman fire-handling capability could illuminate our understanding of the behaviour of our ancestral hominins towards the fire that led to their mastery over fire. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present work is devoted to the study of DBD discharge development in Ne–Xe gas mixture for optimization of UV source efficiency in excimer lamps. This study was based on a longitudinal on-dimensional model of the dielectric barrier discharge DBD with the aim to investigate the discharge conditions for excimer lamps working and VUV emissions optimization. The results of the present description show the concentration of charged particles, photonic species, and excited atoms and molecules. The effect of operation conditions such as applied voltage, gas mixture composition, and gas pressure, as well as the secondary electron emission due to ion impact at the cathode on DBD discharge characteristics and 173 nm photon generation have been also analyzed and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) is a rapid and high-yield amplification technology for specific DNA or RNA molecules. In this study, we designed a digital loop-mediated isothermal amplification (digital-LAMP)-functioning microfluidic chip to achieve higher sensitivity for detection of nucleic acids. The chip could generate droplets and collect them, based on which we could perform Digital-LAMP. The reaction only took 40 min at a constant temperature of 63 °C. The chip enabled highly accurate quantitative detection, with the limit of detection (LOD) down to 102 copies μL−1. For better performance while reducing the investment of money and time in chip structure iterations, we used COMSOL Multiphysics to simulate different droplet generation ways by including flow-focusing structure and T-junction structure. Moreover, the linear structure, serpentine structure, and spiral structure in the microfluidic chip were compared to study the fluid velocity and pressure distribution. The simulations provided a basis for chip structure design while facilitating chip structure optimization. The digital-LAMP-functioning chip proposed in the work provides a universal platform for analysis of viruses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to assess the post-effort transcriptional changes of selected genes encoding receptors for chemokines and interleukins in young, physically active men to better understand the immunomodulatory effect of physical activity. The participants, aged 16–21 years, performed physical exercise tasks of either a maximal multistage 20 m shuttle-run test (beep test) or a repeated speed ability test. The expression of selected genes encoding receptors for chemokines and interleukins in nucleated peripheral blood cells was determined using RT-qPCR. Aerobic endurance activity was a positive stimulant that induced increased expression of CCR1 and CCR2 genes following lactate recovery, while the maximum expression of CCR5 was found immediately post-effort. The increase in the expression of inflammation-related genes encoding chemokine receptors triggered by aerobic effort strengthens the theory that physical effort induces sterile inflammation. Different profiles of studied chemokine receptor gene expression induced by short-term anaerobic effort suggest that not all types of physical effort activate the same immunological pathways. A significant increase in IL17RA gene expression after the beep test confirmed the hypothesis that cells expressing this receptor, including Th17 lymphocyte subsets, can be involved in the creation of an immune response after endurance efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The situation in which many labor sectors find themselves today in terms of safety and health is extremely complex. Through a diagnosis, occupational health and safety makes sense and allows the improvement of environmental conditions such as: temperature, humidity, noise, lighting, cleanliness, gases, among others. The objective of this research is to evaluate the lighting system of the production area of the Elaboration Center in the province of Matanzas, Cuba. For the research, an initial diagnosis of the existing lighting level was carried out. The initial measurement was made using a luxmeter and was compared with the values obtained and those recommended by the NC-ISO 8995/CIE S 008: 2003 standard, which establishes the lighting level required for each activity. As a result, insufficient luminosity was obtained in the production area and a new lighting system was designed based on the lumens method to achieve the recommended level. It is proposed to the entity to use 12 lamps with two straight fluorescent tubes of 18 W, T-8, 6500K, distributed in 2 rows and 6 columns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The topic of the article are vehicle restraint systems. Specifically, the paper focuses on the safety analysis of the way of implementation of crash cushions. Within the safety analysis carried out on the territory of the Ústí Region of the Czech Republic, the most frequently occurring deficiencies in crash cushions and their possible impacts on road safety were identified. The output is the creation of catalogue sheets of crash cushions, which contain the most frequently installed crash cushions on the road network and a summary of methodological requirements for their adequate implementation. The work is intended to serve as an effective tool and a quality source of information for road managers and road safety auditors during their subsequent inspection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on the issue of portable traffic signs and their visibility using different light sources such as halogen, Xenon, or LED. The measured values of luminance and retroreflection for each object are used to distinguish the individual results. The results show the differences between the various light sources on the visibility of the measured objects. Furthermore, from these results it is possible to evaluate portable traffic signs regarding degradation due to mechanical wear or aging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pulsed xenon lamp is often used for performance testing of solar cells because its spectrum is most similar to sunlight. The pulsed xenon lamp power supply is the key factor to ensure the reliable operation of the pulsed xenon lamp and improve the photoelectric conversion efficiency. In order to solve the problems of the traditional pulsed xenon lamp power supply with large volume, large noise interference and low reliability, a highreliability pulsed xenon lamp power supply was designed. Staggered parallel Buck was adopted to reduce the output ripple, and the digital control scheme of the improved nested working sequence was used to improve the working reliability of the pulsed xenon lamp. By building an experimental prototype and testing, it is proved that the pulsed power supply can make the pulsed xenon lamp light up 100% and keep working stably. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. The aim of the study is to develop an algorithm for the method of calculating the area of light openings of buildings, which allows the transition to a differentiated accounting of light climate resources at any geographical point.Method. The study is based on methods for designing natural lighting in buildings.Result. The mathematical model of the light regime of premises has been improved, taking into account the peculiarities of the redistribution of light fluxes in the designs of skylights, rectangular lamps and in inclined lighting devices.Conclusion. On the basis of calculations using a mathematical model, the coefficients of the light climate for the city of Nalchik were obtained, the use of which will allow, with the improvement of the microclimate in the premises, to increase the technical and economic efficiency of natural lighting systems.