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The purpose of the study was to explore how contents related to sustainable development were presented in Japanese, Korean, and Singaporean elementary mathematics textbooks. For this purpose, the contents in the textbooks were analyzed at both macro and micro levels through a mixed method research. The results showed that the sustainability-related contents were included from the third or fourth grade in all the textbooks. The related contents were involved to mathematics content domains of Numbers and Operations, Pattern, and Data and Possibilities. The sustainability-related contents were used both to introduce and to apply mathematical concepts or principles. Most of the sustainable development activities led students to solve problems by using the mathematical contents they had learned, while some other activities induced students to consider sustainability as well as to solve problems. This study is expected to give implications for textbook developers and teachers to connect sustainable development meaningfully to elementary mathematics education.

Synthetic biology brings engineering disciplines to create novel biological systems for biomedical and technological applications. The substantial growth of the synthetic biology field in the past decade is poised to transform biotechnology and medicine. To streamline design processes and facilitate debugging of complex synthetic circuits, cell-free synthetic biology approaches has reached broad research communities both in academia and industry. By recapitulating gene expression systems in vitro, cell-free expression systems offer flexibility to explore beyond the confines of living cells and allow networking of synthetic and natural systems. Here, we review the capabilities of the current cell-free platforms, focusing on nucleic acid-based molecular programs and circuit construction. We survey the recent developments including cell-free transcription-translation platforms, DNA nanostructures and circuits, and novel classes of riboregulators. The links to mathematical models and the prospects of cell-free synthetic biology platforms will also be discussed.

Recognition of signaling molecules for coordinated regulation of target genes is a fundamental process for biological systems. Cells often rely on transcription factors to accomplish these intricate tasks, yet the subtle conformational changes of protein structures, coupled with the complexity of intertwined protein interaction networks, pose challenges for repurposing these for bioengineering applications. This study introduces a novel platform for ligand‐responsive gene regulation, termed START (Synthetic Trans‐Acting Riboswitch with Triggering RNA). Inspired by the bacterial ligand sensing system, riboswitch, and the synthetic gene regulator, toehold switch, the START platform enables the implementation of synthetic biosensors for various ligands. Rational sequence design with targeted domain optimization yields high‐performance STARTs with a dynamic range up to 67.29‐fold and a tunable ligand sensitivity, providing a simple and intuitive strategy for sensor engineering. The START platform also exhibits modularity and composability to allow flexible genetic circuit construction, enabling seamless implementation of OR, AND, and NOT Boolean logic gates for multiple ligand inputs. The START design principle is capable of broadening the suite of synthetic biosensors for diverse chemical and protein ligands, providing a novel riboregulator chassis for synthetic biology and bioengineering applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The integration of chirality, specifically through the chirality-induced spin selectivity (CISS) effect, into electrocatalytic processes represents a pioneering approach for enhancing the efficiency of energy conversion and storage systems. This review delves into the burgeoning field of chiral electrocatalysis, elucidating the fundamental principles, historical development, theoretical underpinnings, and practical applications of the CISS effect across a spectrum of electrocatalytic reactions, including the oxygen evolution reaction (OER), oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). We explore the methodological advancements in inducing the CISS effect through structural and surface engineering and discuss various techniques for its measurement, from magnetic conductive atomic force microscopy (mc-AFM) to hydrogen peroxide titration. Furthermore, this review highlights the transformative potential of the CISS effect in addressing the key challenges of the NRR and CO2RR processes and in mitigating singlet oxygen formation in metal–air batteries, thereby improving their performance and durability. Through this comprehensive overview, we aim to underscore the significant role of incorporating chirality and spin polarization in advancing electrocatalytic technologies for sustainable energy applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is a comparative study of pole–slot combinations with fractional slot concentrated windings in an outer rotor permanent magnet synchronous generator (ORPMSG) for a hybrid drone system. Fractional slot machines have been studied for automotive applications because of their high performance and simple winding manufacturing, compared with those of integer slot machines. In this study, four pole–slot combinations of ORPMSG with fractional slot concentrated windings were selected for comparison with the performance of the hybrid drone system. Based on the results of a finite element analysis (FEA), the machines were analyzed for cogging torque, back electromagnetic force (BEMF), torque, and electromagnetic loss under the same conditions as the machine specifications. Among the four pole–slot combinations of the ORPMSM, a one pole–slot model of the ORPMSG was selected, considering the performances of the machines. The selected pole–slot model of the ORPMSG was manufactured, and experiments were conducted on the manufactured model to verify the FEA results. Finally, the effectiveness of the comparative study of pole–slot combination with fractional slot concentrated winding in ORPMSM was verified by comparing the FEA and experimental results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]