SCB-YOLOv5: a lightweight intelligent detection model for athletes' normative movements.

Intelligent detection of athlete behavior is beneficial for guiding sports instruction. Existing mature target detection algorithms provide significant support for this task. However, large-scale target detection algorithms often encounter more challenges in practical application scenarios. We propose SCB-YOLOv5, to detect standardized movements of gymnasts. First, the movements of aerobics athletes were captured, labeled using the labelImg software, and utilized to establish the athlete normative behavior dataset, which was then enhanced by the dataset augmentation using Mosaic9. Then, we improved the YOLOv5 by (1) incorporating the structures of ShuffleNet V2 and convolutional block attention module to reconstruct the Backbone, effectively reducing the parameter size while maintaining network feature extraction capability; (2) adding a weighted bidirectional feature pyramid network into the multiscale feature fusion, to acquire precise channel and positional information through the global receptive field of feature maps. Finally, SCB-YOLOv5 was lighter by 56.9% than YOLOv5. The detection precision is 93.7%, with a recall of 99% and mAP value of 94.23%. This represents a 3.53% improvement compared to the original algorithm. Extensive experiments have verified that our method. SCB-YOLOv5 can meet the requirements for on-site athlete action detection. Our code and models are available at https://github.com/qingDu1/SCB-YOLOv5 .

Detection and recognition of metal surface corrosion based on CBG-YOLOv5s.

The automatic detection of the degree of surface corrosion on metal structures is of significant importance for assessing structural damage and safety. To effectively identify the corrosion status on the surface of coastal metal facilities, this study proposed a CBG-YOLOv5s model for metal surface corrosion detection, based on the YOLOv5s model. Firstly, we integrated the Convolutional Block Attention Module (CBAM) into the C3 module and developed the C3CBAM module. This module effectively enhanced the channel and spatial attention capabilities of the feature map, thereby improving the feature representation. Second, we introduced a multi-scale feature fusion concept in the feature fusion part of the model and added a small target detection layer to improve small target detection. Finally, we designed a lighter C3Ghost module, which reduced the number of parameters and the computational load of the model, thereby improving the running speed of the model. In addition, to verify the effectiveness of our method, we constructed a dataset containing 6000 typical images of metal surface corrosion and conducted extensive experiments on this dataset. The results showed that compared to the YOLOv5s model and several other commonly used object detection models, our method achieved superior performance in terms of detection accuracy and speed.

Female researchers are under-represented in the Colombian science infrastructure.

Worldwide women have increased their participation in STEM, but we are still far from reaching gender parity. Although progress can be seen at the bachelor's and master's level, career advancement of women in research still faces substantial challenges leading to a 'leaky pipeline' phenomenon (i.e., the continuous decrease of women's participation at advanced career stages). Latin America exhibits encouraging rates of women participation in research, but the panorama varies across countries and stages in the academic ladder. This study focuses on women's participation in research in natural sciences in Colombia and investigates career progression, leadership roles, and funding rates by analyzing data on scholarships, grants, rankings, and academic positions. Overall, we found persistent gender imbalances throughout the research ecosystem that were significant using classical statistical analyses. First, although women constitute >50% graduates from bachelors in natural sciences, <40% of researchers in this field are female. Second, women win <30% of research grants, and in turn, their scientific productivity is 2X lower than that of men. Third, because of the less research funding and output women have, their promotion to senior positions in academic and research rankings is slower. In consequence, only ~25% of senior researchers and full professors are women. Fourth, the proportion of women leading research groups and mentoring young scientist in Colombia is <30%. Our study deepens our understanding of gender gaps in STEM research in Colombia, and provides information to design initiatives that effectively target gender disparities by focusing on key areas of intervention, and then gradually building up, rather than tackling structural inequities all at once.

A fuzzy description logic based IoT framework: Formal verification and end user programming.

The Internet of Things (IoT) has become one of the most popular technologies in recent years. Advances in computing capabilities, hardware accessibility, and wireless connectivity make possible communication between people, processes, and devices for all kinds of applications and industries. However, the deployment of this technology is confined almost entirely to tech companies, leaving end users with only access to specific functionalities. This paper presents a framework that allows users with no technical knowledge to build their own IoT applications according to their needs. To this end, a framework consisting of two building blocks is presented. A friendly interface block lets users tell the system what to do using simple operating rules such as "if the temperature is cold, turn on the heater." On the other hand, a fuzzy logic reasoner block built by experts translates the ambiguity of human language to specific actions to the actuators, such as "call the police." The proposed system can also detect and inform the user if the inserted rules have inconsistencies in real time. Moreover, a formal model is introduced, based on fuzzy description logic, for the consistency of IoT systems. Finally, this paper presents various experiments using a fuzzy logic reasoner to show the viability of the proposed framework using a smart-home IoT security system as an example.

Standardizing Extracted Data Using Automated Application of Controlled Vocabularies.

BACKGROUND: Extraction of toxicological end points from primary sources is a central component of systematic reviews and human health risk assessments. To ensure optimal use of these data, consistent language should be used for end point descriptions. However, primary source language describing treatment-related end points can vary greatly, resulting in large labor efforts to manually standardize extractions before data are fit for use. OBJECTIVES: To minimize these labor efforts, we applied an augmented intelligence approach and developed automated tools to support standardization of extracted information via application of preexisting controlled vocabularies. METHODS: We created and applied a harmonized controlled vocabulary crosswalk, consisting of Unified Medical Language System (UMLS) codes, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) DevTox harmonized terms, and The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) end point vocabularies, to roughly 34,000 extractions from prenatal developmental toxicology studies conducted by the National Toxicology Program (NTP) and 6,400 extractions from European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) prenatal developmental toxicology studies, all recorded based on the original study report language. RESULTS: We automatically applied standardized controlled vocabulary terms to 75% of the NTP extracted end points and 57% of the ECHA extracted end points. Of all the standardized extracted end points, about half (51%) required manual review for potential extraneous matches or inaccuracies. Extracted end points that were not mapped to standardized terms tended to be too general or required human logic to find a good match. We estimate that this augmented intelligence approach saved >350 hours of manual effort and yielded valuable resources including a controlled vocabulary crosswalk, organized related terms lists, code for implementing an automated mapping workflow, and a computationally accessible dataset. DISCUSSION: Augmenting manual efforts with automation tools increased the efficiency of producing a findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable (FAIR) dataset of regulatory guideline studies. This open-source approach can be readily applied to other legacy developmental toxicology datasets, and the code design is customizable for other study types. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP13215.

Clearing the Air: Gas Stove Emissions and Direct Health Effects.

Gas range use has direct health effects-beyond those from climate change related to fossil fuels. If kitchens are not well ventilated, benzene, nitrogen dioxide, and other VOCs may reach levels known to harm health.

Towards a Miniaturized Photoacoustic Sensor for Transcutaneous CO2 Monitoring.

A photoacoustic sensor system (PAS) intended for carbon dioxide (CO2) blood gas detection is presented. The development focuses on a photoacoustic (PA) sensor based on the so-called two-chamber principle, i.e., comprising a measuring cell and a detection chamber. The aim is the reliable continuous monitoring of transcutaneous CO2 values, which is very important, for example, in intensive care unit patient monitoring. An infrared light-emitting diode (LED) with an emission peak wavelength at 4.3 µm was used as a light source. A micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) microphone and the target gas CO2 are inside a hermetically sealed detection chamber for selective target gas detection. Based on conducted simulations and measurement results in a laboratory setup, a miniaturized PA CO2 sensor with an absorption path length of 2.0 mm and a diameter of 3.0 mm was developed for the investigation of cross-sensitivities, detection limit, and signal stability and was compared to a commercial infrared CO2 sensor with a similar measurement range. The achieved detection limit of the presented PA CO2 sensor during laboratory tests is 1 vol. % CO2. Compared to the commercial sensor, our PA sensor showed less influences of humidity and oxygen on the detected signal and a faster response and recovery time. Finally, the developed sensor system was fixed to the skin of a test person, and an arterialization time of 181 min could be determined.

An insight into REEs recovery from spent fluorescent lamps: Evaluation of the affinity of an NH4-13X zeolite towards Ce, La, Eu and Y.

The constantly increasing demand of Rare Earth Elements (REEs) made them to be part of the so-called "critical elements" indispensable for the energy transition. The monopoly of only a few countries, the so-called balance problem between demand and natural abundance, and the need to limit the environmental costs of their mining, stress the necessity of a recycling policy of these elements. Different methods have been tested for REEs recovery. Despite the well-known ion-exchange properties of zeolites, just few preliminary works investigated their application for REEs separation and recycle. In this work we present a double ion exchange experiment on a NH4-13X zeolite, aimed at the recovery of different REEs from solutions mimicking the composition of liquors obtained from the leaching of spent fluorescent lamps. The results showed that the zeolite was able to exchange all the REEs tested, but the exchange capacity was different: despite Y being the more concentrated REE in the solutions, the cation exchange was lower than less concentrated ones (16 atoms p.u.c. vs 21 atoms for Ce and La solutions), suggesting a possible selectivity. In order to recover REEs from the zeolite, a second exchange with an ammonium solution was performed. The analyses of the zeolites show that almost all of Ce and Eu remain in the zeolite, while nearly half of La and Y are released. This, once again, suggests a possible selective release of REEs and open the possibility for a recovery process in which Rare Earths can be effectively separated.

Selective efficient photocatalytic degradation of antibiotics and direct Z-type migration pathway for hierarchical core-shell TiO2/g-C3N4 composites.

Constructing superior Z-type photocatalytic heterojunction is beneficial to effectively enlarge interface contact, improve the photo-generated carrier separation rate, and retain the high redox ability. In this work, we designed a hierarchical core-shell g-C3N4/TiO2 structure to build Z-type heterojunction via combining simple template method and pyrolysis process. A close-knit Z-type heterojunction was constructed using TiO2 as a thick core and g-C3N4 as an ultra-thin shell. The effects of lamp source, wavelength, tetracycline (TC) concentration, and photocatalyst dose on the degradation performance on TC of g-C3N4/TiO2 were inspected. 0.1TiO2/g-C3N4 photocatalyst had the best degradation rate and highest removal rate within 30 min, and its degradation rate was about 49, 23, and 5 times than pure g-C3N4, TiO2, and commercial TiO2/g-C3N4 in respect. Moreover, compared with degradation ability under Xenon lamp, LED irradiation for g-C3N4/TiO2 composites showed a remarkable selective degradation. The fast and efficient Z-type transfer pathway of 0.1 g-C3N4/TiO2 was realized by forming an optimized interface and abundant surface active sites ascribed to the combined action of thick TiO2 core and ultra-thin g-C3N4 shell. In addition, the degradation intermediates were analyzed by LC-MS and suggested pathways of degradation. The work could provide novel design concept to obtain reliable Z-type photocatalysts with hierarchical core-shell structure applied in degradation of antibiotic wastewater.

Relational reasoning in wild bumblebees revisited: the role of distance.

In reasoning tasks, non-human animals attend more to relational than to object similarity. It is precisely this focus on relational similarity that has been argued to explain the reasoning gap between humans and other animals. Work with humans has revealed that objects placed near each other are represented to be more similar than objects placed farther apart. Will distance between objects also affect non-human animals' abilities to represent and reason about objects? To test this, wild bumblebees were presented with a spatial reasoning task (with competing object matches) in which the objects or features alone (colour, shape) were placed close together or far apart. Bumblebees spontaneously attended to objects over relations, but only when the objects were far apart. Features alone were not strong enough to drive object matching-suggesting that bumblebees bound colour and shape into their object representations. These findings question whether the ability to focus on and compare objects is what makes human abstract reasoning unique.

Energy and enviro-economic analysis of a solar air heater with wedge turbulators.

Solar air heaters (SAH) convert solar energy to thermal energy for food processing industries and commercial space heating applications, as solar energy is cost-free. In this experimental study, the thermal performance of the solar air heater has been successively improved using different roughness elements over the absorber. The triangle-shaped wedges in three structures (inline, serpentine, and clustered structure) are investigated in this work. Thermal performance comparison is made with a SAH with a plain absorber. A maximum air temperature rise of 19 °C is observed for the SAH with wedges in a clustered structure. The absorber surface temperature for clustered structured roughness elements is 76.8 °C with an average heat loss coefficient of 4.43 W/m2·K. The useful heat absorption using clustered structure wedges is 33%, 17.9%, and 6.6% higher than the SAH with plain, inline, and serpentine structured wedges. SAH's maximum thermal and exergy efficiency with clustered structured elements is 70.4% and 1.64%. The average thermal efficiency of inline, serpentine, and clustered arrangement is 13.3%, 25.3%, and 35.6% higher than the SAH with a plain absorber. The proposed SAH design shows a sustainability index 1.01, and lower payback periods show economic and environmental viability.

Rapid and sensitive detection of Pseudomonas aeruginosa by isothermal amplification combined with Cas12a-mediated detection.

CRISPR based technologies have been used for fast and sensitive detection of pathogens. To test the possibility of CRISPR based detection strategy in Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections, a combined method of recombinase polymerase amplification followed by Cas12a-mediated detection via fluorescence reader or lateral flow biosensor (named Cas12a-RCFL) has been established in this study. The Cas12a-RCFL can detect as low as 50 CFU/mL Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The whole detection process can be finished within one hour with satisfied detection specificity. Cas12a-RCFL also shows good sensitivity of detecting Pseudomonas aeruginosa inStaphylococcus aureus and Acinetobacter baumannii contaminated samples. For the detection of 22 clinical samples, Cas12a-RCFL matches with PCR sequencing result exactly without DNA purification. This Cas12a-RCFL is rapid and sensitive with low cost, which shows good quality to be adopted as a point-of-care testing method.

Experimental investigation and performance analysis of box-type standard solar cooker with an inclined cover (BTSCIC).

This work proposes a novel transparent solar cooker design, and its performance is evaluated using a set of experiments. The cooker is fabricated from transparent and non-transparent, and lightweight material. The study was conducted at the Renewable energy laboratory in India (MNNIT Prayagraj). For thermal performance assessment of Box-type standard solar cooker with an inclined cover (BTSCIC) is compared with a box-type standard solar cooker (BSSC). The area, heat input, and thermal efficiency have all increased significantly. The total absorbing area increases by 32%, total solar radiation by 189%, absorber plate temperature by 19.8%, inner air temperature by 16.5%, pot water temperature by 17.1%, and inner wall average temperature by 58%, as compared to box-type Standard Solar Cooker. The average exergy was 4.2% (BTSCIC) and 2.61% (BSSC), respectively. The cost payback period of BTSCIC was 2.22 years and BSSC 1.5 years.

Interpersonal coordination tendencies and perception of visual information for decision-making in futsal.

This study investigated how futsal players visually perceived information on angular interpersonal coordination relations, between available sources such as nearest defender, goalkeeper position and ball, when deciding to shoot at goal. Experienced players (n = 180) participated in eighteen, video-recorded futsal matches, during which 32 participants wore an eye tracking device. Forty-five sequences of play were selected and edited from the moment a teammate passed the ball to the shooter, until the moment a shot was undertaken. Independent variables included the angle connecting the shooter to their closest defender and goalkeeper, and it's rate of change (velocity and variability) during performance. Then eye tracking system (TOBII PRO) was used to examine gaze patterns of shooters during task performance. Findings revealed that: (i) futsal players adapted their gaze patterns differently between key information sources when shooting confirmed as: their closest defender, goalkeeper, ball, and court floor; and (ii), the ball was the information source which was most fixated on, regardless of the characteristics of interpersonal coordination tendencies that emerged when shooting. These findings can be interpreted as evidence of functional perceptual behaviours used to regulate actions needed to ensure precise contact with the ball when shooting at goal. Further, adaptations of fixation patterns, varied between marking defender, goalkeeper, and ball, may provide functional postural orientation to facilitate a successful shot at goal.

A random forest approach to explore how situational variables affect perceived exertion of elite youth soccer players.

The aim of this study was to explore how situational variables affect youth soccer players' perceived exertion (RPE) after official matches. Thirty-five elite youth male players (14.33 ± 0.86 years; 173.49 ± 6.16 cm; 63.44 ± 5.98 kg) who belonged to two different teams of a professional club participated in this study. Data collection was conducted during two seasons (2016-2017, 2017-2018) and included 60 official matches (30 official matches per team). Ten minutes after each match players rated their RPE and using a modified Borg CR-10 scale. A Random Forest Regression was used to quantify the importance of match-related situational variables in RPE. Afterwards, a linear mixed model analysis was applied to identify the variability in RPE among the situational variables. The game-playing time, the player status (starter or substitute) and the player identity were the strongest predictors of RPE. Moreover, the match outcome and the final scoreline showed significant effects on both starter and substitute players but the main effect of the quality of the opponent was only identified in starter players (p < 0.05). These results allow practitioners to know how situational variables interact and modulate RPE after official matches and help them to prescribe and adapt the players' training content and load before and after matches.

A framework to explain the in-match decision-making of elite Australian football coaches.

The ability to make effective decisions is an important function of any football coach, whether during training, team selection, match-day performance or post-match player evaluation. It is not yet known how elite Australian football coaches make decisions during matches, in time-constrained but well-resourced environments. This study is the first to explore the decision-making of elite Australian football coaches during matches, in pursuit of identifying opportunities to improve the translation and implementation of research findings into the competitive match environment. Using semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis, a six-stage framework of the decision-making of elite Australian football coaches during matches was developed. The stages include (1) Opportunity trigger, (2) Understand the opportunity, (3) Determine the need for action, (4) Explore options, (5) Take action and (6) Evaluate the decision. Coaches relied on subjective and objective sources of information and consulted with assistant coaches, performance analysts, and sport scientists. The findings enable researchers to ensure future interventions to improve decision-making during matches are well integrated. They also provide an opportunity for coaches to reflect on their own decision-making process, identifying targeted areas for improvement in their own practice.

Using the NEISS database to understand pressure cooker related injuries in the USA.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence of pressure cooker related injuries in US hospital emergency departments. To quantify injury patterns associated with pressure cookers and inform prevention recommendation messaging. METHODS: The National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) was queried to identify injuries associated with pressure cookers between 1 January 2003 and 31 December 2019. Case narratives were reviewed to identify precipitating or contributing factors of pressure cooker related injuries. Negative binomial regression was employed to test for trends over time. RESULTS: The NEISS query identified 759 actual pressure cooker injuries between 2003 and 2019, yielding a national estimate of 28 337 (95% CI 24 588 to 32,086) injuries treated in US emergency departments, 1667 cases annually. Analysis of case narratives resulted in the identification of four predominant precipitating or contributing factors to injury: burning agent, struck by product, injured while opening and other. CONCLUSION: NEISS is a valuable tool for determining injury incidence and understanding common injury patterns associated with specific products. Consumers and manufacturers of pressure cookers can develop safety strategies targeted at preventing the product's main injury risks.

Non-thermal plasma disinfecting procedure is harmless to delicate items of everyday use.

Non-thermal plasma (NTP) is a well-known decontamination tool applicable for a wide range of microorganisms and viruses. Since the recent COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the need to decontaminate all daily used items, it is highly desirable to address the applicability of NTP, including its possible harmful effects. To the best of our knowledge, a comprehensive characterization of NTP effects on sensitive materials is still lacking. We investigated the potential damage to common materials of daily use inflicted by air atmospheric NTP generated in Plasmatico v1.0. The materials tested were paper, various metals, and passive and active electronic components modelling sensitive parts of commonly used small electronic devices. The NTP-exposed paper remained fully usable with only slight changes in its properties, such as whitening, pH change, and degree of polymerization. NTP caused mild oxidation of copper, tinned copper, brass, and a very mild oxidation of stainless steel. However, these changes do not affect the normal functionality of these materials. No significant changes were observed for passive electronic components; active components displayed a very slight shift of the measured values observed for the humidity sensor. In conclusion, NTP can be considered a gentle tool suitable for decontamination of various sensitive materials.

Testing the effectiveness of household fuel conservation strategies: Policy implications for increasing the affordability of exclusive clean cooking.

BACKGROUND: Exclusive clean fuel use is essential for realizing health and other benefits but is often unaffordable. Decreasing household-level fuel needs could make exclusive clean fuel use more affordable, but there is a lack of knowledge on the amount of fuel savings that could be achieved through fuel conservation behaviors relevant to rural settings in low- and middle-income countries. METHODS: Within a trial in Peru, we trained a random half of intervention participants, who had previously received a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) stove and were purchasing their own fuel, on fuel conservation strategies. We measured the amount of fuel and mega joules (MJ) of energy consumed by all participants, including control participants who were receiving free fuel from the trial. We administered surveys on fuel conservation behaviors and assigned a score based on the number of behaviors performed. RESULTS: Intervention participants with the training had a slightly higher conservation score than those without (7.2 vs. 6.6 points; p = 0.07). Across all participants, average daily energy consumption decreased by 9.5 MJ for each 1-point increase in conservation score (p < 0.001). Among households who used exclusively LPG (n = 99), each 1-point increase in conservation score was associated with a 0.04 kg decrease in LPG consumption per household per day (p = 0.03). Using pressure cookers and heating water in the sun decreased energy use, while using clay pots and forgetting to close stove knobs increased energy use. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that a household could save 1.16 kg of LPG per month for each additional fuel conservation behavior, for a maximum potential savings of 8.1 kg per month. Fuel conservation messaging could be integrated into national household energy policies to increase the affordability of exclusive clean fuel use, and subsequently achieve the environmental and health benefits that could accompany such a transition.